Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has suggested the club will have to be ready to “move on” if Christian Eriksen does not sign a new contract.
Denmark star Eriksen has 18 months left on his deal but has yet to commit to new terms, despite seeing team-mates such as Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Son Heung-min sign extensions recently.
Pochettino insisted last month that he was not worried about Eriksen’s future, amid reports Real Madrid are considering an offer for the playmaker.
However, while he remains optimistic over an agreeable resolution for both club and player, he says Spurs must be prepared to adapt to the “dynamic” and changeable nature of modern football.
“Football is so dynamic, always changing every day,” he said. “It’s not only your decision but the player’s decision.
“Now is a moment to enjoy our present. Players like him are focused on doing a good job and the performances that we need. A decision is going to happen at the end of the season or the next few days.
“Football is so dynamic: it’s about decision, decision, decision, decision. We hope we are going to take the best decision for the club, that the player can take the best decision for their future and the club.
“It’s about negotiation, about many things that happen. Football is so dynamic; you always need to move on.”
Pochettino agrees Spurs have created a positive platform in recent seasons that should encourage players to commit their futures to the club, though.
“We created together a massive platform,” he said. “The players are enjoying that platform; the fans are enjoying it.
“Four and a half years ago, it was a difficult start for everyone. Every single press conference in the first six months was about ‘how’: ‘How [to] reduce the gap to the top six? How [to] reduce the gap to the top four? How to be competitive in the big games, be consistent, how, how, how, how?’
“The last step is the most difficult. It looks so close, but sometimes it’s not so close. That’s why it’s tough to keep going, but we have the energy and we want to try.”
Spurs head into Boxing Day’s clash with Bournemouth just two points behind champions Manchester City in the Premier League table, having thrashed Everton 6-2 on Sunday.
With leaders Liverpool only four points further ahead, Pochettino’s side appear primed to mount another title challenge in 2019, although the Argentine admits it is tough to compete with the league’s other biggest clubs.
“We are competing with big, big sides. We believe in our quality and in the way that we play but when you compete in the Premier League, it’s always difficult,” he said.
“We need to be ready again to compete against Bournemouth. If we are able to cross that line, to stop thinking of that [last] result and be focused and consistent in the next game, maybe we are ready to win [a trophy].
“But this season is a challenge. I told you in the first press conference after the World Cup that this would be the most difficult season for us.
“We’re in a very good position, in the last 16 of the Champions League, semi-final of the [EFL] Cup, we haven’t started the FA Cup but we’re third in the Premier League.
“The circumstances were not the best to start the season, but we fight a lot and we’re doing a fantastic job, but you need to start to prepare the game against Bournemouth because the competition doesn’t wait for you. You need to show again your quality.”
