Tottenham have made considerable progress over the last few years under the stewardship of Mauricio Pochettino. The Argentine has changed the mentality of the team and turned Tottenham into a side that challenges for titles and regularly competes in the Champions League.
Additionally, Tottenham have been able to achieve this despite being outspent considerably by their rivals in the transfer window and playing their home game at Wembley.
One criticism that has been leveled at Spurs in recent times is that although they have made terrific progress, they still haven’t been able to get over the line and win trophies. In fact, even Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri also suggested during his pre-match press conference ahead of the Carabao Cup semifinal that it was time for Pochettino to win a trophy with Spurs.
Pochettino, however, has shot back at that suggestion and insisted that Tottenham are in a transition phase with regards to their stadium move. In fact, the Argentine said that Spurs were ahead of where they expected to be in the project.
The Telegraph quoted Pochettino saying, “When you build a stadium and you have limitations, people demand you win, but you don’t have the same tools as other clubs. When Daniel Levy and Joe Lewis called me, they said ‘Mauricio, we need to prepare and help the club, so when we arrive in the new stadium we have a team that can finish in the top four’.
“We are in advance, no? That’s why I laugh when people say we need to win a trophy.”
The Argentine further reiterated that Tottenham’s project was different to the ones of their rivals and that trophies can only be demanded from the team if they invest considerably into their squad.
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“If I arrive at Tottenham and Daniel says you have £300 million to spend, it is my responsibility to win,” added Pochettino. “Come on, if I was to spend £300 million and then say the project is to build step by step and be in the top four or maybe win something. Come on, it’s not normal, this.”
“At some clubs, it is only about winning. If they sign a manager, it’s about titles and the top four. For us, at Tottenham, the objective was different. After nearly five years, the club has reached another level. But how we operate doesn’t change. That’s the point.”
“People talk about winning titles. One thing is to reduce the gap and fight with the big sides. But afterward if we want to win titles, we have to operate in a different way. At the moment we operate in the same way as five years ago. Maybe we can win titles, but it’s going to be tough.”
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