Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino said that he is focused on Tuesday’s Champions League encounter against Barcelona. Spurs are currently level on points with Inter Milan in their Champions League group. They need to beat Barcelona at Wembley on Tuesday to qualify for the knockout stages. However, even a draw or a loss might see Spurs qualify for the next round provided Inter Milan loose their match. Given Inter’s present form and the fact that the match is at their home ground, it is highly unlikely that the Nerazzurri will not lose against PSV Eindhoven who are a relatively inferior opponent. Spurs defeated Real Madrid in a Champions League group game last season. Hence, they have a pretty fair chance of coming on top against Barcelona on Tuesday.
Spurs beat Leicester City 2-0 last night to move to 3rd in the Premier League table. Goals from Son Heung-min and Dele Alli helped Tottenham register their 12th league win of the season. Following the match, Pochettino said, “Now it allows us to start thinking about Barcelona. You never know in football until you play. It will be a massive game, they have qualified for the next stage but in the Champions League no-one is going to give a present.
We need to win and deserve to win. The mentality is going to be 200 per cent to try to win. We are going to arrive in the best condition, Barcelona are one of the best teams in Europe.”
The Argentine also said that Spurs will have to be consistent if they are to challenge for the league title. Pochettino said, “The reality is we are there, fighting Liverpool, City, Chelsea and Arsenal – that’s the reality. The three points are massive to keep our position in the table. It’s a massive win for us.
It’s not a thing to show the belief you have in the squad is massive. It’s easy to talk about but it’s difficult to show. We believe and trust in the squad and how important all the players are. There’s no point players playing every three days. It’s not healthy, they need to rest and need some time to breathe. For some teams it’s so difficult to manage. The most important thing is being genuine in the trust you have in the squad. We are showing we trust all the players.”
Following their match against Barcelona, Spurs take on Burnley on Saturday.
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