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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2017/03/01/spurs-manager-mauricio-pochettino-faces-tough-task-convincing/
Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino to hold talks with Daniel Levy over strengthening his squad
Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino faces tough task in convincing Daniel Levy he needs more transfer funds
Mauricio Pochettino (left) is understood to be keen on signing winger Wilfried Zaha (bottom right), but he must first convince Daniel Levy to loosen his purse strings
Matt Law, Football News Correspondent
1 March 2017 • 2:03pm
Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino is preparing to offer up a reality check by telling chairman Daniel Levy that he will need a stronger squad to keep the club punching above their weight next season.
Pochettino is on course to guide Spurs into the Champions League for a second successive campaign, despite the fact their transfer budget, for fees and wages, is dwarfed by all of their rivals.
With Chelsea, Manchester United and City all preparing to spend big and changes expected at ars*nal and Liverpool, Pochettino knows he faces a tough task to keep moving Tottenham forwards.
The Argentine enjoys an extremely close relationship with Levy, who shares many of his ideas, and understands that the move to the new stadium means he cannot expect to be given a huge transfer budget.
But Pochettino will tell Levy that he needs a stronger squad next season and that the club will need to perform well in the summer transfer window to help him combine Premier League and European campaigns.
Tottenham have already targeted Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Ross Barkley, who will only have a year left on his Everton contract at the end of the season, while Burnley striker Andre Gray, another player whose contract is running down, could force his way on to Pochettino’s radar.
“We try to sign players who can improve our squad not only in terms of football quality,” said Pochettino. “If they are very good people, it is even better. We are a company. Football is the most important thing, but it is not only about football. It is about football and people.”
Spurs spent far less than the rest of the top six over the past two transfer windows, bringing in Victor Wanyama, Vincent Janssen, Moussa Sissoko and Georges Kevin-N’Koudou.
Of those signings only Wanyama, who cost just £9 million from Southampton, has made a significant impact with Pochettino largely having to rely on the same group of players who finished third last season.
Tottenham’s first-choice team is one of the best in the league, but the lack of depth has been exposed at times this season by injuries to Harry Kane, Tony Alderweireld, Mousa Dembélé and Danny Rose.
Spurs failed to qualify from the group stages of the Champions League and were last week eliminated from the Europa League by Belgian club Gent.
While Pochettino has faced questions from outside Tottenham over when his team will win a trophy, it is still seen as a minor miracle from within the club that he has kept them competing with Chelsea, City, United, ars*nal and Liverpool for a top-four place.
Despite winning the EFL Cup, United are outside the top four with players such as Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial to call on from the bench, and having spent a world record £89m on Paul Pogba.
In contrast, Pochettino has had to rely heavily on 21-year-old Harry Winks, who has been impressive this season, and has been forced to employ Heung-Min Son as a striker with £17m signing Janssen yet to score from open play.
Janssen’s troubles in front of goal have been well documented and he could leave at the end of the season, while Sissoko is yet to get anywhere close to justifying the money spent on him.
The figure reported for Sissoko was a club record £30m, but the fee was split into five payments of £6m with Newcastle United only receiving the full amount if he stays for the duration of his five-year contract.
It is also believed the fee was further offset by Newcastle owing money for Andros Townsend, which sheds light on why Pochettino and Levy were willing to take what many people considered an expensive gamble on Sissoko.
N’Koudou has made just two starts for Tottenham, in the FA Cup and the EFL Cup, and the delay over his signing from Marseille is thought to have contributed to the decision of head of recruitment Paul Mitchell to hand in his notice.
Tottenham have yet to confirm a successor to Mitchell, who has been serving his notice, but Pochettino is under no illusions over the size of the task he is facing with expectation levels now raised.
Pochettino’s team face a key clash against Everton on Sunday and Tottenham are hopeful central defenders Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld will be fit after the duo were taken off in the thrashing of Stoke City.
Millwall have been given 3,681 tickets by Tottenham for the FA Cup quarter-final clash at White Hart Lane following talks with police about fears over trouble.
Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino to hold talks with Daniel Levy over strengthening his squad
Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino faces tough task in convincing Daniel Levy he needs more transfer funds
Mauricio Pochettino (left) is understood to be keen on signing winger Wilfried Zaha (bottom right), but he must first convince Daniel Levy to loosen his purse strings
Matt Law, Football News Correspondent
1 March 2017 • 2:03pm
Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino is preparing to offer up a reality check by telling chairman Daniel Levy that he will need a stronger squad to keep the club punching above their weight next season.
Pochettino is on course to guide Spurs into the Champions League for a second successive campaign, despite the fact their transfer budget, for fees and wages, is dwarfed by all of their rivals.
With Chelsea, Manchester United and City all preparing to spend big and changes expected at ars*nal and Liverpool, Pochettino knows he faces a tough task to keep moving Tottenham forwards.
The Argentine enjoys an extremely close relationship with Levy, who shares many of his ideas, and understands that the move to the new stadium means he cannot expect to be given a huge transfer budget.
But Pochettino will tell Levy that he needs a stronger squad next season and that the club will need to perform well in the summer transfer window to help him combine Premier League and European campaigns.
Tottenham have already targeted Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Ross Barkley, who will only have a year left on his Everton contract at the end of the season, while Burnley striker Andre Gray, another player whose contract is running down, could force his way on to Pochettino’s radar.
“We try to sign players who can improve our squad not only in terms of football quality,” said Pochettino. “If they are very good people, it is even better. We are a company. Football is the most important thing, but it is not only about football. It is about football and people.”
Spurs spent far less than the rest of the top six over the past two transfer windows, bringing in Victor Wanyama, Vincent Janssen, Moussa Sissoko and Georges Kevin-N’Koudou.
Of those signings only Wanyama, who cost just £9 million from Southampton, has made a significant impact with Pochettino largely having to rely on the same group of players who finished third last season.
Tottenham’s first-choice team is one of the best in the league, but the lack of depth has been exposed at times this season by injuries to Harry Kane, Tony Alderweireld, Mousa Dembélé and Danny Rose.
Spurs failed to qualify from the group stages of the Champions League and were last week eliminated from the Europa League by Belgian club Gent.
While Pochettino has faced questions from outside Tottenham over when his team will win a trophy, it is still seen as a minor miracle from within the club that he has kept them competing with Chelsea, City, United, ars*nal and Liverpool for a top-four place.
Despite winning the EFL Cup, United are outside the top four with players such as Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial to call on from the bench, and having spent a world record £89m on Paul Pogba.
In contrast, Pochettino has had to rely heavily on 21-year-old Harry Winks, who has been impressive this season, and has been forced to employ Heung-Min Son as a striker with £17m signing Janssen yet to score from open play.
Janssen’s troubles in front of goal have been well documented and he could leave at the end of the season, while Sissoko is yet to get anywhere close to justifying the money spent on him.
The figure reported for Sissoko was a club record £30m, but the fee was split into five payments of £6m with Newcastle United only receiving the full amount if he stays for the duration of his five-year contract.
It is also believed the fee was further offset by Newcastle owing money for Andros Townsend, which sheds light on why Pochettino and Levy were willing to take what many people considered an expensive gamble on Sissoko.
N’Koudou has made just two starts for Tottenham, in the FA Cup and the EFL Cup, and the delay over his signing from Marseille is thought to have contributed to the decision of head of recruitment Paul Mitchell to hand in his notice.
Tottenham have yet to confirm a successor to Mitchell, who has been serving his notice, but Pochettino is under no illusions over the size of the task he is facing with expectation levels now raised.
Pochettino’s team face a key clash against Everton on Sunday and Tottenham are hopeful central defenders Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld will be fit after the duo were taken off in the thrashing of Stoke City.
Millwall have been given 3,681 tickets by Tottenham for the FA Cup quarter-final clash at White Hart Lane following talks with police about fears over trouble.
