Mauricio Pochettino claims Tottenham deserved the 2016/17 Premier League title and remains open to a Spurs return.
Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has delivered a series of bombshell statements regarding his affection for the North London club, asserting that Spurs should retroactively be awarded the 2016/17 Premier League title and confirming he would return to coach the team even in the Championship.
Addressing Chelsea’s financial rule breaches, which resulted in a fine and a suspended transfer ban from the Premier League and FA for infractions between 2011 and 2018, Pochettino argued that Antonio Conte’s side did not compete under equal conditions during their title-winning campaign. Spurs finished as runners-up that season with 86 points, seven points behind Chelsea. Pochettino stated (h/t Last Word On Spurs on X):
“We should win one title, one Premier League. We should have been awarded it. If all that was true and had happened, we would undoubtedly deserve to be champions that year, because we were the second-best team. They were punished, they admitted, so that’s it? The title should be for the team that was second. It’s true that we didn’t compete with the same rules.”
Pochettino emphasized that financial regulations must carry competitive consequences on the pitch, maintaining that Tottenham fought fairly throughout their remarkable 86-point campaign.
Missed Timings and Relegation Loyalty
Pochettino also lifted the lid on internal discussions regarding a potential return to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, revealing that Spurs executives made contact with him in February during a difficult operational stretch for the club. However, contractual commitments prevented him from making the leap at the time.
The former manager stressed that his deep emotional bond with Tottenham transcends division status:
“If I were free, I would have gone back to Tottenham. Even in the Championship. Whatever the division. Another club, no. But Tottenham, yes, of course. It’s the only club I’m always open to help. The problem was the timings were never the best. When I was free, I never received a contact and then when I was working, I received a contact and then I couldn’t make the decision to come back. It was a little bit unlucky. Maybe one day the stars will align and it will happen.”
With Pochettino reiterating his unyielding affection for N17, Spurs supporters are left reflecting on what might have been, and whether a future reunion remains written in the stars.
