LONDON -- Mauricio
Pochettino says Tottenham are a bigger club than Manchester City but he
suggested that Saturday's opponents are better-placed to win trophies in the
near future.
Tottenham can move six
points clear of Pep Guardiola's City and surely end their title hopes with a
win at the Etihad Stadium. The two clubs go into the match in very different
moods, with Spurs seeking a club-record seventh straight Premier League win and
City still reeling from a 4-0 defeat at Everton last time out.
Spurs beat City 2-0 at
White Hart Lane in October and the managers met 10 times in Spain when
Pochettino was manager of Espanyol and Guardiola coached city rivals Barcelona.
Pochettino knows the gap
between their teams is closer now but he does not doubt Guardiola's pedigree,
and says it is only a matter of time before City win trophies.
"[In Spain] the gap
was massive, massive. Now, historically Tottenham is bigger than Manchester
City. The fans are bigger at Tottenham," Pochettino said.
"You can compare in
Spain. Between Espanyol and Barcelona, you can measure the gap. Here, it's too
difficult to measure the gap. It's a completely different world.
"He won 21 titles and
still me [without one]! You cannot compare me with him," Pochettino
continued. "We arrived [in England] in a completely different periods at
different clubs, with different cultures and expectations.
"For me, it means
nothing to see City lose to Everton. It doesn't change my admiration or
thoughts about him. In football, you can win or lose. It's a game. But I think
in the process that Man City is in now, he only needs time.
"They can still they
can win titles. It's about waiting. He doesn't need to show his real quality as
a coach. He's shown enough at Barcelona or Bayern Munich. You cannot win titles
after a few months, you need to wait until the end. Be sure that, at the end,
Guardiola will fight with Manchester City for big things."
Pochettino's Tottenham
challenged Leicester for the Premier League title last season, only to collapse
and finish third, but the Argentine was less bullish about his own side's
chances of winning trophies.
"We cannot go in
advance of the time. We are very young. The squad is very young. I am very
young too," he said. "But I am here to help the club achieve big
things. We're in a process of building a new stadium. We have an unbelievable
squad of players who feel Tottenham. We only need time, patience. Our objective
is to win titles and put the club on the level it deserves."
Spurs have never looked
better under Pochettino than on their current winning streak but the manager
warned against complacency and said his side were still striving for
perfection.
"It's true we're in a
very good moment and playing well. But in football, tomorrow it can change if
you don't keep working hard and be conscious that every day is a moment to
improve," he said.
"One thing is
important: we're never happy with our performance. It was 4-0 against West Brom
but we always find something to improve because we need this or that. We always
find a solution and ways to improve. You will never arrive at perfection but
you need to try to be perfect. That is impossible."
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