Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho said he had learnt to turn a deaf ear to the criticism of his coaching methods and that he remains "one of the most important managers" in the game.
Mourinho started his managerial career with Benfica in 2000 and has since managed trophy-winning sides at Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Manchester United.
The Portuguese boss was hired to replace Mauricio Pochettino at Spurs because of his record of claiming trophies but finds himself under pressure with his team slipping to sixth in the Premier League after leading the table in November.
The north London club were also knocked out of the Europa League this month after losing 3-2 on aggregate to Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb in the round of 16.
"I don't think anybody is going to discuss rocket science with the guys from NASA, with everybody around the world," Mourinho said in a virtual event organised by the club's sponsor.
"They think they can discuss football with one of the most important managers in the game. That's the beauty of football.
Dinamo Zagreb v Spurs player ratings
-
DINAMO ZAGREB RATINGS: Dominik Livakovic - 10, Made a good stop to deny Giovani Lo Celso, while he also smothered Harry Kane well twice in what was a dominant performance. Made a sensational stop to deny Kane at the end. AFP -
Stefan Ristovski - 7, Struggled a little after taking a knock from Moussa Sissoko, but put in a largely solid display, though he sometimes struggled when Lucas Moura got at him. Brilliant header to deny Tanguy Ndombele at the back post. Reuters -
Rasmus Lauritsen - 9, Was so persistent in his defending and did well when forced onto the back foot. Got some key blocks and clearances in at the end. Booked for a foul on Kane. AFP -
Kevin Theophile-Catherine - 9, The Frenchman was simply superb throughout. Put in a good block to deny Erik Lamela and made a block on the line to deny Kane. Reuters -
Bartol Franjic - 7, Playing out of his usual position, he got forward well whenever he had the opportunity and defended resolutely. EPA -
Lovro Majer - 8, Had some very good moments on the ball, almost carving out a chance for Arijan Ademi. Narrowly missed the target from the first half’s best chance. Played a great pass to assist Mislav Orsic’s first of the night. AFP -
Kristijan Jakic - 6, Was disciplined with most of his defending and got the occasional good ball forward. Hit a shocking effort from the edge of the box. Booked for pulling back Moura. EPA -
Arijan Ademi - 8, Put in a spirited performance and was seemingly everywhere on the pitch, even in extra time. It was such a commanding display from the captain. EPA -
Luka Ivanusec - 7, Was the first one to make a real foray forward and test Spurs’ defence, and pressed incredibly right until the end of extra time. Almost rounded the goalkeeper. EPA -
Bruno Petkovic - 7, Was very strong when holding up the ball and caused problems for the Spurs defence throughout. Reuters -
Mislav Orsic - 10, Had a fairly quiet first half but he really did kick into gear after that. It was the winger who opened the scoring with a good strike from outside the box, who scored the goal to equal the tie and then cut through Spurs and beat Hugo Lloris from outside of the box. EPA -
SUB Iyayi Atiemwen (Jakic 75’) – 7, Took up some brilliant positions on the pitch and assisted Orsic’s second goal of the game, while he slid a nice ball through for Marin Leovac. Reuters -
SUB Marin Leovac (Franjic 81’) – 7, While Gareth Bale caused problems, he was resolute and stuck with it, being one of those to get a key block in at the end. Got forward well but failed to hit the target from a good chance. Reuters -
SUB Mario Gavranovic (Majer 82’) – 6, Almost released Ademi after winning the ball back high up the pitch and worked hard until the very end. EPA -
SUB Petar Stojanovic (Ristovski 90’) – 6, Was booked for a foul on Sergio Reguilon but competed well and held his own defensively throughout his time on the pitch. Reuters -
SUB Josip Misic (Petkovic 90’) – 7, Came off the bench and showed plenty of discipline, sitting in front of the defence most of the time. Made a great tackle to deny Steven Bergwijn in extra time. Reuters -
SUB Dino Peric (Ademi 117’) – N/R, Was a real presence in the middle of the pitch to help see out the game. Reuters -
TOTTENHAM PLAYER RATINGS: Hugo Lloris - 6, Made a few interventions but had pretty much no chance for any of the three goals. Stopped Ivanusec from rounding him near the end. Reuters -
Serge Aurier - 4, Had a few moments where he lost concentration and did nowhere near enough to deal with Orsic. Missed the target with a headed chance. AFP -
Davinson Sanchez - 5, Got a vital touch on the ball to deny a clear chance for Ademi and looked solid in the first half, but regressed more and more as time went on. EPA -
Eric Dier - 5, Held his own in a physical battle with Petkovic but had some really shaky moments when dealing with the ball. Made a weak attempt at cutting out the ball across the box for Dinamo Zagreb’s second. AFP -
Ben Davies - 6, Was fairly reliable in his defensive work and had the occasional foray forward to help out in attack. Cleared despite being off balance when Orsic got a ball into the box. Reuters -
Moussa Sissoko - 4, It was a pretty tame performance by his standards, as he played at a fairly pedestrian pace and didn’t do enough to stop Orsic for the third of the game. EPA -
Harry Winks - 5, Moved the ball around neatly but failed to translate that into any sort of penetrative play. Reuters -
Erik Lamela - 5, Took too long when his best chance came, which allowed Theophile-Catherine to get the block in. Was booked for elbowing Ademi. AFP -
Dele Alli - 5, Had some good ideas but poor execution, as was the case when he hit an air shot after getting a decent chance with a smart run. Reuters -
Lucas Moura - 6, This was another busy performance from the Brazilian, who made the biggest impact when getting at Ristovski. Didn’t carve out any clear chances though. AFP -
Harry Kane - 6, Played some great passes to create chances for his teammates, but nobody was able to make the most of them. Had a header blocked on the line. Reuters -
SUB Gareth Bale (Lamela 60’) - 6, Got some great balls into the box and showed flashes of brilliance, while he narrowly missed the target with a strike from range. Reuters -
SUB Giovani Lo Celso (Alli 68’) - 6, Got a decent shot off that was saved by Livakovic and almost released Moura with a good ball behind the Dinamo Zagreb defence. Reuters -
SUB Tanguy Ndombele (Winks 68’) - 5, Initially added a bit of extra quality to the Spurs midfield and almost got a header at the back post. Faded as time went on and could have done more to prevent Orsic’s third. Reuters -
SUB Carlos Vinicius (Moura 86’) – 5, Looked anonymous after coming off the bench, as the Dinamo Zagreb defence marshalled him well. Had one decent chance but saw his effort blocked. Reuters -
SUB Sergio Reguilon (Davies FT’) - 6, Was a threat going forward but wasn’t as precise in his play as Spurs fans have come to expect. AFP -
SUB Steven Bergwijn (Aurier 108’) – N/R, Tried to make things happen but missed the target with a curling effort from outside of the box. EPA
"I got used to it. I appreciate that. So that's fine for me."
The 58-year-old said his supporters, whom he labelled 'Mourinistas', motivate him to bounce back from a difficult spell.
"I used to call them the Mourinistas, because in Portugal we use 'ista' in the end of the name of the club that we love, to express the support," he said.
"I have so many Mourinistas around the world that I play for them."
Spurs next play away to Newcastle United in the Premier League on April 4 after the international break.
