Spurs head to West Ham United on Wednesday for the first of two crunch derby matches this week

One by one, the Tottenham Hotspur players came across to shake Daniel Levy by the hand. The club’s chairman was bemused, to the point where he turned to Mauricio Pochettino and asked him whether it was a new rule he had implemented. The manager smiled. It had started out as a rule but now it was simply habit.

“When I came to the club, maybe there were rules [put in place],” Pochettino said. “For example, every morning, we shake hands with everybody. It was to show respect for each other; to show how you feel each morning when you meet.

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“It is a small thing but it means a lot to create a real team. It shows you are interested in the people with whom you shake hands.

“It is may be a small thing but one that starts to grow in the group and a lot of things like this are important. They settle into the team and they show what we show as a team – that we are ready to fight for each other.”

To the players who encountered Levy at the training-ground canteen on the day of the anecdote, it was perfectly natural to greet him with a handshake.

“The rules have become habits,” Pochettino said. And if Levy was surprised – perhaps the chairman suspected a wind-up – then here was an illustration of how Pochettino has changed the culture and personality of the dressing room and, in turn, the club.

Tottenham travel to West Ham United on Wednesday for the first of two crunch derbies – they have Arsenal at White Hart Lane on Saturday – on the crest of six consecutive Premier League wins, and with genuine title dreams the latest product of the spirit and momentum Pochettino has created.

“We start to feel we are a real family and this is important,” the manager said. “It’s the first step to believe we can achieve big things.”

The confidence is palpable and there were flashes of boldness from Pochettino, even if he will not be drawn from his one-game-at-a-time mantra.

Claudio Ranieri, the manager of the league leaders, Leicester City, had declared on Monday that Tottenham were the title favourites.

Pochettino said “it’s good to play around like this and joke” but he added: “You cannot hide our position.

“We are second in the table and the dream for all professionals is to achieve these things. We have shown character and maturity, and we also have the legs to run.

“We need to know that we are the youngest squad in the league, so full credit to them and the club. The potential is massive for the future. We are in the beginning of a great period for the club.”

Pochettino said his favourite word is “belief” and the Argentinian added he had shown it to his players from the moment he took over at White Hart Lane in the summer of 2014. The rewards have come this season.

It will be hostile at West Ham, against a club that have always loved to hate Tottenham, and Pochettino noted how the Upton Park pitch was in poor condition, which “can affect us more than them”.

His players are ready to fight.