I don’t have a good bottle of red wine for Poch .. but I’ll share a couple of cans of Irn Bru with him
SAYS TRANMERE BOSS MICKY MELLON
MAURICIO POCHETTINO has spent recent weeks at the centre of speculation linking him with moves to Real Madrid and Man United.
But Tranmere’s Scottish boss Micky Mellon is hoping to shock the Argentine in the humble surroundings of Prenton Park before enjoying a couple of cans of Irn-Bru with the Spurs boss.
Pochettino has emerged as one of the hottest managerial properties after turning his slick Spurs side into title challengers in his four-and-a-half years in charge of the Londoners.
He lifted his side to second in the Premier League with a 3-0 Ne’erday stroll at Cardiff to continue their fine season.
But Birkenhead will be a different world from the glamorous destinations he’s used to as Paisley-born Mellon hopes to stun Spurs in their David and Goliath FA Cup third-round clash tonight.
There are more than 70 places between the two sides in English football but Mellon isn’t fazed by taking on the London giants.
While in charge of Shrewsbury the 47-year-old was nine minutes away from a securing a draw against Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in the League Cup and tackled Louis van Gaal’s Manchester United in the same competition.
The League Two boss said: “I don’t have a good bottle of red wine waiting but I’ve got some Irn-Bru in for Mauricio so we’ll have a couple of cans together.
“In England it’s an unwritten rule that you spend some time with the opposition manager after the game – it’s a tradition from years before I started as a manager – so we will definitely do that.
“People like Mauricio are so professional the surroundings won’t even bother him. We won’t get the luxury of our stadium hampering them. It will be very tough because they will be going all out to win the game.
“I’m quite an experienced manager so I don’t bother too much about who I’m going up against, what you concern yourself with is making sure your players are ready.
“I’ve gone up against most of the big guns, United and Chelsea to name just two, so we know what it will be like.
“When I was at Shrewsbury we lost to an 81st-minute own goal in a game where Didier Drogba scored. Jose Mourinho was in charge and we played United when Louis van Gaal was in charge and lost 3-0. “We put out Leicester and lost to Crystal Palace in extra time so while it will be tough against Spurs you can do certain things to give yourself a chance.
“The FA Cup is all about shocks and all the rest of it so we’ll go in optimistic but you’ve got to get an awful lot right.
“Tottenham are fantastic, one of the top three teams in England at the minute. They’re a terrific team, full of talent with a great manager. “It’s a big task for us but we know what we need to do to try to increase our chances.”
It’s a huge night for Tranmere who reached the quarter-finals three times between 2000 and 2004 but have fallen on hard times in recent years.
In 2015 they were relegated from the Football League for the first time in their 94-year history and were 18th in the National League last season – their lowest-ever league position.
But Mellon helped turn their season around and led them to promotion and they now sit eighth in League Two.
The former midfielder, who spent his entire playing career in England, says the club are looking forward to their night in the spotlight with the BT Sport cameras heading to Merseyside.
Mellon said: “You have always to look forward to games like this because we have worked really hard to get through to this tie.
“And with it being live on TV and a full house it’s great for the area and the whole football club.
“I’m concentrating on making sure the players can be involved and enjoy it.
“It’s not difficult now to scout the opposition with so much Premier League football on TV so we know what Spurs are all about.
“There’s not much more I can learn about them because if you are a football fan you see so much of teams.
“But we’ll go out and give it everything we have and make sure we don’t let the evening pass us by.
“It will be a full house and on the TV so it’s all positive.”
We put out Leicester and lost to Crystal Palace in extra time so while it will be tough against Spurs you can do things to give yourself a chance. MICKY MELLON