Mauricio Pochettino described Jose Mourinho as 'one of the best managers in the world' back in August, three months before the Portuguese succeeded him as Tottenham boss.
The former Chelsea and Manchester United manager was confirmed as the new Spurs head coach early on Wednesday morning, completing a whirlwind 12 hours for the north London club after Pochettino's five-and-a-half year tenure was brought to an end on Tuesday evening.
Mourinho has been out of the dugout since his dismissal by the Red Devils in December 2018, though he has filled his time by working as a pundit in the media.
When asked for his predictions at the start of the season Mourinho said he expected Spurs to challenge Man City and Liverpool for the Premier League in 2019-20, while cheekily adding that the other contender was the "Man City B team".
Pochettino was pleased to have been positioned among the runners and riders, with Mourinho's tongue-in-cheek comment considered to be a compliment.
The Argentine tactician said: "I love Mou.
"We all know he is so clever, he is so sarcastic sometimes, that is why he is one of the best managers in the world.
"I respect his opinion. I am grateful, too, because a coach like Mourinho believing in our potential to be a contender is important.
"We have our belief and our faith in us, but that compliment helps us to believe that little bit more, of course."
Mourinho is expected to take charge of Spurs training for the first time on Wednesday afternoon, with his first game in charge against West Ham at the London Stadium on Saturday.
He arrives with the club 14th in the Premier League with just three wins from their opening 12 matches, with the side also having suffered a 7-2 thrashing at the hands of Bayern Munich in the Champions League at the start of last month.
They are also without an away win in the league since January, with their slide in domestic form one of the reasons behind Pochettino’s dismissal, according to chairman Daniel Levy.
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