Mauricio Pochettino Reportedly Sparks Tottenham Battle with Southampton

Tottenham Hotspur are preparing to raid Southampton for the services of their bright, young manager Mauricio Pochettino to take over from Tim Sherwood.

John Cross of the Mirror writes that Spurs chairman Daniel Levy has identified the 42-year-old as a target for his club, with the Argentine manager having only a year left on his current deal at St Mary's.

Cross reports:

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Tottenham originally went for Ajax boss Frank De Boer to replace Andre Villas Boas but the Dutchman knocked them back and Sherwood was handed an 18-month contract.

They also eyed up Louis Van Gaal but the Dutch boss is now destined for Manchester United. It leaves Pochettino as No1 target - and it's now a question of whether they can lure him to White Hart Lane.

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Rui Vieira

Tottenham currently sit in sixth place, per BBC Sport, after an indifferent season which has not seen the team improve despite a significant investment in the squad last summer. 

Southampton have been one of the surprise packages of the season playing good, attacking football and scoring 52 goals over their Premier League campaign, per Squawka.

Despite Spurs' link to the manager, Kevin Palmer of the Sunday World has questioned why the Southampton boss would currently leave his club for Tottenham.

He tweeted:

Paul Gilham/Getty Images

If Spurs manage to capture Pochettino it will be a massive coup for the club and could give the north London team the long-term vision of success they crave.

Pochettino's style of play is one that matches Spurs' own vision and philosophy, and the two are a perfect match. Surely he will find the temptation to join the White Hart Lane club too much to reject, if Levy attempts to grab him. 

Spurs need a coach who can knit together the fine players they currently have on their books and Sherwood is not the correct choice.

It was a strange decision to give the reins to a young manager who had so little experience at the top level of management, and though Pochettino is also relatively inexperienced, he has cut his teeth in Spain and England. 

Pochettino could finally get Spurs competing in the top four and for the title, and his arrival would surely be welcomed by Tottenham fans everywhere.