How Mauricio Pochettino is shaping up to be ‘Arsene Wenger’ of Spurs
This might be another season where Tottenham Hotspur fans might be looking forward to a top three finish in the Premier League to gain a Champions League spot next season but Spurs fans have a lot to look forward to after the end of the 2018-19 season. For the ongoing decade, Tottenham has been into top flight football thanks to one man, Mauricio Pochettino. The Argentine manager has been at the helm of the club for five years and has become a phenomenal figure for Spurs.
From inheriting a youth squad with no real quality to oversee building a stadium, Pochettino has done everything to be compared with former Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger. Although Pochettino hasn’t had any silverware on his part, he once suggested that adding trophies to your cabinet increases a manager’s ego and not help the club in any way. The Argentine has signed a new five-year contract extension which ties him to Tottenham till 2023. Let us take a look at 3 reasons why Mauricio Pochettino is in the role of an ‘Arsene Wenger’ at Spurs.
#3 Inheriting a young squad and making stars
Premier League fans would remember how Arsene Wenger would not fear giving youth a chance over experienced players in his early Arsenal days. Players like Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Cesc Fabregas, and Mathieu Flamini donned the Gunners jersey from an early age. Under Wenger, Arsenal reshaped their youth promotion strategy. Giving youth players a chance to prove their worth to be in the first team rather than being a usual buy for lower tier teams has always been the motto of Wenger’s principle. Pochettino hailing from cross-town rivals; somewhat holds the same policy.
From inheriting an inexperienced costly squad, Pochettino at once turned his attention to youth players in the academy. He quickly sacrificed Roberto Soldado for academy graduate, Harry Kane as the starting striker and the gamble paid off. Kane, Dele Ali and Eric Dier made it to England’s Euro 2016 squad. But that has not been all. After having two successive empty transfer windows, Pochettino played an ambitious Harry Winks in the midfield for most of the important matches in the season. It can be well said that Pochettino has the same vision as Wenger, provided he stays at the club.