Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino cools title talk despite impressive start

Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino thinks it is too early to talk about Spurs as Premier League title contenders. The Argentine manager led his side to an impressive 2-0 win against Manchester City in their last game – but he is refusing to get carried away by the hype surrounding the team.

However, Pochettino admitted he was pleased by the progress his young team has made in recent months, suggesting they are slowly building towards their long-term ambitions.

"Well, it's difficult for me, I think it's too early [to talk about winning the title]," the Tottenham manager explained to the BBC. "I think that we are building a very nice project and very nice team. But I think we need time, we have a young squad."

Pochettino was thrilled with the spirit Tottenham showed in their head-turning win against City at White Hart Lane, but warned his players that they must maintain those standards. "If we play with the passion that we play and we show the quality that we showed against Manchester City then all is possible, but I think it's too early," he said.

"We are in a moment where we need to believe and show that we are capable to manage big things – big games. But I can understand our fans feel proud and they start to see that maybe it's possible this season to achieve big things."

Despite his modest outlook, Pochettino has been widely praised for transforming the Tottenham side since he assumed control of them in 2014. The former Argentina international has been credited by the likes of Gary Neville for overseeing an impressive overhaul of Spurs' playing squad.

"Inside two years, the transformation [at Tottenham] – even last season – it is a brilliant coaching and recruitment job. We're hearing less about Daniel Levy and more about the coach," Neville recently said of the Tottenham coach on his podcast.