‘We must stick together’ – Pochettino reacts to capitulation against Bayern
Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino says his team must “stick together” after the embarrassment of a 7-2 home defeat by Bayern…
Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino says his team must “stick together” after the embarrassment of a 7-2 defeat by Bayern Munich.
Last season’s Champions League finalists were humbled in their first home game of the new campaign.
“When you receive this type of result, it’s important to believe in yourself,” Pochettino told BT Sport.
“That is the only way to recover the good feeling.”
The hammering at the hands of the German side is the latest disappointment in a troubled start to the season for Spurs.
They sit seventh in the Premier League, already 10 points behind leaders Liverpool, and were knocked out of the League Cup by fourth-tier Colchester United.
“It’s a tough situation, but you have to face it,” said Pochettino. “You have to be strong and keep going. We have to stay together and help each other. The best medicine is to be all together.”
Tottenham went ahead through Son Heung-min, but went 2-1 down on the stroke of half-time.
Bayern were 4-1 ahead by the time Harry Kane pulled one back from the penalty spot, only for the visitors to score three in the final 10 minutes, two of which were netted by Serge Gnabry to give him four in total
“We dominated the game in the first 30 minutes,” said Pochettino.
“We were unlucky we were conceded at the end of the first half and after that they were very clinical.
“After we scored the penalty for 4-2, we had chances to score a third and be in the game. It’s a tough result. It’s hard to accept. In football it happens when the opponent has the quality and is very clinical in front of goal.”
‘They think they are better than they are’
Former Spurs midfielder Rafael van der Vaart called the performance “terrible” and has questioned the mindset of Tottenham’s players.
“They think they’re better than they are,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast.
“You have to be really proud to play for Tottenham, a fantastic club. If you play like yesterday then I think everybody has to shut up and work hard and bring the team to another level because the quality is there.
“This is a great club, you have to be thankful you can be on that pitch.”
‘It’s a shambles’ – analysis
Former Spurs and England winger Chris Waddle on BBC Radio 5 live
I do not get the tactics. It’s not playing to their strengths.
I don’t think Serge Aurier wants to be there, Christian Eriksen hasn’t signed a new contract. There is so much going on off the pitch.
It should have been dealt with over the summer instead all the contract questions are still going on. It’s a shambles.
A club of this stature should not be like this. They have to sort it out quickly. It’s a genuinely shocking scoreline.
‘This is embarrassing’ – how you reacted
Harry: Alderweireld, Vertonghen and Lloris are all past their best, Aurier is a liability, Alli a shadow of his former self, and Harry Winks offers absolutely nothing. Some serious soul-searching/investment needed.
Kris Jefferson: Have a champions league finalist ever played so poorly before? Never mind when they were finalist last season!
James, London: Son – Time to trade up mate. Go to Liverpool, you’re a perfect fit.
Liam, Dronfield: Spurs peaked last season, they will never get to the heights of last season for a long time. They aren’t one of these big clubs, they only have a short time at the top before they head back down for more years of struggle. This is the descent happening. Kane will go so will Poch.
Eston Kimaswoch: This is embarrassing, how do Spurs and Pochettino recover from this thorough humiliation from Serge Gnabry? Long faces all over North London.
Justsaying: It won’t be long until Spurs are saying bye bye to Poch and Kane if they keep playing like this, especially at home.
Kier Sessions: I am not sure who to blame for this embarrassment tonight. Poch for his poor tactics, Levy for allowing so much uncertainty to hang over the squad by not tying things up in the summer or the players who clearly are not playing for the club anymore. Shameful night.