I HOPE SOME SPURS PLAYERS ARE LOOKING AT THEMSELVES IN THE MIRROR THIS MORNING

IT’S difficult to know where to begin. On the morning of September 28, I urged Tottenham’s board to hold their nerve about Mauricio Pochettino — now it’s time to write his obituary. I’m flabbergasted by Tottenham’s decision. I know results have been poor and I understand why the top teams act when their potential to qualify for the following season’s Champions League is in jeopardy, but it is ridiculous to think Pochettino has suddenly lost his spark. He led Tottenham into the Champions League final on June 1. Some clubs, who aren’t accustomed to that stage, would build a statue for a manager who took them to the biggest game in club football, but all Pochettino has got is his marching orders. I fear it is a decision Tottenham will regret. Pochettino won’t be out of the big time for long. A superpower — whether it is Manchester United, Real Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain — will come to take him, of that you can be certain, and that is why I cannot understand the logic of Tottenham’s actions. Who are they going to replace Pochettino with? I would hate for them to become the Tottenham of my youth, when there was no stability and managers came and went at regular intervals. He had given stability, made them one of Europe’s must-watch teams. Good luck to the next man. It never sits easy speaking about the demise of a manager because I have been in football long enough to know that a sacking is never just about one man and I would hope that there are some players in Tottenham’s dressing room who are having a look at themselves in the mirror this morning. The harmony, clearly, had been broken and it is obvious that a number of players have wanted to leave. He should have been given the time to revamp Tottenham’s squad but their dealings in the summer represented a missed opportunity. In the same column on September 28, I said Pochettino was ‘one of the best in the world and should never be taken for granted’. He was the best thing that had happened to them for 20 years. Good luck to them if they think they can find someone better.