Christian Eriksen has emphasised the importance of keeping Mauricio Pochettino at Tottenham.
It’s been widely believed that Pochettino came close to issuing Daniel Levy with an ultimatum after Sunday’s season finale against Leicester by calling for the chairman to “be brave, take risks and create a new idea” at Spurs. The Argentine also refused, again, to commit to the club long term, insisting his future is out of his hands.
And this week Chelsea’s interest in Pochettino has emerged and it comes ahead of the 46-year-old holding talks with Levy when he will ask the chairman to release the financial shackles and waste no time in offloading popular trio Toby Alderweireld, Mousa Dembele and Danny Rose. He also wants this summer’s signings to be completed before the World Cup, which begins on June 14th
Several key players including,Hugo Lloris, Dele Alli, Jan Vertonghen, Harry Kane and Eriksen,feel tied to Pochettino and they are reluctant to commit to the club until the Argentine’s future is confirmed.
It all could lead to a tense summer if Levy disagrees with the manager, a possibility acknowledged by Pochettino on Sunday, and Eriksen has stressed the need for continued stability.
“He’s really important,”:Eriksen told the London Evening Standard. “You can see what he has achieved with this club.
“When I arrived [in summer 2013], there was a season with a lot of ups and downs at first but ever since [Pochettino joined a year later] it’s really been very stable — finishing in the top three is a big achievement for the manager.
“He can have a big pat on his shoulders for the people around him and for him. He’s pushed us and the players in the right direction.
Eriksen added: “We’re going into every game and winning games with the right mentality with exciting football. The fans in particular, I hope, enjoy how we play.I enjoy how we play under the manager. I think the style of play is something that suits me and the players we have. Generally, you’re going into every game with excitement.
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He went on to say: “You know you’re going to play forward and not going to defend. You’re going to try to create and score goals. Everybody who follows the Premier League knows we have been consistent with the points we’ve got. Finishing three times in the top three means a lot and it’s a big achievement compared to where the club were six years ago.”
Eriksen however did say he is not concerned by Pochettino’s recent comments, insisting: “He showed he’s a Spurs man.”
We’ve had three consecutive top-three finishes under Pochettino but our progress continues to be weighed against their lack of silverware since 2008, particularly after we squandered leads in the Champions League last 16 to Juventus and the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United.
“We’ve been very stable,”:Eriksen said. “People should look at the stabilisation of the team and our achievements in the Premier League. The next step is, of course, to finish the semis and try to get through [to a final]. I think if we do what we did against all the teams in the Champions League again, we have a chance of going even further.
He adds: “I think we’ve shown in the Champions League we have something we can take with us. We’re over the hill, we tried it. Now we want to win something, we want to go further. Mentally that’s a big step we need to go forward.”
Eriksen was named in the PFA Team of the Year after finishing with 10 goals and 10 assists in the Premier League, having notched eight and 15, respectively, in the previous campaign.He added: “I think personally it’s been one of my better seasons, defintely. I’m trying to control the game a bit more, be a bit more involved. In that way, it has been good.I would say it’s not that big a difference compared to last season if you look at the stats. I want to be involved as much as possible but if it’s assists or goals, I’ll take it.”
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