Legendary Tottenham and Man Utd striker Teddy Sheringham says that Spurs will not stop Mauricio Pochettino from moving to Old Trafford if he wants to go.
Standard Sport understands that the Argentine is Ed Woodward’s No1 choice to succeed Jose Mourinho full time, following the Portuguese’s sacking in early December, but that Spurs will fight to keep their manager should an approach be made.
The current incumbent, Sheringham’s former team-mate Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, has the job on an interim basis, but is not expected to land the job full-time, regardless of how he performs.
Pochettino, meanwhile, has received criticism from some quarters for failing to win a trophy since arriving at Spurs in 2014, but Sheringham has saluted the Argentine for ‘transforming’ his former side.
Speaking on Love Sport Radio, Sheringham said: “Pochettino is doing all the right things at Tottenham. People will say he hasn’t won anything but he’s transformed things in north London. He’s got them on the right path.
“He gets players playing to the best of their capabilities and that’s what you want as a manager. I don’t think it’s a case of whether Spurs will let him go and I don’t think it’s about money either.
“It’s just about what Pochettino wants to do. If United want him and he wants to go then I don’t think Tottenham will stand in his way.â€
Sheringham (right, with Solskjaer - left - and Ronny Johnson) himself made the same move in 1997, leaving Tottenham for Old Trafford where he went on to win three Premier League titles, the Champions League, and the FA Cup in 1998-99 when United infamously won the treble under Sir Alex Ferguson. Sheringham would return to White Hart Lane four years later.
“You can’t turn down the chance to join Manchester United as a player and it must be exactly the same as a manager,†he added.