Eric Bailly admits he owes a great debt to Mauricio Pochettino.

The Manchester United centre-back was coached by the Tottenham Hotspur manager at Espanyol in his formative years and insists his career would not be where it is today without the help of the influential Argentine.

“Pochettino likes hard-working young people and he helps them through, he assists them and helps them progress," Bailly told the Daily Mirror.

“Of course I will always be ­grateful. I saw him when we played Tottenham and we always talk and catch up."