Mauricio Pochettino's five-year deal at Tottenham spells success

By Adam Bate, Comment and Analysis @ghostgoal

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.

Deal agreed

Mauricio Pochettino has verbally agreed a new five-year contract

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.

Mauricio Pochettino explains why he's extending his contract at Tottenham

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.

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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 animals" in their tenacity and Stoke manager Mark Hughes said they were "quicker to everything" on the recent trip to the Britannia Stadium. It's hunger that's not been seen at White Hart Lane in many years.

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Image: Pochettino has changed Tottenham's style of play

The intensity of the training is well documented. Danny Rose has called it "an enjoyable kind of suffering" but once on the pitch it's the opposition in pain. The distance covered stats certainly illustrate the physical effort that goes into their work.

No team in the Premier League had made as many sprints this season, while Spurs have also outrun their opponents in 30 of their 35 matches. In total, they've run more than 163 kilometres further than the opposition. It's useful for any team but when fused with such quality it's deadly.

Image: Tottenham stats under Pochettino so far this season in the Premier League

By most metrics, Tottenham have the best defence in the league having conceded the fewest goals and shots on target. At the other end, they've created the most chances, had the most shots and are one shy of having scored the most goals. It's a team in harmony.

Just four points are required from the final three games for Tottenham's best ever Premier League points tally. The only disappointment is that it's unlikely to be enough to deliver the title too. And yet, Leicester's year might yet morph into Tottenham's time.

What he's created here is something very special. Everything is there for Tottenham.
Jamie Carragher

"The more I watch them, the more I think this chance might come again," Jamie Carragher told Sky Sports. "I was expecting Spurs to go back to being challenging for top four, but I think in terms of years to come, this is going to be a side that's challenging for the title."

Such is life as a Spurs supporter that thoughts will inevitably turn to what might derail these hopes. There's an obvious answer. For while players come and go, creating a culture of success is trickier. "We have a winning mentality," said Pochettino recently. It needs to stay. He needs to stay.

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"Sometimes when you pick a man of the match for Spurs, it could be five or six of them because it's all about the team," added Carragher. "The man who should get most credit is the manager, because what he's created here is something very special. Everything is there for Tottenham."

Everything is there and now it seems the thing that matters most is there to stay too. Pochettino and the culture he's brought has made a commitment to the club, lifting spirits after the disappointing draw with West Brom. "Today is a good moment to communicate that we have a verbal agreement," he said on Friday.

Tottenham have unbelievable potential.
Mauricio Pochettino

"It's for many reasons. Tottenham have unbelievable potential. I think after two years here we've created a great group here. We have young players with the potential to get to the top. The staff and supporters are unbelievable. I think there's massive potential. Why not stay here?"

Why not, indeed. For Pochettino's decision sends a message. If one of the most highly-rated young managers around believes in this project then there's every reason that his highly rated young players should do too. One title race might look lost but, under Pochettino, Tottenham's race is far from run.

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