Mauricio Pochettino has explained “why sometimes I laugh when people say we need to win a trophy”.
Tottenham have gone over a decade since they last won silverware, with Juande Ramos’ 2008 League Cup win their most recent trophy.
The north London club have been transformed since, with Pochettino turning them from perennial also-rans to genuine title contenders – although Graeme Souness disagrees.
Despite this, both Pochettino and Tottenham are still constantly questioned due to their lack of trophies, which the manager admits makes him laugh.
“The problem is so dangerous about what the people perceive and what the reality is,” he said. “We live in the reality here. If I am in League Two or non league and I face teams like Tottenham or Chelsea or United or City, always in my mind is about winning. Sure, I am going to think that we can beat them.
“We are in Tottenham in a project that today is not only to win, it is to maybe…okay I don’t want to say a percentage, but it is about to care about the financial side. It is about to build the new stadium to help to do or to finish the project, that it is a project that is going to be a massive legacy for the club, for the fans, for the players in the future, for the new coaching staff, manager. It is going to be fantastic to have this possibility to work here in those facilities. It is amazing.
“But when you are in charge like a coach or a manager, like what happened with Arsene Wenger, that they were building the new stadium but at the same moment you have a lot of limitations and the people demand you to win but you don’t have the same tools to fight with other clubs.
“Of course it is going to be fantastic, but the most important thing is that I accept that challenge when Daniel Levy called me to offer a contract here. He was clear – him and Joe Lewis.
And they say to me on this – and this guy was in front (points at Jesus Perez) – they said: ‘Mauricio, you need to prepare and to help the club to arrive to the new stadium. When we finish the new stadium, in the first season in the new stadium, to have a team that can finish in the top four in the season after.’
“We are in advance, no? That is why sometimes I laugh when the people say we need to win a trophy. Yes, but look at the project – how we are in advance. And that is true and you can ask Joe Lewis or Daniel Levy or ask Jesus. That is what they say to me.
“But we are so ambitious and we have the ambition to win. Of course, we want to win and be competitive and that it is in the way we are now. But I accept that challenge. But now we cannot say the club is in a position that is all bad.
“I think we are in an amazing position. The club is finishing the new stadium, one of the best stadiums in the world. The team is so competitive that we are involved for the third season in a row in the Champions League, playing the last year and a half in Wembley away from home.
“What more? Of course win and I want to win tomorrow. I want to win Sunday. I want to win, yes of course. But we will see if we can do something important.”