Mauricio Pochettino Jokes He'll 'Headbutt' Bad Boy Serge Aurier if He Misbehaves While at Spurs

Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has joked with new £23m defender Serge Aurier, a player who arrives at the club with something of a 'bad boy' reputation, that he won't be scared to take strong action and 'headbutt' the Ivorian if he steps out of line.

Aurier, who was denied entry into the UK last year as a result of an assault conviction, isn't expected to start for Spurs against Everton this weekend but could debut from the bench.

And Pochettino has warned him to behave as a fresh chapter of his career begins...or else.

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"I said to him, 'I'd kill you'. I'd headbutt him," he said tongue in cheek to the media, quoted by Football.London, ahead of the game in the north west.

On a more serious note, the Spurs boss seems willing to start from scratch with Aurier and not pre-judge him from his past record after explaining what will be expected from him at the club.

"I always try to feel what the player translates to you when you have a conversation and you meet. It's more important, the feeling that you get from people," Pochettino explained.

"I had a long chat with him. I explained how we are, how I am, what I expect from him. And the commitment from him. But not only from him, the same conversation that we have with all the players before signing," the coach added.

"With Serge Aurier, we were clear, and then if some issues happen in the future, we will see. But I trust in him and he needs to show we can trust, from today."