Mauricio Pochettino says the stereotypical view of Daniel Levy is true. The Tottenham Hotspur chairman is hard, ruthless and can be a nightmare to deal with. But he has also come to see another side to Levy and when the manager describes him variously as “shy, sensitive and funny” it underlines the closeness of their relationship and shines a light on why these are heady days for the club.

Tottenham travel to West Ham on Friday night seeking the Premier League victory that would increase the pressure on the leaders, Chelsea. Spurs are four points behind the leaders, with four games to play. Chelsea entertain Middlesbrough on Monday.

Daniel Levy ‘suffers’ for Tottenham and fans, says Mauricio Pochettino Read more

But whether or not Spurs win the title, this season will go down as the second successive campaign in which Pochettino’s team have exceeded expectations. Top-four finishes had been the target. Instead, the club have competed for the title. There is no doubt that players have improved under Pochettino, that the trends are upwards and it has all been done on a relative shoestring compared with the other top clubs in the division.

Pochettino believes it is time Levy’s work was recognised. With the club’s new 61,000‑seat stadium scheduled to open in time for the 2018-19 season and a top training facility in place, Pochettino feels Tottenham can become “one of the best teams in the world”. He likes to dream big. Levy has helped him to do so.

“Daniel deserves a lot of credit in the three seasons I’ve been here,” Pochettino said. “The support from him is massive. The good thing at Tottenham is that all the decisions are club decisions. Not mine or Daniel’s – all the decisions are shared and that’s so important to success in football. If you have a great chairman, it’s important to recognise that. We are showing we are strong and that we try to fight for big things in the future. We are going in the right way.

“The perception of Daniel is real. He is so tough. He is hard. It’s not easy to manage a club of this size and if you are a soft person it would be so difficult. But we spend a lot of time talking and I am happy to see a another side to him. He is very human, he is sensitive. He is so clever and he is funny, too. This is my reality and how I know him. He is so shy and he doesn’t like too much to appear in the media. The perceptions are normal but when you see the other side he’s a very close person.

“Daniel is the first person who is creating a massive club for us and the fans because he is thinking, in the next few years, to take the club to the final level. With our signings and our work, we are creating a team that can, when we get the new stadium, be one of the best teams in the world.”