Mauricio Pochettino admits Tottenham still feels like 'my club'

Mauricio Pochettino has admitted that he still considers Tottenham to be ‘my club’ because of the ‘amazing journey’ he had during his five years at the helm.

Pochettino guided Spurs to three consecutive top-three Premier League finishes between 2015 and 2018 and also took them to their first ever Champions League final in 2019.

The Argentine was sacked only a few months later and has since found a new job at Paris Saint-Germain, but insists even now that it is ‘impossible to forget’ what happened in north London.

“It was an amazing journey and an amazing time,” Pochettino told the latest episode of Rio Ferdinand’s Between the Lines on BT Sport.

“I still feel that is it my club, my place. When you feel the commitment from people giving everything to try to be successful and treating us really well, it is impossible to forget that. Tottenham is always going to be a special club for me,” he added.

“We were a real family and that does not happen often in a football club.”

Pochettino explained in detail that his philosophy is to respect a club’s history and traditions when he arrives in a new job, rather than making huge changes. That attitude perhaps explains why he also remains so revered among Tottenham fans.

“When you arrive at a new club, it’s always about trying to decide the best strategy. But I always believe in knowing the culture of a club, knowing why the fans love football and how the history of the club has made them how they are,” he said.

“Of course, it is important to stick with your idea and try to implement them. [But] respecting the history of the club, respecting the ‘taste’ of the fans and the culture is the most important thing [before] you start building what you want after.

“You can change small things to feel that you are part of the history, but the most important thing is to decide on the philosophy and tradition together when you arrive, rather than try to change everything.”

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