Former Saints executive chairman Nicola Cortese believes manager Mauricio Pochettino should not rush into leaving St Mary's.

Pochettino, out of contract next summer, has been linked with the managerial vacancy at Tottenham.

Cortese, who resigned in January, said: "I don't know what has happened since I left, so it is difficult for me to judge whether he (Pochettino) potentially wants to leave or whether the offer from another club is really that good.

"But he is ambitious and rightly so. When you plan a career, it is important to make the right decision at the right time.

"Often we have maybe seen people take too quick a step which ultimately backfires.

"But he has to make his own decision. He is a young manager. He has plenty of time to have a great career."