Frank Lampard has accused Jose Mourinho's critics of being envious of the outspoken Chelsea boss.
Mourinho's attitude has come under fire again this season, but Lampard said: "He wants to win so much and lives it so much and gets criticised for it.
"We should all be happy that someone has got a personality that shows. Jose is a pleasure to work for.
"I don't think jealousy is the right word. There is envy of a team that has dominated on the domestic front."
Lampard added: "No one is asking for everything to be perfect. You have to give him credit for what he has done. He is an emotional person and character.
"We seem to have a problem in this country dealing with someone who has something different to offer.
"At first everyone was excited by him. Now they seem to have turned on him. A manager who doesn't do it gets criticised for being bland or not caring about his team.
"I want Tottenham to obtain their objective that is qualification for the Champions League"
"When you are on top people do tend to be more critical. We have been criticised in the same way that Manchester United have suffered.
"Maybe Arsenal suffered a little. When things go wrong people jump on the bandwagon and criticise and are waiting for things to go wrong for you.
"Jose is prepared to have a laugh and joke, which is something a lot of people don't see. When he wants to work he is probably the most focused manager I've seen."
Mourinho, meanwhile, has modestly played down his award as coach of the year from the International Federation of Historians and Statisticians.
He said: "I find that it is a prize with enormous credibility because it is based on statistics and not just the opinion of people.
"In 2005 I won a championship, an English cup and reached the final stages of the Champions League - obviously I am happy with all this, but I am ambitious and I want to win more.
"It is for that reason I can say that I do not feel like the best coach in the world.
"The club (Chelsea) has cemented a position of force in England, but it still needs to grow as an institution."
"I'm sad not to get to Ossie's funeral but I cannot"
The 65-year-old, who scored 202 goals in 10 years at Stamford Bridge, is waiting for a procedure to correct his heart problems.
"I feel so wiped out. I'm sad not to get to Ossie's funeral but I cannot," Tambling told the Daily Mirror.
"The doctors told me I was very lucky - it could have been much worse."