Harry Kane, Dele Alli Praise Mauricio Pochettino After Tottenham Hotspur Sacking

Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Harry Winks were among the Tottenham Hotspur players who praised former manager Mauricio Pochettino after his shock sacking on Tuesday.

The 47-year-old spent more than five years at Spurs but was let go after a poor start to this season. The club announced Jose Mourinho, who previously had stints with Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Manchester United, as his replacement on Wednesday.

Kane said goodbye to his "friend" and wished him the best moving forward:

Alli is already looking forward to seeing him again:

Winks also expressed his gratitude on Instagram: "Gaffer I will be forever grateful for the faith and trust you placed in me. You gave me my opportunity to achieve my dream of playing for our great club. Thank you for all the things you have taught me both as a player and as a man. Wishing you the very best of luck for the future. Thank you!"

Spurs made it all the way to the UEFA Champions League final last season, losing 2-0 to fellow Premier League side Liverpool. It meant yet another campaign without winning a trophy, but 2018/19 was regarded as a major step forward for the club.

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Their ambitious summer plans were derailed by persistent transfer rumours involving the likes of Christian Eriksen and Toby Alderweireld, however. The Dane told Ekstra Bladet (h/t Sport Witness) the speculation was no excuse for their poor form, but it undoubtedly had an effect.

Spurs entered last week's international break in 14th place in the Premier League, winning just 14 points from their first 12 matches. They are second in their Champions League group and are on track to advance to the knockout stage.

Despite the poor start to the season and the lack of silverware in the past five years, the Evening Standard's Dan Kilpatrick looked back on Pochettino's time in charge with fondness:

Per David Ornstein of The Athletic, Pochettino has already been linked to Bayern Munich. He expects the Argentinian to lead a "crazy" summer of coaching changes.