All Mauricio Pochettino’s planning went awry after just 22 seconds. Liverpool took full advantageA tremendous madness: Mauricio Pochettino’s soundbite to describe Tottenham’s passage to their first Champions League final was a decent attempt to sum it all up. There were the late goals that kept them alive in the second half of the group-phase campaign, not to mention the one from Lucas Moura that crowned the epic comeback in the semi-final at Ajax. And what about the VAR craziness in the quarter-final at Manchester City?The well ran dry against a Liverpool team that showed control and a streetwise edge and it felt as though Pochettino’s comment could be best applied to the moment that shaped the match after 22 seconds....
Arsenal used to be in a strikingly similar position to Tottenham now but Spurs dont want to follow their rivals path since 2006the short interval since Tottenhams wild, fun, chancy away-goals victory at Manchester City in the Champions League there has been a shared urge to draw the starkest of comparisons between the two clubs: their finances, their structure, the various degrees of faux-humble Jedi-cardigan fraudulence exhibited by their managers. It is in many ways a meaningless exercise. This is a comparison of two entirely separate things, entirely separate ways of trying to reach the same point, not to mention one that is inevitably flattering to Spurs and inevitably bruising for Pep Guardiola and the football-style soft-power project operating in...
Liverpool and Tottenham meet on Sunday when the high press will be evident in what is likely to be an engaging ninth meeting of the men in the dugoutEnglish football has, of course, learned before about the dangers of hailing golden ages before they’ve hatched, but with four Premier League clubs in the last eight of the Champions League and a youthful national side playing with rare verve, it can reasonably be acknowledged that there is a profound sense of positivity and promise about the game. At least at the top end. And if you only look at what’s happening on the pitch. And you ignore the looming iceberg of Brexit.A huge part of the reason for that is the...
The Tottenham manager is not the first to mishandle rumours of departure but the Argentinian has made a series of missteps since being linked with Manchester UnitedThere is a species of well-known quotes that fulfils such a useful function that it’s convenient to overlook whether or not they were actually said. Although there is no official record of it, Harold Macmillan is often cited as saying: “Events, dear boy, events,” apparently in response to a question about what blows governments off course.Well, obviously it’s events – nonevents are unlikely to do it. But the meaning taken from the quote is unpredictable events or those one can do nothing to prevent. They are the kind that really knock you sideways. Related:...
The Tottenham manager has his reasons for prioritising league finish but winning silverware is a habit his team need to develop – no one takes photos of a fourth-placed finishPerhaps the kindest thing to say about Mauricio Pochettino’s honesty in excusing Tottenham’s removal from two cups in four days is that he cannot be accused of self-interest or personal promotion.If it is true, and it seems widely accepted, that the Spurs manager’s name is on some very short lists for consideration at some of the most select clubs around Europe, there will be people at those clubs pointing out that for all his personable promise Pochettino has won precisely nothing yet, and furthermore his team have regained a reputation for...