Mauricio Pochettino in London as Tottenham begin next manager search after sacking Thomas Frank

As Tottenham Hotspur continue to look for their next manager after sacking Thomas Frank, Mauricio Pochettino was reportedly in London at the time

Mauricio Pochettino has been spotted in London as Tottenham Hotspur look for their replacement for Thomas Frank.

Pochettino, 53, has been identified as a potential target for the Spurs managerial hotseat in the summer, when he has finished leading the USA's World Cup campaign. The ex-Chelsea boss has been linked with a romantic return to the club he led to the 2019 Champions League final.

In the past, he has said he would relish a return to the Premier League, suggesting he would contemplate replacing the sacked Thomas Frank. But as Spurs continue their search for an interim or permanent appointment, Pochettino was spotted in the capital.

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The Argentine uploaded an Instagram story of himself celebrating a friend's birthday in a restaurant in London. There is no other indication he is in London to speak with Tottenham bosses in the Instagram story.

It's most likely the timing is coincidental with Frank being dismissed straight after this week's home loss to Newcastle United. However, Pochettino has made no secret of the fact he wants to return to the Premier League in the future.

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Not long ago, he told Sky Sports: "When I left the club I always remember one interview. I said I would like one day to come back to Tottenham.

"I am in the USA, so I am not going to talk about that now - but what I said then I still, after six years or five years, feel in my heart. Yes, I would like one day to come back."

In another interview on the High Performance Podcast this month, he also said: "To win a Europa League, that the team won [under Ange Postecoglou], is good, but it’s not enough. It is not enough to challenge for the Carabao Cup, or the FA Cup, or the Europa League, or the Conference [League].

"It’s a club that should be, or needs to be, because the fans, what they expect is to be in the Champions League, fighting for the Champions League, trying to believe that you can win the Champions League and also fighting for the Premier League and believing that you can win the Premier League."

Pochettino does remain a possibility for the summer, with Spurs willing to hire an interim manager until the end of the season, football.london understands. This would give time for the club to put together a lucrative financial package to convince the USA into letting Pochettino leave his contract early.

BBC Sport understands buying the Argentine out of his contract may require ''one of the biggest financial compensation fees in football history,' even if they waited until after the World Cup. In the Premier League, the highest fee paid for a manager was the £21million Chelsea forked out to bring Graham Potter from Brighton and Hove Albion.