Tottenham’s Pochettino Isn’t Pressured to Earn a Win
Tottenham must win against Aston Villa to continue their pursuit of the Premier League title, but Mauricio Pochettino doesn’t feel it’s crucial.
Normally fielding a weakened side against a top European team such as Borussia Dortmund and taking a 3-0 whopping can cause some concern for the manager and players leading up to their next game against Premier League strugglers Aston Villa.
Because now the onus is on Mauricio Pochettino to help lead his squad to a must-win game tomorrow after making seven changes to his lineup. Otherwise this would mark one of the worst stretches in Tottenham’s season since the beginning of the year when they didn’t win in August.
Related Story: Spurs Should Not Underestimate Aston Villa
Having a strong starting eleven expected to take on Villa is a good start. Since three points are the only thing that will help Tottenham not only catch up with Leicester City, but they can distance themselves from Arsenal and Manchester City.
Speaking of Man City, their goalless draw against Norwich City today, will help aid Spurs in their title hunt. Or, just add more pressure to perform better following their three underwhelming results against West Ham, Arsenal and Dortmund.
Interestingly enough though, Mauricio Pochettino doesn’t seem fazed at all by what is now a must-win fixture. Instead he alludes to the club’s performance last season and trying to succeed as being more stressful than what has been going on recently.
It might seem like a joke, but it shows that Pochettino is well aware of the fact that the season isn’t over just yet. There’s still two full months left before a champion can be crowned in both the Premier League and Europa League.
If anything, the Argentine manager is still taking his season one game at a time. A method that has done his team well this campaign.
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“Is the Aston Villa game now crucial? Crucial was last season when we were 14th in November,” Pochettino said.
“We have been in a good run. There is no doubt about the team. Sometimes you expect you cannot perform always the same. Football is difficult.”
“I am happy with team and now we need to lift the players because it was a big hit for us [against Dortmund].”
“We need to finish strongly. If not maybe we have a problem but always you try to fight. The whole season has been good.”
It’s true that last season was difficult because Tottenham were a mid-table club during November in Pochettino’s first year with the club playing in a country not too kind to managers by sacking them if results don’t come quickly and consistently.
Especially with a chairman known for letting managers go one after another too soon.
That said, maybe this reverse psychology of not trying to put pressure on his young squad is a way of building up their confidence once more and reducing the stress to succeed now after a difficult night in Dortmund, Germany. As well as last week with a loss and a draw to West Ham and Arsenal respectively.
Next: Tottenham Settle for the Premier League
A favorable match-up pitting Tottenham against Aston Villa can’t be taken too lightly because Villa will be fighting for pride and for survival. But in all honesty though, it’s good to actually be facing the worst team in the Premier League season right now.
Because who better to get the team back to winning ways than a struggling Aston Villa side? Had this been any other team in the Premiership right now, it’s most likely that Tottenham would have been in a bigger fight to secure three points.
If for some unfathomable reason that Tottenham draw or lose, then there’s a problem with Spurs’ form heading towards the end of the season. And that is a major concern.