Sunday, December 9

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Pochettino quickly turns attention to Europe after Leicester win

By Nick Mashiter, | 18h
Tottenham travel to the Nou Camp on Tuesday for their key Champions League clash against Barcelona.

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino declared all eyes are on Barcelona after Spurs cruised past Leicester.

Son Heung-min and Dele Alli struck to clinch a 2-0 win at the King Power Stadium on Saturday night.

Harry Kane was rested and played just the final 16 minutes as Pochettino kept him fresh for Tuesday’s crucial Champions League clash at the Nou Camp.

Victory lifted Spurs up to third in the Premier League, six points behind Liverpool.

But Pochettino is now focused on staying in Europe, with Tottenham second in Group B and locked on seven points with Inter Milan, who play PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday.

“Now it allows us to start thinking about Barcelona,” he said. “You never know in football until you play.

“It will be a massive game, they have qualified for the next stage but in the Champions League no-one is going to give a present.

“We need to win and deserve to win. The mentality is going to be 200 per cent to try to win.

“We are going to arrive in the best condition, Barcelona are one of the best teams in Europe.”

Manchester City’s 2-0 defeat at Chelsea also allowed Spurs to close the gap to Pep Guardiola’s second-placed side to five points, and Pochettino wants consistency if they are to maintain a title challenge.

“The reality is we are there, fighting Liverpool, City, Chelsea and Arsenal – that’s the reality,” he said.

“The three points are massive to keep our position in the table. It’s a massive win for us.

“It’s not a thing to show the belief you have in the squad is massive. It’s easy to talk about but it’s difficult to show. We believe and trust in the squad and how important all the players are.

“There’s no point players playing every three days. It’s not healthy, they need to rest and need some time to breathe.

“For some teams it’s so difficult to manage. The most important thing is being genuine in the trust you have in the squad. We are showing we trust all the players.”

Son sparked a dull game into life when he opened the scoring in first-half stoppage time with an excellent curling strike from 20 yards.

He teed up Dele Alli to make it 2-0 just 13 minutes after the break – the midfielder’s 50th goal for the club – as Spurs wrapped up the points early.

Leicester, without the injured Jamie Vardy, lacked bite and never looked like scoring even before Son’s opener.

They remain ninth, with boss Claude Puel unhappy they failed to build on a solid start.

“We have a regret of course. I am frustrated as we started the game very well, we put in place a good structure,” he said.

“We need more confidence around the box to give the right service. It was a shame to have all these possibilities.

“We conceded the goal and it was tough. It was difficult to come back in the game.

“They are one of the teams challenging for the title because they have a big squad and quality.”

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Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1613303462842
2Manchester CityMan City1613214593641
3Tottenham HotspurSpurs16120430161436
4Chelsea16104233132034
5Arsenal16104235201534
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd167542826226
7Everton156542117423
8Bournemouth167272526-123
9Leicester CityLeicester166462120122
10West Ham UnitedWest Ham166372325-221
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton166371922-321
12Watford156271821-320
13Wolverhampton WanderersWolves165561619-320
14Newcastle UnitedNewcastle163581321-814
15Cardiff CityCardiff1642101530-1514
16Crystal Palace1633101323-1012
17Burnley1633101532-1712
18Huddersfield TownHuddersfield1624101027-1710
19Southampton161691330-179
20Fulham1623111640-249
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