The plaudits keep on coming for Mauricio Pochettino and this time it is from one of his former players, Ryan Mason. The former Spurs midfielder had to retire from the game at the age of 26 due to a fractured skull while playing for Hull City but the Englishman has come out and stated that players would do anything for Pochettino.
Speaking to Soccer AM (h/t Sky Sports), Mason was quoted as saying:
“You love playing for him, you’d run through a brick wall for him because he’s a lovely man and a lovely human being.
“Don’t get me wrong I would never, ever cross him because his morals and values are so strong that if you went away from that it would be hard for him to forget it. But at the same time if you work hard, do what he says right and enjoy your football then he is unbelievable.
“Probably the biggest thing that I can say about him is that he didn’t just improve me as a player, he improved me as a human being. He just changed my view on life through his values – he’s a big family man, he loves creating friendship and values loyalty.”
Mason also added that the Argentine changed his way and revealed how Pochettino helped him get over the injury and become mentally strong.
“Also when I say he changed my way of life, that way of stressing your brain I believe helped me recover from my injury because, rather than feeling sorry for myself, that experience of being strong mentally with him helped me to change my outlook.”
Pochettino Is One Of The Best At Developing Players
The one thing that Pochettino is known for is developing young players and that is exactly what he has done during his time in England with Southampton and now Tottenham.
“You could see how he develops players from day one. I was playing for Swindon in League One six months before he came in but he didn’t care about that, he said to me ‘you’re a Premier League player, if you get fit and train hard you’ll play for me'”, Mason added.
“There aren’t many managers around in the Premier League or even league football that would be able to see potential like that and then have the balls to develop it and be patient.”
Tottenham do have one of the best and youngest squads in the Premier League and if Pochettino keeps this up, there is no doubt that we will turn into a side that will not only produce quality youngsters but also win trophies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksa2ZweUXTY
