Tottenham's Champions League run has transformed poker-faced Daniel Levy, says Mauricio Pochettino

Daring to dream | Mauricio Pochettino says Daniel Levy has softened since Spurs' win at Ajax
Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images

Tottenham's run to the Champions League Final has transformed Daniel Levy but the poker-faced chairman will not change the way he runs the club, according to Mauricio Pochettino.

On the eve of the biggest night in Spurs' modern history, Pochettino revealed that Levy had never dreamed of reaching this stage, and said the softening of the chairman's steely exterior exemplified the transformation of the entire club.

But the manager dampened expectations of a summer spending spree, saying one thing Levy would not change was his careful running of the club.

Pochettino broke down in tears on the pitch and during a live television interview after Spurs' remarkable comeback at Ajax in Amsterdam three weeks ago, which set-up tomorrow's showdown against Liverpool in Madrid, and Levy and his son Josh joined the squad in the dressing room for emotional celebrations afterwards.

The manager said the demeanour of the chairman, who has a well-earned reputation as a hard-nosed businessman, has since completely changed since the semi-final but insisted he wouldn't spend big this summer.

"I asked him on the plane back [from Amsterdam], 'Daniel, do you believe what we achieved a few hours ago?'," Pochettino told Standard Sport. "He said, 'I can't believe it. To be honest, I never dreamed of being in this position.'

"Of course, he's more a businessman. For people who are born to play football, it's always easy to dream. Maybe he dreamed of different things, like creating the stadium and these facilities [at Hotspur Way]. The players know him very well, and on Monday he was here at the training ground, talking with all of us. He said, 'Thank you, we are living a dream.' Some of the players said, 'It's amazing – Daniel is more human!'

"It's a side he never showed too much. He was always more distant, trying to keep the emotion inside.

"His improvement is like, 'If the manager is crying, why can I not show more my emotion? It's not so bad!' Sometimes people in business believe you cannot show your emotion, like in poker.

"He was a little like this type of person, believing emotion was showing that you are weak. Now he is believing the opposite!

"It's not that he's going to give us more money now – this area is not going to change, he's going to be strong. But in the transformation of the club, he is a good example of how it is changing. In the personal relationships, he's improving a lot from when we arrived here."

Pochettino reopened the question of his own future ahead of Spurs' dramatic semi-final second-leg win at Ajax, the Argentine hinting that he could walk away from north London if he leads them to European glory against the odds.

Any decision could hinge on talks with Levy, with the manager promising to sit down with the chairman after the Final and map out the strategy for the club's 'next chapter'.

He has called for Spurs to start 'behaving like a big club', and he has hinted at a desire for an overhaul of the squad, saying the club is in need of 'new furniture' to match their magnificent new home stadium.

Spurs' run to the Final is all the more remarkable given they have not made a signing for 16 months, since Brazilian Lucas Moura in January 2018, and that Pochettino's net-spend in five years is around £40million – a fraction of their top-six rivals.

In pictures | Tottenham train in Madrid

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Spurs borrowed £600m to help finance their £1bn stadium and it is thought Levy will only hand Pochettino a modest transfer budget this summer, but allow the manager to spend the money earned from player sales.

Christian Eriksen and Toby Alderweireld, both of whom are entering the final year of their contracts, could leave over the summer.

In Pictures | Tottenham transfer targets summer 2019

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Spurs will also listen to offers for Napoli target Kieran Trippier, Serge Aurier, Victor Wanyama and Erik Lamela. Fernando Llorente's future will be decided after tomorrow night's Final but the Spanish striker, who has been free to talk to overseas clubs since January, is expected to leave the club on a free transfer.

Their transfer targets include Giovani Lo Celso of Real Betis, Lyon's Tanguy Ndombele, Leeds' Jack Clarke and Fulham's Ryan and Steven Sessegnon.

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