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Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has issued a veiled message to chairman Daniel Levy to splash the cash this summer, per The Times.

Spurs have not bought a single player since January 2018 but play their first game in their new stadium on Wednesday and the Spurs boss has hinted that his future is dependent on the club’s investment in the playing squad in the coming transfer window.

What’s the word?

Spurs have spent upwards of £1billion on building their new stadium, which hosts its first Premier League game on Wednesday when Crystal Palace are the visitors.

And Pochettino believes that now is the time for Spurs to act “like a big club” as they attempt to bridge the gap to Liverpool and Manchester City at the top of the table.

Spurs have routinely finished above the Reds during Pochettino’s reign but, after the Merseyside club embarked on a spending spree that saw them spend world-record fees for a defender, Virgil van Dijk, and a goalkeeper, Alisson Becker, there is now an 18-point gap to the league leaders.

Liverpool, of course, beat Spurs 2-1 at Anfield on Sunday.

And Pochettino believes that now is the time for Levy to get his chequebook out, hinting that his future hinges on whether or not the chairman is willing to do so.

He said, per The Times: “People say we are going to be better than Liverpool because we have a better stadium and training ground, but it is another thing to compete.

“We need to operate maybe similar to them in the future — or not, we will see the project. They invest a lot in the last four or five years.

“The stadium is a chapter that needs to be closed. We need to behave like a big club in every single aspect and every single department and that is the most important step we need to make. A new project means to talk and operate in a different way.

“We need to be ready for a new chapter that is two, three or four years, which depends on Daniel. You say to me, ‘With you? Without you?’ I don’t know.

“That is about Daniel. Coaches and the manager are the weakest part of that business.”

Pochettino also claimed that this summer is “massive”, with an overhaul likely. Spurs, of course, are currently unsure if they will be playing in the Champions League in 2019-20, as they are currently fourth, just one point ahead of sixth-placed Chelsea.

He added: “We are going to receive a lot of information about our squad that is massive in what is left (of the campaign) and to assess the squad and see how we are going to operate next season.

“For me, the summer is going to be massive.”

Over to Daniel

This is pretty clear-cut. Pochettino clearly wants to refresh his squad, having seen two transfer windows pass without a single addition.

The club’s lack of investment is threatening to catch up with them this season, with Spurs slipping out of the title race and into a battle to finish in the top four.

The Argentine issued a similar message at the end of last season but it fell on deaf ears.

Now, as the club enters its new stadium and looks forward to a defining season, Levy cannot make a similar mistake.

If he does, he risks losing perhaps the best manager Spurs have had in the Premier League era.

Of course, there are very few jobs available – both Manchester United and Real Madrid have appointed permanent managers in the past month – but it would not be a surprise if Pochettino simply walked away if Levy refused to bring in a single new player for the third successive window.