Football
Miguel Delaney 9y

Tottenham budget makes Champions League unlikely - Mauricio Pochettino

Mauricio Pochettino has cast doubt on Tottenham Hotspur's ability to qualify for the Champions League, suggesting that the club might have to get used to the reality that they do not have the financial clout to finish in the top four.

Tottenham have only made four relatively low-key signings -- Toby Alderweireld, Dele Alli, Kieran Trippier and Kevin Wimmer - in the summer transfer window as most of the clubs around them in the Premier League have made significant investment.

Spurs manager Pochettino frequently made the point last season that the club needed to change mentality and have the ambition to aim for Champions League qualification.

Speaking to Spanish radio station Onda Cero, the Argentine coach admitted that their summer spending was outstripped by several of their rivals.

"You just have to look to the investments made by Liverpool, Manchester City, [Manchester] United, Chelsea or Arsenal during this summer," he said.

"We have five teams above us when it comes to spending. We finished fifth last season but our project is different to their project.

"We have young boys, mainly English people and what we are trying is to create a team for the future, to set the base of the following years."

Asked whether it was true that he had been approached by Real Madrid this summer, Pochettino denied the story but said it was a long-term ambition.

"Those kind of things just make me laugh because I still have a lot to do," he added.

"Obviously I would love one day to be the Real Madrid manager but I have to go step by step. I need to keep learning.

"Real Madrid are a great club and I have just started my managerial career. I have been in this just seven or eight years.

"But in the future, why not? Of course I would like to be the Real Madrid manager. Real Madrid are the best team in the world."

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