LLORENTE: I NEED TIME

NEW Tottenham striker Fernando Llorente has pleaded for time to settle before fans judge him.

The £14million Spaniard (left) opted for last season’s runners-up ahead of Chelsea on transfer deadline day.

But he has yet to make an impact under Mauricio Pochettino and failed to impress on his debut against Barnsley on Tuesday night. Llorente, 32, scored 15 goals for Swansea last season but broke his arm during the summer. He said: “It is my first game of the season without pre-season and now I have to continue to work a lot.

“I need more time. This summer was hard because my arm meant a long stop. I have to work a lot. I don’t know how long.

“With minutes on the pitch I will get confidence and so every match will be better.” Boss Pochettino has admitted he can understand why stayaway fans left Wembley looking sparse for the 1-0 Carabao Cup win over Barnsley.

The 90,000-capacity stadium was less than a third full with just 23,926 supporters in total turning up.

Just under 3,500 Barnsley fans made the 340-mile round trip to London. Insisting he was not worried, Pochettino said: “No I understand. I have to say thank you to the fans that were here, and it maybe wasn’t possible for others.

“I understand that it is so difficult for the fans sometimes to come to every single game.

“Thank you to our fans because I know that they are behind us and they always show their support.”