Tottenham equalled a 30-year-old 14-match unbeaten run with a 1-1 draw at West Brom yesterday thanks to an opening goal from teenage England global Dele Alli.
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“We have people behind us that feel like important people for the club too and I think we are a unit, and this is the most important thing”. “Before, all I heard was that he sacked managers and he was very tough”.
Tottenham will be without Ryan Mason, Nacer Chadli, Nabil Bentaleb and Alex Pritchard (all ankle), but Dele Alli is back from suspension.
With Claudio Yacob suspended, Albion lined up with Jonny Evans in an unfamiliar role in front of the back four, with Chris Brunt returning at left back.
Spurs’ impressive start to the season has been based not on the purchase of any marquee summer signings but instead on a foundation of a young squad willing to osmose Pochettino’s vision of a high-energy, imposing playing style.
In defence, Jan Vertonghen continues to show good positional awareness; in midfield Mousa Dembele is attracting attention because of his multi-faceted approach in defence, dribbling and passing while Harry Kane in attack is flourishing after a mild barren run at the beginning of the campaign. We believe we can get results at any match. “The statistics say we’re going in the right direction but we have to work hard because we want to get better”, he said.
“He’s very clever, I’ve learned a lot from him in every chat, in every meeting”, said Pochettino, before laughing and adding: “When he negotiates with me, now I am very strong! If we do, I would fancy us against any side”.
Fans’ frustration mounted again in the summer as Spurs failed to sign a striker, instead scrambling to finalise a last-minute deal for Saido Berahino and then upsetting West Brom with a series of penny-pinching bids. Spurs have managed to tide over a tough fixture list and have their next five games against teams that are not in the top nine, with a chance to close the gap between themselves and fourth-placed Arsenal who are only two points ahead.
Yet the strain of funding the project will be eased significantly if Spurs can establish themselves as a regular Champions League side by the 2017/18 season when it is expected to be completed.
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Christian Eriksen has scored in three of Spurs’ last four top-flight clashes against West Brom while Harry Kane has netted three goals in his two Premier League appearances against West Brom.
