Tottenham confirming Lucas Moura's departure at the end of the season brought back so many memories of the peak Mauricio Pochettino era. Of course, that historic night in Amsterdam was the summit of those feelings, but there was so much more than many likely remember to Pochettino's five-and-a-half-year reign than just that one momentous evening.
The start of his reign in N17 was troubling. The former Southampton boss was still learning English and there was an obvious lack of identity in the early stages. However, over time that certainly changed and it became very clear that intensity and work ethic was part of Pochettino's methods.
Spurs soon became the team that covered the most ground, all while conceding minimal opportunities and thus goals, while also scoring for fun at the other end. Over the course of three seasons, Tottenham became feared and Pochettino had built a team that supporters could be proud of watching, a far cry from the current feeling in north London.
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With the 2022/23 season nearing its conclusion, another campaign of disappointment has elapsed but even by Spurs' current standards, the last five months have been pretty awful.
The month of March was really when things went severely downhill for Spurs. In the early embers of the month, Spurs were knocked out of the FA Cup by Championship Sheffield United before a second elimination was sealed one week later at the hands of AC Milan in the Champions League.
A win over Nottingham Forest brought some reprieve but a 3-3 draw against Southampton saw manager Antonio Conte unleash a barraging rant which saw him sacked during the international break that followed. In a repeat of these months in 2021, Spurs were now looking for a new manager. London rivals Chelsea also followed suit by dismissing Graham Potter, but they have acted vastly different in their new manager search.
Very quickly a four-man short list was created with Julian Nagelsmann, Vincent Kompany and one unknown name joining Pochettino. Nagelsmann pulled himself out of the running for the vacancy while Kompany signed a new deal at Burnley which left just Pochettino and football.london understands that a deal has been agreed for the Argentine to join Chelsea.
Amazingly, from all of this, Pochettino was never really considered by Spurs to replace Conte despite the fact he brought the club back to its glory days. However, with Nagelsmann also out of the running for the job at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Daniel Levy, if it is possible, has to at least try and convince Pochettino to return to the post he was sacked from in 2019.
The fanbase is significantly divided at the minute and under Pochettino it was the most united everyone had been in the club's modern era. With several teams on the rise and Spurs falling in the pecking order, the next man at the helm must be awarded patience and time and who better to have that bestowed upon them than Pochettino? The man who made Spurs fans fall back in love with their team again.
Ultimately though if there is no way of a sensational reunion being agreed upon with the final stages of his Chelsea deal being sorted, there is another alternative. Feyenoord boss Arne Slot has been heavily linked with the job in recent weeks, although no name will likely be determined as the frontrunner until a director of football is appointed.
Nonetheless, Spurs can at least begin the process of early conversations with the 44-year-old who has just guided Feyenoord to their first Eredivisie title in six seasons with it being just their second league triumph of the 21st century.
Regardless of who does come in, a hefty rebuild is clearly needed and that may involve losing star striker Harry Kane. By not going back to Pochettino, it shows the club are moving on and to maybe finally start a new era selling the player who defined Pochettino's tenure is the right thing to do.
Either way the days of appointing a big-name and big-money manager should also be behind Spurs as they simply don't have the budget or winning methods to appease those coaches. Granted Slot has just won silverware but he is mostly unknown to many and bringing him to the club would hopefully see Spurs enter another successful long-term period similar to the one created by Pochettino.
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