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ESPN Interviews Mauricio Pochettino & Hugo Lloris

ESPN Exclusive Interviews: Mauricio Pochettino & Hugo Lloris

Here are the key points taken from ESPN FC's exclusive interviews as they prepare for tonight's first friendly of their American tour (in Orlando) against PSG

Mauricio Pochettino - (See the full interview here)

On Spurs’ transfer philosophy…

"Always the philosophy is coming from the board and in the case of Daniel Levy, I think we have a very good relationship, we have a clear idea of what we need to do in the future."

"I think our facilities are amazing and the training ground and the new stadium will be one of the best in Europe. It's an exciting moment for Tottenham. But it is true we have a different philosophy, it's not because we cannot invest, but Tottenham have built a different philosophy than the other big clubs.

"I think in football, money can help you build a better squad or bring in talented players but it's not only about money, you need to be creative, you need to be clever. It will be tough next season for us, but we believe in the way that we play and we work."

On Tottenham’s development during his time in charge and the new season…

"I think, after three seasons, the first was really tough for us because when you try to change the philosophy and habits and try to develop a complete opposite way of playing and behaving, it was very tough for us."

"The last two seasons, it is true, we improved a lot. It is very clear, our philosophy is about trying to play exciting football with young players and trying to be different to the top sides. I think next season is a big, big challenge for us.

"For one, it's because we moved to Wembley, a different environment for us, a different pitch and stadium, all will be different for us. It is true that we must change because we were very comfortable playing at White Hart Lane.

"And then, I think because the big sides are investing a lot of money in trying to improve their squads, but for us we are so calm and so quiet because we have belief in our youth from our academy. We may lack a few players, but we are so calm because I think we have a very good team and the most important thing for us always is the team."

Hugo Lloris - (See the full interview here)

On having to adapt to playing at Wembley as a goalkeeper…

"Yeah, it’s exactly the same as a player, you know you have more distance to cover, especially when we play in a high position you need to cover the space at the back behind the defence, but you just have to get used to it. It’s true that last season we were fantastic at White Hart Lane, we stayed unbeaten all the season and we will try to keep going in the same way at Wembley.”

On whether Spurs can win silverware this season whilst playing at Wembley…

“Hopefully, but we don’t know what will happen. The most important thing is to feel well at Wembley; the right feeling, create a real atmosphere, and we know that in one season we’ll get our new stadium and we’ll be fantastic (there).”

On Tottenham’s hopes for the upcoming season…

“First of all, it’s very important to stay focused on the pre-season, to prepare our mind and to prepare our body to get fit and then for sure we will be competitive this season.

“It’s a tough league, the Premier League, it’s very difficult to predict what will happen, but we’ll be ready to compete again and obviously every season is getting even more competitive because the other clubs invest in great players but we’ll be ready for that.”

On why he believes Spurs can win the Premier League despite their lack of transfer activity…

“This is our ambition, even if the team is very young we have a lot of talented players, very ambitious and we have a proper philosophy under Mauricio Pochettino, he’s got a football concept and we’re working this way.

“I think we enjoy our football, last season we had some great performances and we need to keep going in the same way, don’t think too much, just be competitive, be ready in our mind to make the effort and we know that in England it’s very competitive and the most important thing is to give your best until the end of the season.”

On why he’s not looking to leave Tottenham…

"You know when I signed for Spurs it was time for me to go overseas to discover a new league and to question myself. It was important to make this step and you know since the beginning of my time with Spurs I believed in the project and even more under Mauricio Pochettino because he’s one of the best managers in the world.

“I understand completely his football and we have the same philosophy and we share the same values in football and that’s the most important thing for me and then it’s true we have a young generation, a lot of English players, and they have the potential to get up there and I try to lead them as a captain, as a friend too, as a teammate.

“And then, you know, the club is very competitive too, we show that every season in the Premier League, it’s true that we need to improve in European competition compared to the other clubs in Europe, but listen, step by step we are building something strong at Spurs and it’s a very exciting time to be a Spurs player.”

Thanks again to ESPN FC for permission to publish these extracts.

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