POCH WARNS, CALM IT KANE
Poch tells Harry to be more careful when he’s tackling
Harry Kane’s allout commitment may have been the cause of his seasonending injury, according to spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino.
Kane hobbled off with a fifth ankle problem since 2016 after a seemingly avoidable challenge on Fabian Delph in Tottenham’s 1-0 Champions League victory over Manchester City on Tuesday.
Pochettino conceded that the tackle was unnecessary and said: ‘With the experience that he has now... in the future maybe he is going to avoid some situations like the other day.’
The striker will see a specialist next week.
Kane has missed 21 club games since the start of 2016-17 with ankle injuries alone and his latest setback came after a collision with Delph near the halfway line. But the spurs manager is also wary about tempering Kane’s physical approach.
‘It was a challenge with not too much need,’ said Pochettino. ‘But he is how he is. He’s strong, he wants to challenge for every single ball with the opponent.
‘Of course, now watching the action, you say, “Oh Harry, why not stop before? There’s nothing to do with this ball in the middle, on the halfway line”. But it shows how he is. now bad luck means that he has an injury.’
Before coming off, Kane was on the receiving end of some rough treatment from City — Fernandinho notably clattering him in the air before elbowing the forward and pushing his head into the turf.
Pochettino refused to be drawn on whether the Brazilian should be punished retrospectively. But he is certain that Pep Guardiola’s side were not intent on hurting Kane.
‘I don’t believe City made a plan to kill him,’ he said. ‘Of course they know that Harry Kane is one of our best players and it’s normal to be tight and tough with him, like us and their players. But, for me, it was an accident.
‘Delph and Harry didn’t want to crash, they were so tough going for the ball. yes, when Delph stepped, Harry twisted his ankle and he was unlucky. It was an action that was a little bit unlucky for him. Of course it was a situation but I don’t believe Harry was a target for City.’
Meanwhile, spurs have already banned some fans for persistent standing in their new stadium. The 62,062-seat arena opened last week and has hosted two games, but sanctions have already been handed out.