Tottenham midfielder Moussa Sissoko has acknowledged the fact that Mauricio Pochettino "brought the club to a new level", but says he is now looking forward to a bright future under Jose Mourinho.
Pochettino's five-year reign at Spurs came to an end on November 19, as he was dismissed following a poor run of results which saw the club drop into the bottom half of the Premier League table.
Club chairman Daniel Levy turned to one of the world's top managers to replace the Argentine, drafting in two-time European Cup winner Mourinho, who had been out of work since being sacked by Manchester United in December 2018.
Mourinho has enjoyed a hugely successful managerial career spanning the last 20 years, and was seen as the man to finally end Tottenham's long wait for major silverware, having picked up 25 trophies in total during spells at Porto, Chelsea, Inter, Real Madrid and United.
The Portuguese made a bright start to life at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but results took a turn for the worse after the winter break , amid an injury crisis which saw Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and January signing Steven Bergwijn struck down with injuries.
Spurs were winless in six matches across all competitions before the season was called to a temporary halt due to the coronavirus pandemic, and crashed out of both the FA Cup and Champions League.
They are, however, still within sight of a top-four finish in the Premier League, and Sissoko is certain that Mourinho can still deliver long-term success in north London.
“We’re happy with Mourinho. He brought a new freshness," the France international told Europe 1 .
“We aren’t going to spit on what Pochettino did, he brought the club to a new level, but now our future is José Mourinho.
“We have objectives, fourth place is still doable. We’re going to do everything.”
Getty ImagesSissoko has not played for Spurs since December, having only recently recovered from surgery on a knee ligament injury.
Kane and Bergwijn are both also approaching full fitness after undergoing extensive rehabilitation programmes and Sissoko is confident that Tottenham will be in great shape to finish the season strongly if it is safe for football to resume over the summer.
“At one point, we had a lot of games, injuries, important players missing,” the 30-year-old added.
“The team was put in difficulty, we had bad results, we’re aware of that.
“If we have the chance to start the league again, everyone will be fit. We’ll be at full strength.”