Pochettino hits out at open support for Foxes

Mauricio Pochettino accepts Tottenham still have much to learn if they are to become a force in the Premier League.

And Pochettino has criticised the public show of goodwill that has been extended to Leicester by a number of Premier League figures who still had a part to play in the title race.

But defeat today against Southampton has them fearing something even worse…

Spurs mounted a sustained challenge for the title this season, but a three-match winless run saw their chances slip away.

The explosive clash twice spilled over into mass confrontations between the two teams and both clubs were subsequently charged by the Football Association for failing to control their players.

Tottenham will be hoping to seal that victory when they host Southampton on Sunday, but Pochettino maintains Arsenal are not on their agenda.

Of course it will not be nice for Arsenal fans to finish behind our north London rivals Tottenham this season.

The Argentinian is poised to guide his team to a second-place finish, the first time in 21 years that Spurs will finish above Arsenal in the league.

“We are improving step by step and we don’t know our limits, so that’s very positive for the future, which has to be bright”, the 29-year-old goalkeeper told the club’s website (www.tottenhamhotspur.com).

Indeed, Saints are yet to beat Tottenham since their return to the Premier League in 2012. It is important to manage better our energy for the next season and ensure we learn a lot about this game. Tottenham also dropped points in the same way at the beginning of the season where they conceded two goals to Stoke City within the space of 10 minutes.

When Tottenham last ventured into the Champions League they purchased world-class talent in Van Der Vaart and a few more of these signings will need to be made this summer.

“I can understand my players, I can understand my staff. We have shown enough character and quality to be contenders for the Premier League”.

Nabil Bentaleb remains sidelined with a knee injury while Dele Alli will serve the second of his three-game ban.

Southampton manager Ronald Koeman was pleased with his team’s reaction at White Hart Lane.

But four points from their last two matches will see Southampton surpass their best points total in the division. “We have our own challenge but it is not our principle challenge to be above Arsenal”.