Mauricio Pochettino says the fact Liverpool fans celebrated Spurs’ defeat to Arsenal last weekend proves that his side are respected as one of the best teams in the Premier League.
The Argentine accidentally revealed that Spurs’ chief scout Steve Hitchen was in attendance at Anfield for last weekend’s Merseyside derby, as it was Hitchen who told him that Liverpool supporters celebrated Arsenal’s third goal against Pochettino’s side.
Has Pochettino made Spurs one of the most well-respected sides in football?
- The former Southampton boss has received immense praise for the job he has done with the North London club.
- Spurs have won four of their last five league matches and are third in the league table.
- Pochettino believes the extent of Arsenal’s celebrations in the North London derby proves that people consider Spurs to be a top side.
- Chief scout Steve Hitchen also witnessed Liverpool supporters celebrate Arsenal’s win.
- Spurs had there best start to a Premier League season this year after taking 21 points from their opening nine games.
When reflecting on the amount of social media posts from Arsenal players who were celebrating the victory, Pochettino told reporters: “What that shows, first of all, is the respect that they have for us. When the people celebrate like this, it’s because people respect you and see you as a big club.
“Of course, when we arrived here five years ago, the derby was a little bit … well, it’s normally Arsenal always above Tottenham.
“But now it’s like, the last two seasons we were above [them], and how they celebrate, of course, it’s a derby, yes, but you start to see what you see [the images].
“It was a massive win for them. Of course, for us, it was a massive disappointment, but it showed the respect that we got in the last few years with our performances, with our results.
“Maybe we still not win a trophy, as the people say, but the respect in the way that we are doing the things – to get the respect is the most important thing or the first step.”
The Spurs boss also let slip that chief scout Hitchen was in attendance at Anfield for the Merseyside derby, which followed Spurs’ trip to the Emirates.
Pochettino added: “It was the same for Steve Hitchen. He was in the Liverpool game against Everton and… I don’t know if he’s going to be happy, well it’s too late now. He was watching our game there before in the stadium and when Arsenal scored the third goal all the Liverpool fans celebrated, like Arsenal celebrated after.
“The Liverpool fans celebrated the goal of Arsenal. It’s clear we are doing something good. That respect, I love this respect. I love it when the people celebrate when they beat you.
“I don’t like it when the people don’t celebrate because it’s normal to beat Tottenham. That makes me feel so proud.”
READ MORE: The ‘Austrian Klopp’? The footballing philosophy of new Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl
Why was Spurs’ chief scout at Liverpool vs Everton?
Pochettino has insisted that Hitchen’s attendance at Anfield was just for “the experience”, but there could be another explanation.
Spurs were heavily linked with Andre Gomes last summer, the Barcelona midfielder that joined Everton on loan in August.
Gomes has been in scintillating form in recent weeks and Marco Silva is desperate for his side to snap him up on a permanent basis.
But it would be no surprise to see Champions League clubs register an interest in Gomes, and perhaps Spurs, who are faced with the prospect of watching Mousa Dembele leave on a free transfer next summer, could be one of them?
The post Mauricio Pochettino: Why I’m glad Liverpool fans celebrated Arsenal 4-2 Spurs appeared first on Squawka News.
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