LONDON • Alex Ferguson, the best Premier League manager of all time, has identified the best Premier League manager now: Mauricio Pochettino.

Tottenham won their sixth successive match in all competitions when they beat Watford 1-0 on Saturday to climb into second place, five points behind leaders Leicester and ahead of arch-rivals Arsenal on goal difference.

In fact, they have the best goal difference (26) of the top flight.

It is the first time Spurs have been this high at this stage of the season since the mid-1980s and they have a chance of winning the league for the first time since 1961.

According to Labour MP for Tottenham, David Lammy, Ferguson - the former Manchester United manager who won 13 Premier League titles at Old Trafford - believes Pochettino has been the key to Spurs' season so far.

Speaking on The Spurs Show podcast, Mr Lammy said: "I'm going to let you into a secret. About six weeks ago, I sat next to Sir Alex Ferguson at a dinner in support of grassroots football abroad. He said to me, 'I think you guys have got the best manager in the Premier League.' Alex Ferguson said that."

Spurs striker Harry Kane, meanwhile, believes the club are challenging for their first title for 55 years because there are "no bad eggs" in one of the hardest-working squads in the Premier League.

"Everyone in this group works hard and is working towards the same thing," the England international, who has scored 18 goals for Spurs this season, told the London Evening Standard.

"Even the players who don't play are still working hard in training and doing all the right things to try to get into the team, which is important. If you have one or two bad eggs, it can bring others down - and we don't have that."

Tottenham's players cover more ground and make more passes than most other teams.

Pochettino's insistence on this high pressing game has paid dividends, with the team conceding only 19 league goals, the lowest in the league this season.

REUTERS