Tottenham in danger of 'driving away' Pochettino with lack of signings - Lineker

Gary Lineker believes Tottenham could be in danger of 'driving away a seriously top coach' unless they back Mauricio Pochettino in the transfer market ahead of Thursday's deadline.

Speaking exclusively to Goal at BT Sport studios, Lineker suggested stories linking Spurs midfielder Christian Eriksen with a move to Manchester United may come to nothing, but he warned there could be a breaking point in the Tottenham story under Pochettino unless the club start to sign star names.

The Argentine tactician has expressed his frustrations in a very public manner in recent months and has constantly suggested he has no role in the club's transfer policy, with former Tottenham striker Lineker suggesting the Spurs boss will be eager to see his calls for reinforcements to his squad answered this week.

"I think Pochettino has been putting pressure on the board with his comments in the media," declared BT Sport presenter Lineker.

"I saw him a few months back and you could tell then that he was keen to bring in a few players because they have hardly signed anyone in the last couple of years. Despite that, they are not far short of being a really, really top side and it must be very frustrating for him.

"There comes a point where Tottenham could drive away a seriously top coach and they have to be careful to make sure that doesn't happen, but there are other factors in play here.

"We don't know the financial position of the club right now after the move to the new stadium and that might be affecting their spending power in the transfer market. Running a football club is not easy and even though fans and managers want new signings all the time, you don't really know what is going on behind the scenes.

"There is no doubt that Tottenham are short in a couple of positions to go on from where they are now and win the big trophies, but they have done well to hang on to their best players in recent years and we wait to see what happens with players coming and going up to the deadline on Thursday.

"We have to wait until the end of the window and if they were to sell a player like Christian Eriksen and not buy a suitable replacement, then you could say they have let Pochettino down. However, that hasn't happened yet." 

Lineker went on to suggest speculation linking Eriksen with a move to Manchester United may come to nothing, as he stated Tottenham would need to sign a top class replacement if they decide to cash in on their Danish midfielder who has just one year left to run on his current contract.

Goal has learned that they have emerged as frontrunners to sign Barcelona outcast Philippe Coutinho while a €70m bid for Juventus forward Paulo Dybala has also been accepted, but neither deal is sure to get done with less than 48 hours left for the club to get the deals over the line.

"You look at Tottenham and if they were to lose a player like Eriksen and didn't replace him, then Pochettino would be irritated, there is no question about that, but we don't know what that would mean for his future," added Lineker, who scored 80 goals for Tottenham in his three seasons at the club after arriving from Barcelona in 1989.

"However, there is no point speculating on something that might happen when we have only for until Thursday afternoon to wait to find out whether they will happen.

"There are a lot of ifs and buts in the stories linking Erikson with Manchester United and I tend to ignore these rumours until they actually happen.

"I know from my contacts within the game how transfers work and clubs will have lists of players of who they want in different positions. They will work down that list until they get the one they want.

"So while Eriksen might be on that transfer list for Manchester United, the chances are they might not get him and there is no point in speculating on whether moving to United would be a step up for Eriksen as it will probably never happen.

"If this moves goes through, then you can give a verdict and discuss what it all means, but there is a 95 per cent chance it will never happen, so there is probably no point in us speculating on what it would mean if this move transpires by Thursday."

BT Sport

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