Arsenal and Manchester United face the daunting prospect of having to negotiate with Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy if they want to appoint Mauricio Pochettino this season.

Pochettino has been replaced by Jose Mourinho at Spurs, but Telegraph Sport can reveal that, under the terms of his exit, the club would still be entitled to compensation from any club, at home or abroad, that attempts to appoint the Argentine before the summer.

Although Pochettino has left Tottenham, he is not a free agent and any club wishing to appoint him would have to agree a compensation package with Levy. As well as Premier League clubs, that also applies to overseas clubs such as Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.

Pochettino is among the names being considered by Arsenal, but, as reported by Telegraph Sport on Sunday, friends of the 47-year-old have advised him to take a break and wait for a bigger job.

Bayern are also interested in Pochettino and have a vacancy, whereas United and Real have a long-standing admiration for him but currently have permanent managers in place.

Contrary to a report over the weekend, Pochettino would not have to pay back £12.5million in compensation, if he took another Premier League job before the end of the season.