Mauricio Pochettino hopes to stay with Tottenham Hotspurs at least five more years

London: Tottenham Hotspur coach Mauricio Pochettino dismissed speculation about his future at the club on Friday and said he hoped to spend many more years in North London.

Spurs were hammered 7-2 at home by Bayern Munich in Tuesday’s Champions League clash but Pochettino said the defeat would force him and his players to work harder and recover “their best feeling,” hopefully in Saturday’s Premier League game at Brighton & Hove Albion.

Despite reaching the Champions League final in June and finishing fourth in the Premier League, Tottenham have lost 16 matches in 2019 and their form at the start of the new campaign has been inconsistent.

They beat Southampton last weekend, having played more than half of the game with 10 men, but Tuesday’s defeat was Tottenham’s worst ever at home in Europe.

“On Monday I was the best and after Tuesday I am the worst,” he told reporters. “That is the reality when you lose and you cannot defend yourself.

“In five-and-a-half years I think in every single press conference we are talking about my future. I hope... I am going to spend five years more here at least.

“Football is a game to enjoy and when you don’t win it is difficult to enjoy but you can’t create a drama,” Pochettino added. “And we are not going to create a drama.”

While the result against Bayern led defender Jan Vertonghen to say he felt “ashamed”, Pochettino said the scoreline should not detract from their first-half display.

Asked if it was his low point at Tottenham, Pochettino said: “I don’t believe so. In terms of the result of course, the score, but we played really bad games in more than five years here with a different result.”

Tottenham have won only two of their last nine games in all competitions and sit sixth in the league, 10 points behind leaders Liverpool.

“We need to move on and we need to be ready,” Pochettino said. “We need to try to show the best quality and the best performance, the competition doesn’t wait for you.

“You cannot go home and cry and spend three days closed in your room, you need to move on quick, that is the key. You stick with your ideas and be more stronger than before.”

Pochettino played down concerns about midfielder Dele Alli’s loss of form which has cost him his place in the England squad.

“There is nothing wrong with Dele,” he said. “Football is about form and sometimes you have a not so good period.

“Dele only needs time to recover his best performance and we will help him and provide the tools and the platform.

“Now he is in a tough period but we need him because he is a very important player for us.”

Tottenham are without right back Serge Aurier through suspension for the trip to Brighton. Midfielder Moussa Sissoko looks likely to slot in there for the 1130 GMT kickoff.