Tottenham: Pochettino discusses difficulties of Wembley move
By Ryan Wrenn
Mauricio Pochettino was at once sentimental and uncompromising when talking Friday about Tottenham’s last match at White Hart Lane and their imminent move to Wembley.
Manchester United will be the last opponent Tottenham face in their historic ground as construction accelerates on their new home, due to open ahead of the 2018/19 season.
Though it was only confirmed two weeks ago that Spurs would indeed be leaving White Hart Lane this season, Pochettino’s side have orchestrated a fitting goodbye to their ancestral home. They remain unbeaten in the north London venue, having won all but two of their matches there.
With a win against United sealing their invincible status at the ground in their final season, Pochettino was understandably emotional in the pre-match press conference. All quotes via the Guardian.
"“Because I am a very sensitive person and so emotional, it will be difficult not to cry on Sunday. But the soul and the smell of White Hart Lane will always be with us.”"
The pain of leaving such a beloved home isn’t the only obstacle facing Spurs however. While their new stadium is being built they will ply their trade down the road, at the England national team’s home of Wembley. Fans have reason to believe that Spurs will find it difficult to overcome the change in scenery.
While construction began on their new stadium last summer, Tottenham were obliged to play their European fixtures at Wembley this past season. And the results were not always encouraging.
Losses came to Monaco and Bayer Leverkusen, results that made it difficult to make it out of their Champions League group. Then, once they were relegated to the Europa League, Wembley served as the setting for perhaps Spurs’ greatest embarrassment of the season when they failed to overcome a deficit to lowly Belgian side Gent.
More recently, Spurs found it difficult to overcome Chelsea in the FA Cup semifinal despite looking the better team for most of the match. They would lose 4-2, ending their best chance at a trophy this season.
The problem wasn’t easy to pin down. Wembley is a much bigger ground, and thus much more difficult to fill with the noise that makes White Hart Lane so intimidating to opponents. More importantly, the pitch itself is wider than the one at the Lane. With Spurs’ pressing game so reliant on closing off routes and denying space, the increased surface area proved to be a tremendous disruption.
Pochettino is unwilling to concede that this problem is insurmountable however.
"“When you are focused and you feel that your home is White Hart Lane it’s so difficult to change. One week we play at White Hart Lane, the next week we play at Wembley. It’s so difficult to change your mindset and be ready when you are so comfortable at White Hart Lane. But next season there’s no excuse. Next season it’s Wembley only. I’m sure that from day one next season we will be thinking about Wembley and it will be completely different.”"
Spurs fans will hope that Pochettino’s confidence is justified come August. With a title seemingly within reach for the last two seasons, having to undergo such a dramatic change next season will be jarring even without taking into consideration Wembley’s dimensions.
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The pay off is a bigger venue custom built for this team, one that will pour money into the club’s coffers and — with any luck — prove to be as much of a fortress as White Hart Lane.