Tim Sherwood returns to the club where he started his managerial career this weekend, Tottenham Hotspur.

Sherwood had an ‘outstanding’ win percentage of 59, the highest of any manager in recent years at Tottenham.

The man who made Nabil Bentaleb and Harry Kane the Premier League stars they are today. The man who ‘discovered’ and saw the potential in a young Christian Eriksen. The man who Tottenham owner Daniel Levy reportedly asked to remain at the club in the summer of 2014. It is fair to say there are a fair few subplots to this weekend’s battle at the Lane.

Particularly since his sacking in the summer, Sherwood has been discussing his time at Tottenham as much as possible. Along with his former assistant Les Ferdinand, Sherwood has regularly claimed his sacking was unjust and all the good within the club this season would have been evident had the former English international remained in charge.

One quote in particular, following the success of Kane and Nabil this season, was that manager Mauricio Pochettino had the final products ‘laid out for him’.

In an interview with the Daily Mail last week, Sherwood claims: “…Mauricio Pochettino has done a good job, but he had it laid out for him, with players like Kane and Bentaleb.”

Credit does have to go to Sherwood for promoting Bentaleb into the first team squad in early 2014 (a year which saw him represent Algeria in the World Cup) and the faith shown in the midfielder thereafter.

However, the constant debate of the incredible season Kane is having is perhaps a step too far. Sherwood only gave Kane a chance in the starting eleven with a few games to go last season, when Tottenham had virtually nothing to play for. It is easy to give players a chance when the season is over and you know your tenure in charge is likely to come to an end.

"Harry Kane has skills that are similar to different players, including Batistuta," - Pochettino

Pochettino, on the other hand, has given youth a chance all season. Recent England debutant Ryan Mason is just one of a number of young English talent being given a chance by the Argentine and this is unlikely to change in the near future, especially with the likes of Alex Pritchard doing so well out on loan.

Sherwood will surely receive a welcome reception when he leads his relegation candidates Aston Villa out onto the pitch on Saturday. Very few fans will argue against his claim he did a decent job at the club, but the players and fans alike will be doing all they can to produce a victory even Tim Sherwood will find difficulty in celebrating.

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