LONDON, BALIPOST.com – Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino insisted he is more hopeful for his side’s prospects this season after a much-improved performance in the north London derby, despite blowing a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 at Arsenal.
Spurs preyed on the Gunners’ vacant midfield early on as Christian Eriksen tapped home at the end of a flowing counter-attack before Harry Kane’s penalty doubled the Champions League finalists’ lead.
However, Arsenal were always a threat going forward and earned a point as after Alexandre Lacazette reduced the arrears in first-half stoppage time, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang equalised 19 minutes from time.
Tottenham remain two points behind Arsenal and have taken just five points from their opening four fixtures.
But Pochettino was pleased with the reaction of his side to last weekend’s bitterly disappointing 1-0 home defeat to Newcastle.
“We recover the good feelings after Newcastle.,” he said.
“We start to peform the way that the team can perform because in the past three games we did not show what we can.”
The Argentine has persistently complained of having an unsettled squad in the first month of the season with Eriksen, Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld into the final year of their contracts.
Eriksen and Vertonghen were recalled to Pochettino’s starting line-up and he hopes to have a fully focused squad after the international break with the transfer window closing across Europe on Monday.
“Today Christian, different players, they are going to be only focused on Tottenham and not other things that make managing so difficult,” added Pochettino.
When asked if he could guarantee Eriksen would not leave the club in the next 24 hours, Pochettino added: “I don’t want to say it is impossible, but it is difficult and hope everything will be clear.”
Eriksen justified his inclusion after just 10 minutes when he tapped home into an empty net as Bernd Leno could only palm Erik Lamela’s shot into his path. (AFP)
