If rumours are to be believed, former Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino is being lined up by Real Madrid.
According to Onda Cero, Pochettino, who spent five years as Spurs’ manager, has been sounded out by the Spanish giants with a view toward potentially replacing Zinedine Zidane.
And Tottenham will be hoping this does not materialise.
What Pochettino does is no longer the Lilywhites’ business after sacking him close to a year ago, but the Argentine joining Real could increase pressure on Tottenham – and Jose Mourinho – in a big way.
That’s because if he joins the Bernabeu club and Mourinho hasn’t ended the North Londoners’ trophy drought come next May, there’s bound to be speculation about Harry Kane joining his former boss in Spain – and it would have some merit.
The 27-year-old is definitely enjoying his football under Mourinho right now, considering he’s been involved in 18 goals across all competitions already – scoring 10, setting up eight.
Spurs fans might say that he has no reason to leave, but when asked in March [TeamTalk] whether he would prefer to win the Premier League title or break Alan Shearer’s goal record in this competition, he said: “Premier League winner for sure. I’ve done some individual records and had great success individually, but I play this sport to win trophies as a team.”
In the same interview, Kane, who will be 28 at the start of next season, admitted that he wouldn’t stay at the club just ‘for the sake of it’.
And if the Portuguese manager doesn’t give him a first medal to cherish come May, and Pochettino joins Madrid, there could be a perfect storm hovering over their £1 billion stadium when next summer’s transfer window opens.
Tottenham absolutely have to win a trophy this season, because 13 years is too long, but the prospect of Pochettino heading to Spain might just add a level of importance to it.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
