Bravery is Mauricio Pochettino’s Philosophy for Tottenham
Tottenham’s success these past two-and-a-half years have been because of Mauricio Pochettino, but to him, being brave in a certain context has helped too.
Seven months ago, Mauricio Pochettino believed Tottenham would be in for a special period after extending his stay for five more years. Yesterday, the Argentine manager detailed his first step to ensuring Spurs can accomplish his goal, that being, winning a league title.
And today, Pochettino unveiled what has seen the north London club earn fifth and third place finishes respectively these past two seasons. It all boils down to philosophy.
A manager’s philosophy will vary from person to person. Their styles, their tactics, their systems. While the basics may be the same on the surface — formation-wise — the players on each team are vastly different.
This makes it hard to find the perfect balance of incorporating a certain style and having the players buy into it to achieve maximum results.
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For Mauricio Pochettino, it’s been well documented that his high-press brand of football has worked since arriving at Spurs in 2014. But the pieces to the puzzle weren’t there. Changes needed to be made, and made they were.
A laundry list of names have left in the two-and-a-half years that Pochettino has been in charge. Some of them didn’t make an impact when given an opportunity. Some barely got an opportunity. The culture was eventually changed.
Now in his third year in charge of Tottenham and mostly redoing his squad (more additions will surely be added over the years), the 44-year-old spoke of how bravery has played a role in Spurs’ success.
“It’s too difficult to describe your philosophy. But I think you can see how Tottenham play,” Mauricio Pochettino told Sky Sports (via Evening Standard).
“The most important thing is to be brave, to be protagonists with high intensity. And then it’s how to develop that and how we work to achieve that.”
As simple as being “brave” may sound, there’s some credence to Pochettino’s words.
When Mauricio Pochettino took over in 2014, he was stepping into a very difficult situation. A job that had immense pressure. Not just to win trophies, but to deal with a chairman who demands a lot.
Should Daniel Levy not expect the results he is looking for, then firing another manager — which would be his 11th one since 2001 — would restart a continuous cycle that has seen managers leave one after another.
It would keep Spurs stagnant without a sense of direction.
Back track to Pochettino’s 2014-15 season, Tottenham finished in fifth place, just six points off of fourth place. Some close losses could have gone the other way giving Spurs a top four finish.
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Mauricio Pochettino had to achieve results immediately or face the consequences with an impatient chairman. He achieved those and kept his job.
The Argentine manager’s second year overseeing Spurs was more successful than his debut campaign but it ended on a bittersweet note as Tottenham missed out on a league title but finished third. Higher than the year before.
Again, Pochettino stayed because of the work he had done up to that point.
He changed his squad by removing players who didn’t fit his plans, made it younger, and clinched a Champions League spot. Not to mention competing for a Premier League title while the usual favorites struggled for consistency.
Each year there is pressure to achieve good results and so far Spurs have done that.
This season, there have been some more changes but not necessarily the good kind. Mauricio Pochettino spoke of being brave, developing this sense of being protagonists with a high intensity, and then achieving something.
Well, to maintain a young squad and compete for a league title with not much additions to the team is already quite brave. But maybe foolish would be the better word used here.
Moving on, Pochettino still utilizes the 4-2-3-1 formation but has had to deal with a host of issues like incorporating new players, deploying multiple systems, dealing with injuries and poor form.
The entire team has responded well to the adversity set in front of them and are on the cusp of a top four spot halfway through the season.
While being brave doesn’t sound much like a philosophy, it makes sense from a financial standpoint as well. Spurs are cash-strapped with a frugal manager, but are also in the process of funding a brand new stadium. Salaries don’t hit the six-figure mark easily unless bonuses are included.
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Realistically speaking, it’s quite “brave” of Spurs to compete against Premier League juggernauts with a fixed amount of money, try to attract some talented players to play in Europe’s secondary elite competition and pay said players less than they could earn elsewhere.
If anything, the model that Mauricio Pochettino, Daniel Levy and Tottenham have laid out and have been able to accomplish in such a short amount of time together is what has set them on a course for success.
It may take some time to see trophies being won, but a part of the club’s philosophy has shown some progress already. That being a steady climb up the Premier League table each year.