If there is one thing you can never a veteran supporter of Tottenham Hotspur of, then it is being overly optimstic. A deep rooted sense of cynicism and a natural proclivity towards unabridged pessimism will do any lifelong Spurs fan well, and it has certainly been the coping mechanism of choice this season with the club teetering on the brink of relegation.
Interim manager Igor Tudor has done precious little to stop the bleeding, which is entirely unsurprising - and anyone who though Tudor would be able to turn things around was severely underestimating the rot at the club.
It is eminently unclear if anyone can save Spurs in the short term, but the operative word now is survival. The top options, Roberto De Zerbi and Sean Dyche, are not interested in the Tottenham Hotspur job, which may actually be a relief for Spurs fans since RDZ is not the guy the fans want on board after the sorts of characters he brought in to Marseille.
Mauricio Pochettino can't double-dip
No, the clear fan's choice candidate is Mauricio Pochettino, but the hopes of the USMNT coach coming in before the World Cup this summer in North America and coaching Spurs to safety is beyond a pipe dream.
And here is Give Me Sport reporter Lee Wilmot to dump a giant Gatorade cooler on the Pochettino to Spurs rumors as far as the American national team manager being an immediate hire before the 2025/26 Premier League season ends. Per Wilmot, the USMNT understandably are not interested in having Poch share duties with Tottenham ahead of the World Cup, specifically because they ponied up for a world-class hire like Pochettino so that he would have his full focus on the World Cup.
It makes 100 percent sense, and any Spurs fan thinking Poch would be able to come in and coach both the United States and Spurs at the same time was being such a rosy optimist that you'd have to question if they are even a Spurs fan at all - especially since it's hardly like Spurs are accruing that many new fans who would not know any better.
Nevertheless, the dreams of a Mauricio Pochettino reunion will not be completely dead. There may be a few with the delusional hope that Poch would quit on the United States team before the World Cup, which is actually more possible than the whole time share deal (which is to say, the chances are less than one percent). But the most realistic scenario would be Poch joining on after the season, regardless of whether or not Spurs are relegated. He's by far the best option on the table at this point, but he's not on the table before then. So Spurs had better find a way.