LONDON (AFP) - Mauricio Pochettino says Tottenham have shaken off the fatigue from their gruelling schedule as they prepare to face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday.
Pochettino was frustrated that Tottenham had to play their Premier League match against Leicester on Sunday, while Dortmund were in action 24 hours earlier against Hoffenheim.
The Tottenham boss claimed over the weekend that the extra day of rest for the Bundesliga leaders could put his team at a "massive disadvantage" in the first leg at Wembley.
Adding to Pochettino's frustration, Dortmund have also benefited from a refreshing winter break, while Tottenham have been damaged by injuries to Harry Kane and Dele Alli following the draining Christmas and New Year programme.
But, aware of the dangers of giving his players a ready-made excuse for under-performing, Pochettino was keen to accentuate the positive.
"I've described before, or in the last few days, that it was a little bit unfair (the schedule)," Pochettino told reporters on Tuesday (Feb 12).
"But that is not an excuse (not) to arrive tomorrow in our best condition and fight to try to win. I think you can feel in the eyes of the players the energy."
Tottenham beat Dortmund twice in the Champions League group stage last season but they will face more formidable opponents this time.
Dortmund sit on top of the Bundesliga with a vibrant squad including young England forward Jadon Sancho.
Pochettino is well aware of the threat posed by the Germans as he tries to lead Tottenham into the quarter-finals of a European competition for the first time in his five-year reign.
But, despite the absence of Kane and Alli, they have reeled off four successive wins to stay in the Premier League title race.
And Pochettino expects his side to rise to the occasion in the same never-say-die style they displayed in the group stage this term.
ENERGY AND MOTIVATION
It took late goals against PSV Eindhoven, Inter Milan and Barcelona for Tottenham to make the last 16 by the skin of their teeth.
"We were talking in the meeting before and it's completely different (in big games)," Pochettino said.
"If you ask me why, I don't know, because I'm a person whose own motivation is always high, when we play against Dortmund or Barcelona or we play against different (teams) in different competitions.
"But of course you can feel that it's the Champions League, that it's going to be a massive game with, I hope, a full stadium at Wembley and of course the energy and motivation is going to be there."
Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen has already seized on Pochettino's upbeat message.
Recalling Tottenham's group-stage win over Real Madrid last season, Vertonghen says the north Londoners have no reason to fear any team in Europe if they play at their best.
"We can beat anyone. We have shown that last year. Over two games we were the better team against Real Madrid, who were the eventual winners of the trophy," he said.
There was frustration for Tottenham at this stage of the Champions League last season when they conceded two second-half goals to crash out against Juventus after they had looked to have the tie in their control.
That painful memory will motivate Vertonghen and company against Dortmund.
"That is why it was a shame we could not do better last year because we felt we should have done better," he said.
"That is why everyone has the feeling we can do it this year."
V-Varen Nagasaki v Niigata "liveStream"(live) | Aarhus vs
EzineArticles.com allows expert authors in hundreds of niche fields to get massive levels of exposure in exchange for the submission of their quality original articles.
Transfer Window Gossip Round-Up - Read Premier League
Teenage sensation Moise Kean scored the winner to put Juventus one step away from an eighth consecutive Serie A title on Saturday as a 2-1 comeback win over AC Milan pushed the champions 21 points
Kean winner puts Juventus on brink of Serie A title - Breitbart
Mar 31, 2019 · Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits 'feeling in dressing room like a funeral' after Man Utd's fortuitous win against Watford Save Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits Man Utd were lucky to beat Watford Credit: afp
Man United Didn't Deserve To Win against Watford - Thewistle
Man City vs Liverpool: 5 Talking Points. Ad Man City just don`t look the side they were last year. Great finish from a player who is looking like he is enjoying his time at Liverpool, and
Liverpool just proved why the title is Man City's to lose
Racist chanting was directed at several black England players, including Danny Rose, during Monday's Euro 2020 qualifier in Podgorica, which England won 5-1. England captain Kane, 25, who scored in the match, believes the manner of his side's victory was the "best way of proving those people wrong".
Kane 'proud' of England response to race jibes - The Citizen
WOLFSBURG (Germany): Germany's new-look team made a promising return to the international stage with a 1-1 draw against Serbia in a friendly on Wednesday, showing signs of improvement following a
New-look Germany make promising start with Serbia draw
Latest İrfan Can Kahveci news, stats, photos and videos on MSN Sport. msn back to msn home sport football. powered by Microsoft News. web search. Skip to Navigation;
Ikhsan Fandi - Howling Pixel
Serie A: Napoli draw puts Massimiliano Allegri's Juventus coronation on hold Description: Juventus now have a 20-point advantage on Napoli with seven games to play. A draw next week at lowly SPAL would be enough to win the title, still in record time with six games to spare.
Napoli draw puts Juventus coronation on hold - sports.yahoo.com
Speaking ahead of Cardiff's trip to Arsenal on Tuesday, their first match since Sala's plane vanished, Warnock said it had been the most difficult week of his career and admits he had
Warnock says Sala tragedy is most difficult week of his career
Apr 06, 2019 · Teenage sensation Moise Kean scored the winner to put Juventus one step away from an eighth consecutive Serie A title on Saturday as a 2-1 comeback win over AC Milan pushed the champions 21 points
Kean winner puts Juventus on brink of Serie A title
Each had a story to tell about a "good Christian" child, raised in their home and in our church, who had walked away from the faith during the college years. These children had come through our church's youth program, gone on short-term mission trips, and served in several different ministries during their teenage years.
Youth Prisons Don't Work. Here's What Does. | Time
time.com/4543401/youth-prison-reform/
Mishi Faruqee is the National Field Director of the Youth First Initiative October is Youth Justice Action Month, so let's take stock of what we've learned about our juvenile justice system
PDF Guidelines for Ministry to & With Young People
Fulham boosted their Premier League survival hopes as Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a stoppage-time winner to give them a dramatic 1-0 victory over bottom team Huddersfield Town at Craven Cottage on
Late Mitrovic strike earns Fulham win over Huddersfield
Wasteful Barca held to goalless draw at defiant Lyon LYON, France (Reuters) - Barcelona were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw at Olympique Lyonnais in their Champions League last-16 first leg on
Wasteful Barca held to goalless draw at defiant Olympique
Lionel Messi is back but Lionel Scaloni's Copa squad is littered with new faces. Messi the one constant in a much-changed Argentina squad for Copa America and he has surely played a key
Lionel Messi in 2018: Another underrated year for the little
0 comments:
Post a Comment