EPL: Coach Pochettino gives positive spin as Spurs head for Man City
Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino likes to erase bad memories and cherish good ones.
It's a trait he hopes his players have acquired ahead of Saturday’s clash at Premier League champions Manchester City.
The north London club, then managed by Andre Villas-Boas, were crushed 6-0 in the fixture last season and a few weeks later, with interim manager Tim Sherwood in charge, they collapsed to a 5-1 home defeat.
Many of the players involved in those beatings will be on duty again at The Etihad on Saturday lunchtime as sixth-placed Tottenham try to snap a run of four consecutive league defeats away to Manchester City.
Labelling that sequence mere “statistics” during his news conference at Tottenham’s training ground on Thursday, Pochettino highlighted the positives.
After all, in his first few weeks as Southampton manager in 2013, he orchestrated a 3-1 victory over City.
Last season, his Southampton side gained a well-deserved 1-1 draw at home. But he did not mention a 4-1 away defeat.
Likewise, he played down a poor record when up against City boss Manuel Pellegrini while both were managers in the La Liga.
“In football you need to keep the good memories and the good feelings and get rid of the bad ones,” he told reporters. “The past is just about statistics. We know Man City are the champions and they have a strong squad and a good team but we need to show we can compete with a team like them."
"My history in Tottenham only started three months ago.”
Photos: Reuters, Action Images
Pochettino has made a steady enough start with Tottenham who have picked up 11 points from seven league games – just three shy of City who have already lost at home. - Reuters
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