Mauricio Pochettino says Tottenham won't sign big players until new stadium is finished

Mauricio Pochettino has claimed that Tottenham Hotspur will be able to make big money transfers once Spurs complete the construction of their new stadium. The Argentinian boss admits that this situation could be a disadvantage against Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool but still believes his squad have what it take to win the Premier League title this season.

Spurs only spent around £30m ($37.3m) during the last summer transfer window in bolstering the squad as they have reportedly invested around £750m in the new stadium, which is expected to be ready for the beginning of the 2018-2019 campaign.

Spurs signed Moussa Sissoko, Vincent Janssen, Victor Wanyama, Georges-Kevin N'Koudou and Pau Lopez for around £70m but recouped a big part of that amount by selling Ryan Mason, Nacer Chadli, Alex Pritchard and De Andre Yedlin.

The additions have been proven not enough to qualify for the Champions League last 16 as Spurs waved a premature goodbye to the competition following a defeat to Monaco. But the Tottenham boss believes that Spurs are still on the right track and is just a matter of time before they will be competing with Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City or Liverpool.

"The first thing (to compete with the Premier League giants) is to end the construction of the stadium," Pochettino said to Marca. "It will be the best in England and one of the best in Europe. We will grow with the stadium and it will help up to stabilise as one of the top in England. It will be a source of income and we will be able to sign great players and have the best in the Academy. The Tottenham potential is in line to be among the greatest.

"It's true that, with the construction of the new stadium, it limits the possibilities of investing more in the players, giving other teams like City, Arsenal, Chelsea, United or Liverpool the advantage. But this is another project, another story. What we must do is make smart decisions to be competitive and fight with clubs like those mentioned above."

Tottenham have managed to do that in the Premier League. Last season they fought with Leicester for the title until the very end while they remain unbeaten in the new campaign, being only four points behind leaders Chelsea ahead of their visit to Stamford Bridge on Saturday (26 November).

"We are still unbeaten and last season we were very, very close. With some luck we could be now in first place. If we maintain the level and improve some aspects, we are sure to be up there," the Tottenham boss said.

"The mentality and work of the whole club is fundamental for success and all of our efforts are aimed at reducing the financial distance. What I have is a group of players who love to fight and compete for Tottenham and so far no one has beaten us. It shows that we can already compete on the pitch."