Mauricio Pochettino has said he is grateful for the faith Tottenham have put in him, revealing he wants to repay the club by fighting for success in what will be his “toughest season” yet in north London.
The Argentinian signed a new five-year contract with Spurs earlier this summer and, at the time, reports claimed he would be handed increased transfer funds in order to bolster his squad and compete on multiple fronts this season.
However, Tottenham didn’t sign a single player during the summer transfer window, and delays to the construction of their new White Hart Lane-based stadium have lengthened the club’s current transitional phase.
But Pochettino believes he made the right choice by committing his future to Spurs. The former Espanyol and Southampton coach gave a rallying cry in his press conference ahead of Saturday’s meeting with Fulham at Wembley.
“Given everything, for me, it will be the toughest season and if we want success we have to give more than our best,” Pochettino said (via the London Evening Standard).
“100 percent is not enough – it’s 200 percent. We know from inside that the season will be hard and because we are warriors we want to fight.
“We want to be proud at the end, we want success and we do not want to complain or make excuses. I am a winner and I love the challenge, so I feel full of energy. We want to go again. The club, the fans, and the team need our full energy more than before.
“I am very grateful to the club, the fans and to Daniel Levy. When you are in a difficult situation, this is the moment when you need to show that you are there. It is easy when everything is good to be there, but when the winter is coming it’s easy to run away.
“I want to be on the frontline fighting and trying to win with all the circumstances that, today, are at the club. I feel the responsibility to them and that is why I am here.
“I am happy and I think Tottenham gave us – my family, Jesus [Perez, my assistant], everyone – a lot of things that always we will be grateful for and it was a moment to say, ‘We are going to be with you all, fighting in the circumstances’.”
This weekend’s match against Fulham will be the first of a string of matches, including encounters with Liverpool and Cardiff City, to take place at Wembley instead of Tottenham’s new stadium.
Former Spurs striker Dimitar Berbatov thinks his old club must move into their new home as quickly as possible or they risk losing their identity – read more on Berbatov’s quotes here.
