Why Pochettino is key

The announcement that Mauricio Pochettino has verbally agreed a new five-year contract with Tottenham will add to the belief that there are exciting times ahead at White Hart Lane, writes Adam Bate.

It’s been quite a ride for Tottenham supporters this season and it’s been a source of pride too. Pride in the emergence of Dele Alli as the most exciting young player in the Premier League and pride in the thought that striker Harry Kane is one of their own as well.

However, there’s also a sense that Spurs fans are fully aware of what the recent buzz has been built on. It’s a 44-year-old Argentine from the small agricultural town of Murphy who is the law at the Lane. So talk of a new five-year deal for Mauricio Pochettino is huge news.

Of course, Pochettino’s contract already commits him to the club until 2019. But with the man himself having set hares running by mentioning long-term ambitions to return to Paris Saint-Germain, and reports of admirers in Manchester United’s boardroom, the fear was there.

Such is the nature of success. And is it any wonder he has his supporters? Pochettino’s Tottenham are impossible to ignore. Leicester might be the fairy-tale but perhaps Spurs are a weightier tome – the one their rivals will really have to wrestle with over the rest of the decade.

They have the best young talent – with an average age of under 25 – and a style of play that excites. While Leicester’s success is built on a system that others will not replicate, Tottenham’s trick is that others cannot replicate it.

Watford boss Quique Sanchez Flores described Tottenham as “like …

continue reading in source www.skysports.com