Pochettino fears Champions League place is out of reach

Mauricio Pochettino admitted Tottenham’s attempt to qualify for the Champions League is almost certain to end in disappointment after a goalless draw at Burnley left them seven points behind fourth-placed Manchester City.

After Brendan Rodgers and Ronald Koeman responded to Liverpool’s and Southampton’s defeats on Saturday by conceding their hopes of a top-four finish are all but over, the Spurs manager followed suit. “I think it is difficult but we have seven games and we will try,” Pochettino said. “It is true that it is not easy. It is difficult.”

Tottenham have won only three of their last seven league games and their goal difference is vastly inferior to those of the top four sides, making their task all the harder. They may require seven successive victories, a run they have never recorded in the Premier League, if they are to displace one of the favourites for Champions League qualification. “It is difficult to know that but we need to try to win the next game,” Pochettino said. “We need to try to win the most points possible in the next seven games.”

He sprung a surprise by giving Harry Kane the Tottenham captaincy for the first time in the absence of Younès Kaboul, Hugo Lloris and Jan Vertonghen. It made the 21-year-old the youngest player to captain a side in the Premier League this season but Pochettino said Kane had earned the honour. “He deserves to be a captain,” he said. Spurs have had a number of captains in recent years but Pochettino hinted Kane could be a candidate to lead the club in the long term. “He has the qualities but maybe yes, maybe no,” he said.

While Kane failed to score, he was delighted to be given the armband. Though the striker did not start a Premier League game this season until November, he is the division’s 19-goal joint-top scorer and recorded his first top-flight hat-trick against Leicester last month, before finding the net 78 seconds into his England debut against Lithuania and then playing the full 90 minutes when Roy Hodgson’s side drew 1-1 with Italy on Tuesday.

“You could say it has been the best week of my life: to score, to make my first start and score for England, and to be captain today,” Kane said. “It has been an unbelievable couple of weeks and one I won’t forget for the rest of my career.”

Pochettino conceded Kane found it tough at Turf Moor as Burnley defended solidly and he was restricted to a solitary chance, when he shot wide.

“It was difficult for him and difficult for the team,” he said. “In the way they play it is difficult because always there are long balls into the box. They are a very aggressive team and run a lot. It is difficult to find space to play. We played better in the second half and we made some chances. It was not enough to score but we try. It was a very difficult game. Three weeks ago Manchester City lost here. It is not an excuse but it is a very difficult team.”

The Burnley manager, Sean Dyche, took heart from the way his side coped with Kane as he pointed out that the financial disparity between the two clubs was not reflected on the pitch.

“I was pleased it was another clean sheet,” he said. “You look at the amount they spent: a couple of hundred million quid on their side. We kept them to minimal chances. I was really pleased with the lads’ performance.”

The central defender Michael Duff concurred. “I thought as a team we handled them well,” he said. “We pressed them high up the pitch. It’s something we pride ourselves on. We haven’t got the multimillion pound superstars that some teams have, or the budget to go with it, but we work hard and you can see the fans appreciate that.”

Burnley, who remain in the relegation zone, have scored only once in their last five games but Dyche responded: “You could say that is two clean sheets in three.”


By Richard Jolly / Guardian