Southampton midfielder James Ward-Prowse claims there are similarities between manager Ralph Hasenhuttl and former Saints boss Mauricio Pochettino.
Hasenhuttl took over at St Mary’s in December with the club in the relegation zone.
But they now have breathing space on the bottom three with the Austrian guiding them to four wins in nine Premier League matches.
Ward-Prowse has been in excellent form since Hasenhuttl took over, most recently scoring an equalising goal to earn his team a point against Crystal Palace on Wednesday night.
And the 24-year-old, who’s been with Southampton since the age of eight, believes Hasenhuttl’s way of playing football to now Tottenham manager Pochettino, who has been linked with the Manchester United and Real Madrid jobs since joining Spurs in May 2014.
Speaking to The Times ahead of the 1-1 draw with Burnley, Ward-Proswse said: “For a few of us who were here [under Pochettino] you can see the similarities.
“The main one is how they play without the ball. They want to press high, they want to dominate the game. You can tell already they have [the same] passion and love for what they do. They make you feel happy as a player.”
Although he is now a regular starter for Saints, Ward-Prowse had to work his way up after not even being included in the squad for their 2-1 win at Huddersfield, Hasenhuttl’s second game in charge.
Ward-Prowse added: “I sat there watching the game at Huddersfield thinking a lot of things. I was doubting my future and whether the new manager would take to me or not. It certainly didn’t feel like he would.”
“That communication between manager and player has not been there very often in the last few years,”
“He [Hasenhuttl] gave me a clear outline of what is needed.”
“I admit I’m not the most physical player. But I’ve listened to the manager and I want to play in his team. I don’t think it’s more time in the gym; it’s a mentality thing. We didn’t approach games aggressively enough at the start of the season.
“It’s certainly been different to the last manager. Physically, we’re doing a lot more. He has done well to get his messages across, by what he calls mind-training in the auditorium. We watch clips and see how we can learn.”
“When a manager is so inspiring, and when he demands so much, you want to do it for him.”