Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger labels Mauricio Pochettino 'hard working' and 'promising'

Arsene Wenger has praised Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino after the White Hart lane outfit recorded their best ever position in the Premier League with a third place finish, while also qualifying directly to the group stage of the Champions League. Arsenal managed to sneak ahead of their arch rivals on the final day to finish second in the league behind champions Leicester City.

The French manager, who has been the manager at Arsenal for 20 years, believes the Argentine has infused new life into Tottenham and made them genuine title contenders in the future. Spurs were in the title race this season until the beginning of May, but struggled to maintain the consistency that made them one of the favourites midway through the season.

Pochettino has transformed the team after taking over in the summer of 2014, while also changing the transfer philosophy, which has seen the club target young players with potential rather than big name established stars. He has also brought through players from the academy, with the likes of Harry Kane and Ryan Mason impressing during the course of the campaign. The former was the league's top scorer with 25 goals in 28 appearances, while also being nominated for the PFA player of the year prize, which was eventually won by Leicester's Riyad Mahrez.

Wenger also heaped praise on Pochettino, labelling him one of the most 'promising' managers in the league. The Argentine has also revealed great respect for his French counterpart after comparing his contribution to football on par with the likes of Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona.

"That's honestly too big a compliment!" Wenger said, referring to Pochettino's praise earlier in the season, as quoted by the Mirror.

"I just think in football, when you look at all the results of all the teams, of all the clubs, and I'm very, very proud of our consistency even if we did not win the championship this year."

"Pochettino has given his team a great dynamic, they play attractive football, he has given his team a style and given belief to Tottenham again. They can win the league again. That's a remarkable achievement. He's one of the promising, hard working managers in the Premier League," the French coach explained.

"Tottenham had a very good season. But they were very close to us. That means the expectation is so high for us that it's difficult to please people."