Mauricio Pochettino is one of the youngest and most prolific managers in the Premier League.
From his short spell at St. Mary’s to his current reign with Spurs, the Argentine’s progressive and transformative development of youthful players into household names in the Premier League bears great semblance to some of the games’ great.
Yet still, the 45-year old has failed to win a major honor in his managerial career. Twice has he come within touching distance of the Premier League title, and equally twice has he failed.
First it was Leicester and only recently was the most illustrious trophy in England snatched away from him by Chelsea. His woes are however deeply rooted in the team’s mental strength, one which should be addressed before the start of the new season.
Losing their best players
Pochettino is at a crossroads.
On one end he has spent the better part of the last three years assembling a young, hungry squad to challenge the League’s elite but on the other; the players aren’t getting any younger and are in desperate need of a trophy.
Tottenham- and not for the first time- face the risk of losing some of their best players to rivals clubs in the Premier League.
Kyle Walker is the latest of an endless list of players to have moved away from White Hart Lane in the hope of cementing their legacies with a winner’s medal- most of who eventually did.
Walker joined Manchester City on a record breaking £54m for a defender. How long before Harry Kane follows suit? What of Victor Wanyama, Danny Rose and Eric Dier?
Terrible underachievers
Tottenham’s 4-2 defeat to Chelsea last season was their seventh successive loss in the FA Cup semi-finals. This essentially means Spurs have now lost the last seven FA Cup finals they’ve played in.
It offers a vivid explanation as to why the club has never lifted the Premier League title.
See the FA Cup semis are usually played at a pivotal point of the season where, more often than not, the League title is still an open race.
Failure to advance to the Final has ideally taken a toll on their confidence and momentum; adversely denting their title hopes.
For a team with the most vibrant and exciting players in the League, Spurs are terrible underachievers.
Overshadowed by Arsenal
The North London derby is one of the most hotly contested fixtures in English top flight; yet still there has always been one winner.
Tottenham haven’t secured a single trophy since their League Cup triumph in 2008 and the closest they ever came to breaking the jinx was in the 2015 final of the same competition where they, well, lost to Chelsea.
Worst of all is the league title which has evaded them like a plague for the last 56 years. Arsenal have had their fair share of trophy droughts but Tottenham simply have to win a trophy this season.
Written by Brian Humphrey
Follow Brian on Twitter @brihum
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