Pochettino has ‘no regrets’ after Tottenham’s Europa exit

Mauricio Pochettino insisted he had no regrets regarding his team selection despite Tottenham’s exit from the Europa League on Thursday night, following a 2-0 defeat by Fiorentina that will be remembered for a glaring error by Roberto Soldado in front of goal.


Soldado, who has scored only five times this season, was played in one-on-one during the first half with the match goalless and the tie finely poised at 1-1 on aggregate. Instead of shooting, the Spaniard dallied on the ball and opted to slip in Nacer Chadli but his tame pass was claimed comfortably by the Fiorentina goalkeeper, Neto.

Spurs play Chelsea in the Capital One Cup final on Sunday and Pochettino had conceded before this game that his selection could be the difference during a crucial week for the club. Harry Kane and Andros Townsend started on the bench, two of seven changes, but Pochettino stated afterwards he would not change his approach with hindsight.

Asked if he regretted not starting Kane, who usually plays in place of Soldado,the manager said: “No. We analyse always and try to pick the best team for every game. I repeat – I think we played very well. We created chances and needed luck to score. There is no regret about that. It is my job, it is my decision. Sometimes you need luck. We did not score and they go to the next round.”

Mario Gómez and Mohamed Salah – on loan from Chelsea – scored for Fiorentina and Pochettino must now pick up his players for the final at Wembley. Spurs train in Italy on Friday at Coverciano before flying back to London, where José Mourinho’s side lie in wait.

“Fiorentina made nine changes, we made seven changes,” said Pochettino. “I don’t know how to explain but in football you have a strong squad. It is not about selection it is about performance and we played very well.”

Asked about Soldado’s miss, he said: “I think we are all disappointed, the player too. This is normal. This was the first final for us. All the players are disappointed. Now we need to look forward because on Sunday we have another game.”


By James Riach , Guardian