Hugo Lloris slams Tottenham for not backing ‘impressive’ manager after he created something really special | OneFootball

Former Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Hugo Lloris has slammed the club for not backing Mauricio Pochettino after the 2018/19 Champions League final.

The Frenchman was a key part of the Spurs side that came agonisingly close to making history five years ago, captaining the team to the European final, where they locked horns with Liverpool.

They made it past the group stage by the skin of their teeth but enjoyed a fantastic run in the knockout rounds, securing memorable wins against Manchester City and Ajax en route to the final in Madrid.

However, they were undone by an early penalty from Mohamed Salah before Divock Origi sealed the European crown for Liverpool with a late strike.

Pochettino was sacked merely months after the gut-wrenching defeat following a series of awful results, but Lloris believes Tottenham made a huge mistake by letting him go.

In his autobiography, he wrote (via the Guardian): “After the Champions League final, the club was not ready to invest because there was also the new stadium to pay back, and then there was COVID.

“Daniel [Levy] always tried to make the right decision for the club, and we were also a bit unlucky.

“At our best with Mauricio, we had to compete with the Chelsea of [Roman] Abramovich, the Man City of [Pep] Guardiola, the Liverpool of Jurgen Klopp.

“It was really tough because if the club was ready to invest £50 million, the others will invest £100m.

“But I feel we didn’t give the high credit that Mauricio deserved because he brought a new generation of players – Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli, Harry Kane and many more – to a new level.

“He created something really special in the building. You could feel the unity, and we really enjoyed competing for each other.”

Things may have been different if Spurs backed Pochettino

Pochettino had a reputation for getting the best out of his players and overachieving with a small budget, and Spurs milked every ounce of that ability.

They used that opportunity to prioritise financial stability over sporting ambition, feeding him peanuts to reinforce the squad while spending a fortune on other projects.

Given the circumstances, it’s easy to see why Pochettino is one of the best coaches in the club’s history despite going trophyless, and Lloris’ disdain for his departure makes more sense five years down the line.

To say that he would have won a trophy with increased funding might be a stretch, considering football is highly unpredictable, but his success on a limited budget suggests he was on the right track.

If the club had backed him when they were at the peak of their powers, maybe Spurs wouldn’t be a cautionary tale of squandered potential.