(Reuters) – Brighton & Hove Albion manager Graham Potter said he has the utmost respect for Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino, despite the north London club’s troubled start to the campaign.
Tottenham suffered a humiliating 7-2 defeat by Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday, igniting speculation over Pochettino’s future at the club.
Potter, whose team hosts Spurs in the Premier League tomorrow, felt Pochettino’s side impressed in the first half against Bayern and did not deserve to be on the wrong end of an emphatic scoreline.
“It was a disappointing result for them against a top team that were very clinical on the night,” Potter told a news conference yesterday. “But if they were as clinical as Bayern they could have been 3-0 up in the game.
“Mauricio Pochettino is a top manager. What he’s done at that club I have the utmost respect for.
“He’s competed at the top of the league, not with the same resources but still in the top four above big teams. (They were) Champions League finalists – he’s done a wonderful job.”
Spurs are already 10 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool and have yet to win on the road this season.
Potter has also endured a rocky start to life at Brighton, with the Seagulls sitting 16th in the league and without a win since beating Watford on the opening weekend.
“I am (confident the results will come),” he said.
“Every game brings its own dimension but the challenge for us is to keep the level of performance consistent, and as a result of that you hope you can get the results.”