LONDON -- Saturday's win against Watford was further evidence that Tottenham Hotspur are developing the mentality of champions, according to their manager Mauricio Pochettino.
The 4-0 victory at White Hart Lane moved Spurs to within four points of league leaders Chelsea, who play at Bournemouth in Saturday's late match.
The returning Harry Kane, absent since March 12 with an ankle injury, was only deemed ready for the bench but Spurs' did not miss their talisman, as Dele Alli, Eric Dier and Son Heung-Min scored the goals in an impressive victory.
"We are talking about building that winning mentality," Pochettino said afterwards. "That is a good opportunity to be aware that in the future to win trophies it is all about to keep going, to push, to believe, and respect the way that you play, that is the most important.
"The message for us is to keep pushing and win games, that is our job. Then what happens this afternoon with Chelsea is their problem. We'll see. If they fail, our job is done because we are there. But it is still up to them to win the Premier League."
Spurs have won all five matches, scoring 13 times, since Kane limped off against Millwall, and they were 4-0 up before the striker replaced Vincent Janssen on the hour.
Alli opened the scoring with a stunning 25-yard strike, his 16th league goal of the season, while Son scored either side of half-time to make seven goals in five matches since Kane's injury. The South Korea international moved onto 11 league goals for the campaign.
"I think today is a very good example here of trying to change that mentality," Pochettino continued. "It's not about who plays -- it's about playing for Tottenham at every opportunity.
"Of course, the fans want to know what happens with different players but football today is going in a completely different direction than it was maybe 10 or 15 years ago. Today it is a collective matter, more than before. If you don't show a strong mentality in 24, 25 players then you will not be able to rotate and give opportunities to others and they don't feel like an important part of the project, then it is so difficult to win titles.
"Many things have happened in nearly three years [since I joined Spurs]," he added. "We all agree, all different things. One factor is Dele Alli. There are 24 players that can affect that mentality at the club. First of all, the chairman and all the staff -- I think it is important to build that winning mentality and believe that it is possible to fight for the Premier League and different titles.
"I think that is a thing that we are working on a lot from day one, and maybe today we are seeing the time and work start to reward us. I think it's not done. We have a lot of work to do. It is not easy but we are excited about the future of this club."
Spurs equalled a top-flight record of 11 straight home wins in the league and they have won 13 of their past 16 Premier League matches.
They can set a new record with another win against Bournemouth next weekend, but Pochettino urged his players to maintain focus.
"For us it is now to be focused on the next game, that is most important to take it step by step because if not then you start to spend time out of reality. And now [we try] to be focused and try to be ready next week against Bournemouth here again, and we'll see what happens.
"But now we have to be patient and work hard. That is most important. And we try to prepare for the game in the best conditions to try to win the game."
Kieran Trippier, who was named man of the match as he stood in for Kyle Walker, insists Tottenham are still in the title race.
He told Sky Sports: "We just have to keep performing like today. We want to take it game by game, we can't affect Chelsea but we have to focus ourselves, take it game by game and see where it takes us."
Son missed the chance to grab a first Premier League hat trick, and admitted he was frustrated after failing to convert a one-on-one with Heurelho Gomes before hitting the crossbar late on.
"I'm still upset because I wanted to score a first hat trick in the Premier League but I'm really happy to get three points," he said.
"The two goals was important but the result was most important."
Information from the Press Association was used in this report.