Boss praises players’ professionalism

Newcastle – Mauricio Pochettino (right) paid tribute to his returning World Cup stars after Tottenham made a strong start to the Premier League season with a 2-1 win at Newcastle on Saturday.

Pochettino started five players who featured in the semifinals in Russia last month and who resumed training less than a week ago.

The gamble paid off as firsthalf headers from two of those – Belgian defender Jan Vertonghen and England midfielder Dele Alli – secured the points.

Spurs boss Pochettino insisted he had no hesitation in throwing his big-name players back into the fray at such short notice.

“To be fair, all the players came back in good condition and we had some outstanding performances from those who’ve been away at the World Cup,” he said.

“They showed their professionalism and commitment to the club.”

Harry Kane was among those returning to action after a significantly truncated pre-season, and the England captain understandably lacked sharpness following his Golden-Boot-winning exploits.

The forward drew a blank on his return to see his wait for a Premier League goal in August stretch to almost 1 000 minutes, a barren run spanning 14 games.

“I think he’s in good form, but of course he can’t score three goals every time he goes out to play,” insisted Pochettino.

“Many only started working on Monday, so they deserve massive credit.” –