"If we want to win titles we need to operate in a different way".
Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino has claimed that his club are unlikely to make January signings, according to a report published by Sky Sports.
"I don't know (if he could leave on a free in the summer), that is going to be a club decision, of course involved with the player and the people that are with him".
"With the games coming so quickly, it's a good thing when you lose a game to have a game a few days after because all you want to do is get back out there and make things right", the attacking midfielder said of the start to 2019.
Pochettino spoke at length about the goals of the project he signed up for at Tottenham in the summer of 2014, which were to close the gap on the Premier League's top four and create a team - on a relative shoestring because of the club's new stadium build - that could fight with them.
"After almost five years the club is at a different level, but how we operate in five years didn't change", Pochettino added on Monday. For the silverware fundamentalists - those who discount excellent performances, Champions League football and Spurs achieving far above the level of what went before - the third most sought-after domestic trophy could be the accolade which finally proves that Pochettino is up there with the best of them.
However, Pochettino said: "It's going to be an advantage for us rather than a disadvantage for us".
Tottenham host Chelsea in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final on Tuesday, seeking their first trophy since winning the same competition in 2008.
"Yes, it's a six-month contract with the club and we will see what happens", Pochettino added.
"I'm realistic enough to know we were always going to be up against it - the amount of quality we were going to face", manager Micky Mellon said.
"I'm so happy with my squad. We are doing a fantastic job but if we want to be real contenders we need to operate in a different way in the future".
"We have steadied the ship a bit, if you like and we need to keep going". We know the summer is always hard but winter is always worse.
Pochettino said Tottenham's ability to consistently challenge the Premier League's elite teams with a lesser budget has made them "a target" and "the team to beat".
Looking at the Tranmere vs Tottenham odds, we reckon 87/100 for an away win to nil is a solid selection.
We should see plenty of changes in defence with Antonio Rudiger recalled alongside David Luiz after being given a breather on Saturday afternoon. We were very nice kids playing football and now we're more mature, more competitive.
