Spurs late-show character hailed by Pochettino

SWANSEA, United Kingdom: Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino praised his team’s “big character” in scoring three late goals to beat Swansea 3-1 and keep alive their Premier League title hopes on Wednesday.

Goals in the final 10 minutes from Dele Alli, Son Heung-Min and Christian Eriksen kept them seven points behind leaders Chelsea — who beat Manchester City 2-1 on Wednesday — but they are now the only realistic challenger.

Swansea had looked to be on course to gain three crucial points towards preserving their elite status having led from the 11th minute courtesy of a rare goal from Wayne Routledge. “We won because we kept going and showed great faith, belief and spirit,” said Pochettino.

“It was a very difficult game for us. We always knew it would be.

“We had control of the game and we showed patience. In the end we got the victory our performance deserved.

“In the last 15 or 20 minutes we pushed them deeper and deeper. But the most important thing is that we never gave up.

“To create that winning mentality is about showing big character. But you need time to achieve that.”

The Argentinian said the players showed they had learned from the painful experiences last season when they were the closest challengers to Leicester but lost their way towards the end of the campaign.

“It is true that we needed to learn from last season,” said the former Espanyol and Southampton manager.

“That was one of the good things from today. Maybe last season, we wouldn’t have won that game from that position. But we have got the three points because we believed.