Mauricio Pochettino: avoiding Europa League could help us

[Main Man]

Poch is absolutely counting on us qualifying for the Europa League so he can use it as an excuse this time next year.

A good manager - or just a manager with a brain - if they had no interest in the competition would just play the Youth Team in the qualifiers/group stage.

I would still expect them to perform well and would give the likes of Carroll, Pritchard, Yedlin et al a good chance of staking a claim in the first team proper.

Our approach to this seasons competition was confused and just plain wrong really, which ultimately saw us depart to a very, very average team.

 

[Japhet]

The problem is that for a lot of the Europa group games he used a totally different team to the league games on the following sunday and still managed to drop the points in the league and the Euro hangover excuse was wheeled out.

We have a massive bloated squad and have had so few injuries this year that there really is no excuse for the poor performances after the Euro games.

If the players were motivated over the last few games we could still be on for top 4 but dropping 5 points against Burnley and Villa will always leave you as also rans

Seems like Europa League ties are used as a 'get out of jail free' card for piss poor performances next game. The fact remains that we have, if anything, been even worse in the League since we got booted out of the EL. in spite of re-cooperation time and International breaks. It's a lame excuse for weak mentality IMO.

 

[Block D Spurs]

I agree that the English FA have not considered the travel we and other PL teams have to do in the Europa League. Classic example is this season League Cup Final... Chelsea had no CL games that week, and so were fresh after a week training, while we had 2.5 days after traveling back from Italy, (squad players mentally down after that game)

So IMO there needs to be a rethink of the games schedules for PL teams who play in Euro League, by the English FA. Otherwise there will be no English teams who want to play in Euro Leagues. Our 60 games this season is far too many, as no PL teams will have played this amount, or traveled as much as we have across Europe...

 

[Lilbaz]

Translation. We are struggling to make Europa places let alone top 4. So I am going to make excuses so I don't get sacked.

 

[Locotoro]

He doesn't actually say he doesn't want to be in the Europa League. He just says it makes things a bit harder.

Not rocket science people

 

[14/04/91]

He says it's important financially for the club but I don't think this argument is a strong one; whilst I can't recall exactly what we earn from a typical EL campaign (ie getting through the group stages then out) it's not big money (circa €2m).

Balancing the efforts of the first team squad over the season should be his only concern.

 

[cliff jones]

dont disagree with any of his points about the comp, only with the performance of his teams. when we did advance, he didnt seem to know what to do with Kane and the rest is history. not hindsight, i said we needed our best xi to edge the italians whom i felt we were underestimating and so it proved.

next season, assuming we are in, pick strong teams for the home games to ensure qualification. dont take any first xi to greece, turkey or wherever , dont buy poch a plane ticket either, let them stay back.

 

[doom]

the Europa League is draining not only on the (mostly) squad players but the manager, the coaches and the first team players who warm the bench. The manager has little time to prepare for the next game, flying drains the players and stops the focus on the next game. The only way around it that can work is if Pochetino and no other first team players travelled. Use McDermott as the coach. If we get out early then so be it but if we get far then we can think about changing the set up but only if we are out of other competitions - it is a very difficult tournament to win for UK teams - I'd say it's almost as hard to win as the champions league as there are more games, longer distances travelled and teams are really up for the games.

 

[doom]

dont buy poch a plane ticket either, let them stay back.

I was just writing this

 

[Rout-Ledge]

next season, assuming we are in, pick strong teams for the home games to ensure qualification. dont take any first xi to greece, turkey or wherever , dont buy poch a plane ticket either, let them stay back.

100% this.

Poch would possibly have to go due to competition rules, though I'm not sure on that one.

Our kids would probably pick up some points in the away games anyway.

 

[cliff jones]

100% this.

Poch would possibly have to go due to competition rules, though I'm not sure on that one.

Our kids would probably pick up some points in the away games anyway.

think 10 points ought to be enough. poch can pretend hes got a sore throat or something, if the rules suggest he should ordinarily travel. or send someone who looks like him instead.

 

[doom]

100% this.

Poch would possibly have to go due to competition rules, though I'm not sure on that one.

Our kids would probably pick up some points in the away games anyway.

well he could always be "sick" in all the away games = just like players do for England.

 

[Main Man]

the Europa League is draining not only on the (mostly) squad players but the manager, the coaches and the first team players who warm the bench. The manager has little time to prepare for the next game, flying drains the players and stops the focus on the next game. The only way around it that can work is if Pochetino and no other first team players travelled. Use McDermott as the coach. If we get out early then so be it but if we get far then we can think about changing the set up but only if we are out of other competitions - it is a very difficult tournament to win for UK teams - I'd say it's almost as hard to win as the champions league as there are more games, longer distances travelled and teams are really up for the games.

Let's add a bit of persepctive to this.

Fulham and Middlesbrough made the final of this competition by taking it seriously (eventually).

Their domestic campaigns didnt suffer because of it either. And neither had the squads we do.

If they can do it, why can't we?

 

[Glenn_Purvey]

Its a poor excuse for another poor season, our home form has been terrible this season and to blame European football for this is silly. The players need to be mentally ready for 3 games a week and if they are not we should put fresh pair of legs in. That's why I have never understood in us selling players like sigurdson, caulker and naughton each of these are great squad players and would have played easily 25 games this season.

 

[JoeT]

When I suggested that the EL is a shit competition (at least in its current set-up) and that we'd be at an advantage if we missed out, I was called an "entitlement wanker". Now our manager is saying the same thing.

It's probably not the best thing for him to come out and say though - especially as we'll almost certainly be in it again next season.

And anyway, nobody was forcing Pochettino to play strong teams in the competition.

I think that Mauricio was 'told' by Levy that Spurs were going to compete in the EC., so never was really a believer in it especially when he wasn't given the resources to build up a squad strong enough to compete in both the EC and Prem.(I mean, did he have any say in the decision to get rid of Siggy and Caulker?)
So all I see in this article is Mauricio coming out and finally saying what he had on his mind from the outset and I think what he has said are simply examples of other teams who also fell between the double-aims.
To comment on what this could mean to Spurs in the future.....Yes, when Spurs' squad has been built up both in quality and numbers, maybe playing in Europe and the Prem. competitively can be a reality.Until then, 'Gaz' they will be a mid to upper table team...get used to it.

 

[diamondlight]

IMO the competition is drain on players and a distraction and offers nothing in terms of pull to signing new players.

I don't see what's wrong with Redknapp's approach of playing the youth team in the Europa League. That way we give our young players experience, and we give a big incentive to young players we are trying to sign.

 

[TottenhamMattSpur]

Finishing as high as possible is interpretive.
Challenging for a cup we won't win isn't.
Qualify, put only kids into the group stage, and reserve coaches with them on away games.

 

[thinktank]

When I suggested that the EL is a shit competition (at least in its current set-up) and that we'd be at an advantage if we missed out, I was called an "entitlement wanker". Now our manager is saying the same thing.

It's probably not the best thing for him to come out and say though - especially as we'll almost certainly be in it again next season.

And anyway, nobody was forcing Pochettino to play strong teams in the competition.

Dunno about that, he may well have been leant on by shinehead. Got sponsers to keep happy.

 

[Lilbaz]

Have 2 teams. One for the league the other for the cups.
If a player is playing better in the cups than his league counterpart, swap them. Keep them all on their toes.
If someone in the cups is slacking, drop them and bring in a youth player.
Anyone who moans. Sell.
Keep wages low with high bonuses for appearance/win/goals/etc... So we don't get stuck with dead wood.

 

[Indacupfortottenham]

CL teams manage it just fine and if that is our goal, surely getting in the habit of playing twice a week is a good thing. See the logic in Poch's comments but don't agree with him.