Champions League Football Must Be Tottenham Hotspur's Target in 2015-16

The future is bright at White Hart Lane. 

In his first season as manager, Mauricio Pochettino guided Tottenham Hotspur into fifth place in the Premier League and the League Cup final while simultaneously improving the quality of play on the pitch. 

They are not the double side of 1961 reborn, but Pochettino's team is a huge improvement on the stodgy play of Andre Villas-Boas and the structureless bedlam of Tim Sherwood's brief time in charge. 

Instead, Spurs were better organised and a far more effective side. 

There were teething problems to be sure—the listless late-autumn period that included home defeats to Newcastle United and Stoke City were particularly testing—but Pochettino's Spurs emerged as a more robust and ultimately more effective team.

The famous wins over Chelsea and Arsenal were among the best performances by a Tottenham team since Harry Redknapp's period as manager.

Those excellent outings will form the blueprint for Spurs next season. 

Pochettino's system emphasises the roles of individuals within a cohesive approach. 

The demanding system, which throws his full-backs forward and his midfield into attacking positions, requires a deep understanding from all the players involved. After 12 months playing under Pochettino, his players have a greatly improved understanding of the system and their roles within it. 

Those wins over local rivals featured aggressive, confident displays from players fully aware of the jobs they had been asked to do. That should become the norm next season.

Not only did Pochettino draw out some truly excellent performances, he did it with one of the youngest teams in Europe.

Twenty-eight-year-old Jan Vertonghen is Spurs' eldest statesman. His compatriot Nacer Chadli, just 25, is one of the most senior players at the club.

Vertonghen leads an exciting, young defence that also features the 24-year-old Danny Rose, 25-year-old Kyle Walker and the precocious Eric Dier, who is just 21.

Spurs' attack is now dependent on a 21-year-old academy product. Harry Kane is one of the most talented young strikers in Europe and will lead his team into next season.

His 31 goals and a string of astonishing performances formed the headline of his breakout season, but it was his consistent contributions that will prove the most lasting footnote.

Even when he wasn't scoring goals, Kane was leaving his mark on games. As the team improves around him, he will be an even more effective player. 

Behind Kane, Spurs can call on a similarly talented player in central midfield: Nabil Bentaleb. 

The 20-year-old Algerian is astonishingly poised for one so young. Cool on the ball, possessing excellent vision and a rugged streak, Bentaleb has attracted the interest of some of Europe's biggest clubs. 

Jon Super/Associated Press

The Daily Mail recently reported that Paris Saint-Germain were among clubs monitoring Bentaleb's now-resolved contract situation.

Ryan Mason attracts more than his fair share of criticism but has grown into his role alongside Bentaleb. 

Christian Eriksen, Kane, Mason, Bentaleb and Dier are all 24 years old or younger. They have the potential to form the core of Spurs' side for the next decade. 

The youth of Spurs' team is just one reason for expectations to rise next season. 

Pochettino has aspirations of leading his team into the Champions League, and that must be the goal this coming season.

He incorporated youngsters such as Mason, Bentaleb, Dier and Rose in his first campaign, all while facilitating the scarcely believable rise of Kane. 

Those achievements exceeded expectations during his first year in charge, but success brings its own pressure. 

In order to even match last season's achievements, Spurs must beat out one of five of England's biggest clubs.

It was Liverpool last season, but they have been engaged in an offseason arms race, indulging in a spending spree to add excitement and experience to a squad lacking both. 

They will surely be a tougher side than the one that managed the double over Spurs last term. 

Manchester United have added the likes of Memphis Depay, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin.

A return to the Champions League will test the red half of Manchester as it did to Liverpool in 2014-15.  

For both Liverpool and Man United, the influx of new players will provide its own difficulties. 

Bedding in new signings, adapting tactical approaches and handling the egos of displaced former stars all add to the potential for trouble.

Tottenham have taken a more sober approach to their transfer policy this summer.

The additions of players such as Kieran Trippier and Kevin Wimmer add strength in depth. The sales of Younes Kaboul and Etienne Capoue will have a limited impact on Spurs' first team.

Alastair Grant/Associated Press

Spurs have made signings that will ensure they do not have to rely on emergency full-backs such as Vlad Chiriches and Eric Dier. Equally, Federico Fazio, a qualified success at best during his debut season, will be kept in reserve to allow Pochettino to use him selectively and not rely on him every week.

That as talented a defender as Dier will likely only be a substitute next season speaks to how significantly Spurs have improved their defensive unit.

Toby Alderweireld will likely slot into Pochettino's starting lineup, but that is a small shift. 

Spurs have the advantage of consistency. 

Their strongest team will feature 10 players with at least one year's experience at the club. 

A familiarity with their team-mates and Pochettino's system means they will hit the ground running in August.

While hopes are high for the new season, the spectre of failure also looms. 

If Tottenham do not secure a return to Europe's top table next season, they will likely be unable to retain some of their finest players. 

Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, still Tottenham's greatest individual talent, is among the best players in his position in the world. Spurs have resisted the advances of their rivals so far, but Lloris will be able to compel the club to let him leave.

Luka Modric, Dimitar Berbatov and Gareth Bale were all able to agitate for an exit when the biggest clubs in the world came calling.

If Spurs cannot offer Lloris Champions League football for his fifth season at White Hart Lane, he could fairly seek a new home.

Spurs enter the new season with a young, exciting team that has been added to carefully over the summer. No stars have been lost, and the manager remains after another offseason in which he has been able to further explain his system to his players.

Tottenham's rivals for the Champions League places have strengthened, but their new signings will take time to adapt while Spurs' consistency should allow them to start well. 

Returning to the Premier League's top four is a laudable aspiration, and it is one Spurs are once again ready to set for themselves. Expectations were low in the first season under Pochettino; the sights are once again set very high indeed.