Poch’s pain is ended by Kane
MAURICIO POCHETTINO said this win has brought Tottenham back to life – a remarkable piece of magic even by FA Cup standards.
On a day when Harry Kane conjured up a highly accomplished hat-trick to add to the show, the Spurs manager even dared to show the rest of us the secrets behind how it is all done.
First, forget mind-reading – get your players to speak their minds instead.
“After two defeats against Liverpool and Ghent, in football, that feeling when you lose is difficult,” said Pochettino. “It was important for us all the players wanted to take the responsibility. After Ghent, we had a few meetings and the reaction was fantastic.”
And the second thing? Don’t shuffle the deck too much beforehand.
“We assessed the players and many wanted to play and didn’t feel tired,” he said. “It was a great opportunity today to show that we are alive, and end that bad feeling after two defeats.
“My intention was to try to take the best decision for the team, with the best players to try to win. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but you have to manage 24 or 25 players.”
In particular, when Kane limped off the pitch with a knee injury in Ghent he looked a shoo-in for a weekend off.
“He got a knock, but it wasn’t bad and he arrived in very good condition today,” said Pochettino.
Instead, a hat-trick leaves Tottenham just 90 minutes away from Wembley – it’s almost like a second home for them. But you cannot help but wonder how this might have turned out if Kane had been sat at home with his new family and his feet up. Would Spurs have crashed out like so many of their Premier League peers who chose not to pick their very best players?
Would Son Heung-Min have been able to show the determination to get on the end of Christian Eriksen’s cross, delivered first time from Kieran Trippier’s intelligent quick throw to put Tottenham in front after 16 minutes? Kane did.
The England striker had an element of luck with the second as television replays suggested he had gone a fraction of a second too early to meet yet another Eriksen cross in the second half as his shoulder and forehead appeared marginally beyond the last defender.
Nevertheless, he showed his usual natural composure to readjust his body position and side-foot the ball in from an awkward height.
Kane almost made it three with aplomb in the 70th minute, beautifully controlling Dele Alli’s chipped pass only to toe-poke his effort over the crossbar. It was merely delaying the inevitability of his fifth career hat-trick as Eriksen and Alli combined well to send him racing clear three minutes later.
A Kevin McDonald header over the bar when it was already 2-0 was the closest the Championship side came.
Manager Slavisa Jokanovic said: “Spurs showed us all the respect with a very strong starting XI. They didn’t offer us so many chances to gain a victory. It’s very clear they came into the game with the highest level of concentration. They played as if they were playing against Chelsea and, in the end, all credit to them for that.” FULHAM (4-2-3-1): Bettinelli; Odoi, Kalas, Ream, Malone; McDonald (Parker 74), Johansen; Kebano, Cairney, Ayite (Sessegnon 56); Aluko (Cyriac 66). TOTTENHAM (4-2-3-1): Vorm; Trippier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Davies; Winks (Dembele 79), Wanyama; Son, Alli (Onomah 86), Eriksen; Kane (Sissoko 75). Goals: Kane 16, 50, 73. Referee: R Madley (West Yorkshire)