Former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino is certain the club will avoid relegation from the Premier League this season, as they close in on the appointment of Roberto De Zerbi.

De Zerbi is reportedly close to agreeing a long-term contract with Spurs, and he would become their third permanent head coach this season after the ill-fated spells of Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor.

Spurs are 17th in the table and only one point clear of 18th-placed West Ham, and they could find themselves in the bottom three by the time they face Sunderland on April 12.

The Opta supercomputer currently assigns them a 26.4% chance of playing Championship football next season, with West Ham (57.9%) currently favourites to suffer the drop.

But for United States boss Pochettino, who led Spurs to the Champions League final in 2019, the prospect of them playing in the second tier is unthinkable.

"With my connection to Tottenham, it's impossible to feel nothing about Tottenham, about the club, the people that work there, and about the fans," he told reporters ahead of the USA's friendly against Portugal on Tuesday.

"That's my ⁠wish, and I am sure they're going to stay up, with a coach or without a coach, because of the players. 

"I think there are the players, and then it's a club with fans that are ‌going to do everything to create the energy to win."

Pochettino had himself been strongly linked with a return to Spurs, with numerous reports suggesting the club could target him after the World Cup.

But he is paying no attention to such speculation, saying: "At the ‌moment, I think we are very, very focused, with our full focus here on the World Cup. 

"I think everyone knows that I am committed to the national team here. I think it's not a point to talk about the future. Never say never. In football, ‌everything can happen."