Pochettino calling for calm — not hand grenades

TOTTENHAM boss Mauricio Pochettino returned to his native Argentina and a tale of Marcelo Bielsa threatening to pull the pin on a grenade as he sifted for positives in the wreckage of a seven-goal Bayern Munich thrashing. Pochettino was a teenager playing for Bielsa at Newell’s Old Boys in February 1992 when they were beaten 6-0 by San Lorenzo in a Copa Libertadores tie. ‘It was really, really, painful,’ said Pochettino. ‘Similar to Bayern Munich.’ Legend has it angry Newell’s fans reacted by marching on Bielsa’s home, where they were confronted by the man now in charge of Leeds United, standing on the doorstep with a grenade in his hand. He told them if they did not leave he would pull the pin and throw it at them, before he chased them down the road. Bielsa’s team went on to win the Clausura title and reached the final of the Copa Libertadores where they were only beaten by Sao Paulo on penalties. ‘In six months, we changed completely the perception,’ said Pochettino. ‘I remember Bielsa talking to us individually and talking to the collective, making changes and slowly turning around the situation. That is the most important thing. ‘We need to be clever and learn from this. But we will have to do it in a different way. That was 27 years ago. This is a different era.’ No grenades, then. No threats. No over-reaction. That was the message from the Tottenham camp, despite the fact Pochettino’s side have been misfiring. They were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Colchester United of League Two. They have not won away in the Premier League since January and face another awkward fixture at Brighton. Pochettino, however, fiercely rejected theories that he might be looking for a way out. ‘In five-and-a-half years we talk about my future in every single press conference. And we are still talking. I hope that means I spend five years more at least.’