Sunday 3 January 2016 15:44, UK
Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris has admitted he was contemplating his future at the club until Mauricio Pochettino arrived at White Hart Lane.
The France captain signed a new five-year deal shortly after Pochettino's appointment in the summer of 2014, crediting the Argentine at the time and believing that Spurs would progress under his stewardship.
Lloris' faith has since been rewarded, with Spurs rejuvenated under Pochettino having lost just twice in the Premier League in his second season.
Three straight wins over the Christmas period saw Tottenham consolidate their position in the top four and victory at Everton on Super Sunday would add further belief that Pochettino's young squad are genuine title contenders.
But their current good form is a far cry from Lloris' turbulent first two campaigns in north London, which saw Andre Villas-Boas sacked and replaced by Tim Sherwood, which combined with Spurs' inconsistent form, led to Lloris questioning whether he should stay.
"I've flourished completely here," he told L'Equipe. "I can even say that since the arrival of Pochettino I found new benchmarks.
"My second season here was complicated, I had kept a certain level of performance but collectively there were too many gaps and it had been against the big teams.
"I had not felt a strong club, but rather an unstable one, with a coaching change in the middle of the season, just the opposite of what I like to see in football. I was actually asking myself questions until Pochettino arrived."
Lloris said he was confident Pochettino would turn things around because of the work ethic he quickly instilled at the club.
"Even when it was not working yet, he said: 'Do not worry, we will get there.' His speech was clear, we suddenly knew where we were going," Lloris added.
"With the quality of the workforce, and work ethic that is in training, there is no reason that we don't progress."
