Neville’s Pochettino praise

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville says Mauricio Pochettino is doing a good job at Tottenham even if he has no trophy to show for it yet.

We are in a very strong position to qualify for the Champions League again after a 3-1 victory at Chelsea on Super Sunday, their first win at Stamford Bridge since 1990 and opening up an eight point gap on our west London rivals.

Pochettino’s lack of silverware at the club is often criticised, but Neville recognises the progress the we have made under the Argentine.

He said on the Gary Neville Podcast:”It’s a great day for Tottenham. When I look at the job Pochettino is doing, and the one Jurgen Klopp is doing at Liverpool, where they haven’t won a trophy in a few years, I couldn’t sit here and say they are doing bad jobs. I think they’re doing good jobs.

Neville added: “They’re getting Champions League, and there’s good progression at the clubs. You think about Liverpool, who had only qualified for the Champions League twice in seven seasons before Klopp; back-to-back qualifications.

Neville went on to say: “Tottenham, finishing in positions they have never done in the Premier League, finishing in the Champions League places, winning here at places like Chelsea, in a big game, doing well.
“Yes, there’s a huge game against Man Utd coming up in the FA Cup in two weeks, which people will judge more than today.

We went 1-0 down going into half-time before Christian Eriksen’s late equaliser and Neville recognised that the goal did not fool Pochettino into thinking his side were playing well and he noted how the manager changed the four-pronged attack around to give them more impetus going forward.

Neville added “I said just after half-time that Mauricio Pochettino wasn’t conned by that goal, he hardly celebrated, and he knew it needed to change, and it was a good change.Eriksen went from left to centre, Lamela went from right to centre-forward, Alli went from No 10 to left, and Son went from central forward to right. They all changed positions.

He added: “It got Eriksen into his position, but if you think about the way the second goal came, Dele Alli came and made that run from in-behind on the left, which they hadn’t had before.I think Spurs are at their best when they have runs past Harry Kane, with Son and Alli making the runs past. The first half, they weren’t there, trying to play passes into pockets. It was fussy.”

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