A serious look at Mauricio Pochettino

[Cheesy]

I have never said Poch doesn't have any credit in Spurs job. He definitely did good enough to build the squad but he has shown his limitations as a manager for several times with several warnings that his mentality won't work in a big club with higher expectations. He'll get higher funds at big clubs but that will come with much higher expectation and higher pressure. Just finishing top 4 while sacrificing the cups won't keep him in the job for a long time in a big club, unlike Spurs.

The problem is he's not showing any ambition for winning them but instead undermining them for top 4. That's very, very Wenger esque.

He isn't just finishing top four though - he's finished 3rd, 2nd, and 3rd respectively in their last three seasons, and currently they're on track for another 3rd place finish. Again, all that with the resources of a side who - by right - should be languishing somewhere around 6th at best, and who had a fairly shite squad when he first assumed the position. That's more impressive than Wenger's Arsenal regularly finishing 4th and often having to secure CL qualification late in the season.

 

[VorZakone]

This discussion reminds me of Suarez who was often criticized for not scoring enough in big games at Liverpool. Then he goes to Barca and scores in plenty of big games because guess what, he now plays for a better team.

I have no doubt about Poch being able to win trophies with a better squad than Spurs.

 

[el3mel]

He isn't just finishing top four though - he's finished 3rd, 2nd, and 3rd respectively in their last three seasons, and currently they're on track for another 3rd place finish. Again, all that with the resources of a side who - by right - should be languishing somewhere around 6th at best, and who had a fairly shite squad when he first assumed the position. That's more impressive than Wenger's Arsenal regularly finishing 4th and often having to secure CL qualification late in the season.

Wenger actually finished 3rd and 2nd too, and again without much spending. You can say resources were present or not but they were still not spending much in comparison to their rivals.

It's still the same. Simply finishing top 4 regularly isn't a sign of progress if you're not taking it farther forward and start winning things. On the contrary, it's a sign of stagnation and no progress actually. It's fine at first when you finish top 4 after a long time out of it. It was fine first or second time Poch did it, was more than enough, but more of the same seasons every year, it's showing the team isn't progressing. It shows the team has stagnated and it's not going anywhere. This Spurs squad is good enough to finish top 4 while winning a Cup regularly.

 

[Cheesy]

Wenger actually finished 3rd and 2nd too, and again without much spending. You can say resources were present or not but they were still not spending much.

It's still the same. Simply finishing top 4 regularly isn't a sign of progress if you're not taking it farther forward and start winning things. It's a thing of stagnation and no progress actually. It's fine at first when you finish top 4 after a long time out of it. It was fine first or second time Poch did it, was more than enough, but more of the same seasons every year, it's showing the team isn't progressing. It shows the team has stagnated and it's not going anywhere.

They had a ten-year spell where they literally didn't finish 2nd once and when they finished 2nd again they had a points total in the low 70s. They generally fluctuated between 3rd and 4th, whereas Spurs have consistently been in the top three.

They're only stagnating if you (again) ignore that they don't really have the resources to even be in the top four. The only thing they can do beyond what they're doing currently is win the league - that's really fecking tough in a league where they're financially disadvantaged in comparison to five other teams. They've had a patchy spell of form recently but they're still doing alright in the league and continue to play plenty of good football. Hardly stagnation, I'd say.

 

[Fortitude]

Well that’s the thing, Spurs are in an awkward middle ground between the two. Sure they haven’t won a trophy in a long time and winning one would be good, but on the other hand, they don’t finish in the CL spots and all of a sudden their best players look at leaving, they struggle to get decent reinforcements to come in etc.

Like I said, the only debate to be had here is if Spurs should be prioritizing one thing over another. Some may say they have the squad to compete on both fronts, others may say they don’t.

For their players and fans it would be monumental, I think - good is us, or City winning it; not sure it changes anything in the grand scheme for clubs who have a fanbase that can regale themselves with CL and PL winning memories, or, who have actually won either in the very recent past and could well be on to pastures new in terms of aspiration.

I take the point they are in a corridor of uncertainty, but it won't be long before just qualifying for the next CL is the catalyst for an exodus in its own right. Their top players are going to end up doing the club a favour and themselves an injustice by staying in an inert, pointless loop, and I don't know how long those star turns should be expected to stay if the club is not matching their ambition nor providing them with any hope of fond, cup-winning memories to look back on. People like to compare Kane and Shearer for their loyalty and so forth, but Shearer actually won the league, which, under the current regime at Spurs, Kane has no hope of emulating. How long can the string of CL football alone keep him hooked when he could double his salary elsewhere and contest for trophies?

How crushing is it for those key players who are out now that they come back to such a miserable set of results, by the way? Morale has to be managed just as well as the physical aspect, and this is where Poch is failing badly - saving the legs is not necessarily saving the minds and that's not something he is traversing well at all these past years.

 

[el3mel]

They had a ten-year spell where they literally didn't finish 2nd once and when they finished 2nd again they had a points total in the low 70s. They generally fluctuated between 3rd and 4th, whereas Spurs have consistently been in the top three.

They're only stagnating if you (again) ignore that they don't really have the resources to even be in the top four. The only thing they can do beyond what they're doing currently is win the league - that's really fecking tough in a league where they're financially disadvantaged in comparison to five other teams. They've had a patchy spell of form recently but they're still doing alright in the league and continue to play plenty of good football. Hardly stagnation, I'd say.

Again you're treating them like an underdog. That's the problem with these "resources and budgets" discussions. People are treating them like they have a much weaker team than the rest of their rivals. The fact that's not true. They have a WC winning GK, 2 of the best defenders in the league, the best English midfielder and an attack that'll go straight into their rivals team including the best striker in the world. They're not pushing above their weight. In fact you can't convince me their squad is weaker than the Liverpool one who's challenging for the league now or even Chelsea. This budget thing will make sense if they have a pretty weak team but that's not true.

The problem isn't winning trophies. The problem is their manager is undermining these trophies in his pressers and is acting like top 4 is far more than enough as a success, so he's a point at not even trying. He has thrown Fa Cup now and I remember him throwing Europe League away as well when they got out against Gent for the sake of top 4. They're basically finishing in top 4 to get enough money so that next season they sacrifice everything for top 4 again and so on. This underwhelming cycle is what Wenger was doing at Arsenal and was driving their fans mad at him. It's not like Poch is angry with that, on the contrary he comes to the pressers saying Spurs glory days were in black and white and top 4 is success while Fa Cup isn't an actual trophy.

The problem isn't winning, it's that he's not even trying and is content with regular top 4 finish. Top 4 ceases being progress at this point and it's called stagnation. It's the same season every year : Sacrifice everything to get top 4, get enough money to not spend much anyway, then sacrifice everything for top 4 again to not spend the money you get ..etc. What's exactly the progress in this ? This is fine in the first or second season but after that, not progress by any means whatever you look at it.

This Spurs squad is far more than enough to finish 3rd and win a Cup regularly. I find no reason why people are acting like they have to choose. It's just two, two ! competitions.

 

[cheeky_backheel]

What Pochettino has done with Spurs with regard to their performances and financial stability is much greater than what winning the fa cup, league cup or premier league for one season than going into obscurity the next. I imagine most clubs that are not in the top six would rather have this stability and great performance week in week out than, a season where they win a single trophy then battle relegation or finish bottom half in the league.

I doubt many share your kind of imagination. Many would happily trade relegation for a PL title. Case in point, Leicester is forever among the PL champions while Spurs and Liverpool are yet to join the club

You said it won’t get easier, but Pochettino seems to have mastered players development and finding good talent. With Winks, Skipp, Walker Peters, that Argentine defender and so on coming through, their fans have some players to watch out for in the future without having to spend a large sum finding these talent. So, just as Spurs loose Bale, Modric, Walker, etc., Pochettino will find alternative players to develop.

That is a valid to the extent that a club needs to assemble a team on a budget. As shown by Barca's recent acquisition of De Jong, while big clubs may be benefit from finding bargains, they are better served buying proven talent.

You call Pochettino a perennial loser because you see things only in black and white. Which is why a lot of United fans did not foresee the failure of Mourinho.

He is definitely not yet a winner

The fa cup is a dynamic competition in that a team like Milwall can come and defeat a team like United if they are not focus. This is what happened to Pochettino side today and on another day, they might have won. No manager want to lose, Pochettino just value the premier league competition at this time as more important. Furthermore, not losing anymore of their key players to injuries. He is in a unique situation where his team is depleted and is being starved by the higher ups. Pochettino focus right now is no doubt is retaining the champions league spot as showed with his emotions toward the last minute winner against a Fulham side last week in addition to the squad he put out today.

There is nothing unique about his situation. Everyone is gets to register a 25 man squad to account for injuries.

 

[Schneckerl]

What he said is 100% right.
Getting top 4 and CL money is more important for the long term health of the club than the FA cup.

 

[Schneckerl]

They’re starting to sound so much like Arsenal but without the success to have the undeserved arrogance.

“Wait until the new stadium is built and we’ll be able to compete with anyone”. Sound familiar?

I also can’t believe the love Levy gets from so many. Again it’s very Arsenal like. No one is saying he has to invest hundreds of millions but the squad needed even modest investment in the summer and he did nothing. He gets praised as a genius for demanding ridiculous sums. That doesn’t make you a genius. What makes you the furthest thing from a genius is telling your manager a player is staying against their will and dragging a saga out all window for a few extra million. They get a few million extra yes, but clubs now know you’re desperate for a replacement and demand higher. It’s like when Arsenal were elated to keep taking City’s money for Adebayor, Nasri not realizing they kept building up this club who eventually would overtake them. But hey they didn’t sell to United so they were happy.

Cant believe someone thinks 'Spurs sounds like Arsenal' is a failure. Considering the status of the 2 club for the past decades it's a massive success.

 

[Deleted member 101472]

If trophies only build ego, then you can feck off from ever managing my club mate.

 

[staniswin]

The greatest managers in the world find a way of winning trophies mate. Dont deny he's done a fantastic job at Spurs but I've consistently maintained that I don't think he is for us.

Reminder that Moyes has done a fantastic job with Everton too , He made them went to UCL for some occasions and keeping them steady on top 6-7 for so many seasons. We don't want to repeat a mistake , once a small time will always be a small time. Poch is never going to survive here. 40m for serial bottler, i rather spend that for Mark Noble.

 

[Amadaeus]

I doubt many share your kind of imagination. Many would happily trade relegation for a PL title. Case in point, Leicester is forever among the PL champions while Spurs and Liverpool are yet to join the club

Blackburn won the premier league before, now their fans are relishing the prestigious tie against Rotherham. Leeds has a season where they were in Europe and after that, they went through a lot of hardships and debt. Maybe I am looking at things from an economic perspective, but as a fan of a team that is not a top club, I would imagine they would rather build a great team and showcase stability, rather than win a trophy for one season, and go into obscurity the next few season. A fan should want what is of best for their currrent club and beside the anomaly of winning a trophy that has been dominated by financial powerhouse, a club’s stability, economic success and on field performance should matter more until they are good enough to make winning a trophy a priority. I believe that is the rationale way of thinking.

That is a valid to the extent that a club needs to assemble a team on a budget. As shown by Barca's recent acquisition of De Jong, while big clubs may be benefit from finding bargains, they are better served buying proven talent.

At that moment in time, Pochettino needed to develop these players and make those bargains signing. But now because of the stability he brought to Spurs, they can afford buying proven talent. It is up to the board to allocate the funds available to him.

He is definitely not yet a winner
There is nothing unique about his situation. Everyone is gets to register a 25 man squad to account for injuries.

The absence and injuries his squad has sustained is unique. I have no doubt any top club would complain about their squad if their top three players sustained an injury. I cant remember a scenario where that has happened to any club. Could you imagine if Messi, Suarez and Neymar got injured for Barcelona back when they were playing together? In addition, Busiquit, and Thiago. The media would have had that as their front news story.

 

[Schneckerl]

He made them went to UCL for some occasions and keeping them steady on top 6-7 for so many seasons.

He didn't....

 

[Schneckerl]

Carling

2008 Tottenham Hotspur
2009 Manchester United
2010 Manchester United
2011 Birmingham City
2012 Liverpool
2013 Swansea City
2014 Manchester City
2015 Chelsea
2016 Manchester City
2017 Manchester United
2018 Manchester City

FA

2007–08 Portsmouth
2008–09 Chelsea
2009–10 Chelsea
2010–11 Manchester City
2011–12 Chelsea
2012–13 Wigan Athletic
2013–14 Arsenal
2014–15 Arsenal
2015–16 Manchester United
2016–17 Arsenal
2017–18 Chelsea

Bet fans of those club love their sweet trophies playing in League One or fighting Championship relegation today.

 

[staniswin]

He didn't....

Whatever , He made Everton finish top 4 , but looked completely out of depth here , anyone who wants Poch to come to United should just become spurs fans instead cause there is 0 chance of Woodward and Glazer going to spend 40m to get a serial bottler. Beside player like Pogba will voice who they want as well and they definitely prefer Ole.

 

[Schneckerl]

Whatever , He made Everton finish top 4 , but looked completely out of depth here , anyone who wants Poch to come to United should just become spurs fans instead cause there is 0 chance of Woodward and Glazer going to spend 40m to get a serial bottler..

Ok. Nice logic.

"One guy we hired a few years ago was a failure, therfore this other coach who is completely unrelated and in a totally different situation would surely be a failure too."

The average internet poster being totally incompetent at talent evaluation and unable to differentiate between situations is nothing new.

 

[Stobzilla]

I think Poch is seriously underestimating the mentality and spirit a cup win can bring. Specially for a side which isn’t used to winning titles.

This.

Ask the core of our 05/06 Carling Cup winning side and what winning that did to their mentality. We were a different side from then on for the next 7 years.

 

[Stobzilla]

United fans speak of the Carling Cup win in 2006 that supposedly set up the next few years, but for what other team has that happened?

Teams that win those cups are usually ones that are equipped to do so already, the transformative effect it had on our group is unique in that they were the first major trophies that Rooney, Saha, Fletcher, Evra, Park and Vidic had won as a part of the new team, without Roy Keane.

I have no doubt that SAF would have seized the opportunity presented to him and talked up the win to them as if it were a European cup final.

It was, quite clearly, the genesis of the new side and it kicked on thereafter. It stayed in the hunt for the title longer than it had any right too and then came out the traps flying in the 06/07 season.

If Spurs could do something similar it COULD galvanise them in the same way. However, given his comments about trophies today, I doubt Pochetino would have the same ability to get his players believing in themselves in the same way. Few could but something about him doesn't scream that he is a winner.

Talented coach and he can get his teams playing some great stuff, just doesn't seem to have "it" whatever that thing that SAF had, that Moyes never did and that Mourinho and LVG lost.

 

[RedDevil@84]

With his "Trophies only boosts ego" thing, that's a second howler in few days.

Maybe the true character comes out only when things don't go well. Or at least I guess every manager is smiling and lovely when things go well, they become a bit of an ass when things dont go well.

 

[Member 114837]

With his "Trophies only boosts ego" thing, that's a second howler in few days.

Maybe the true character comes out only when things don't go well. Or at least I guess every manager is smiling and lovely when things go well, they become a bit of an ass when things dont go well.

You have perfectly summed up there. Both Klopp and Pep (in his first season) have behaved like sore loser after defeats. True for almost every professional at the top of their game.

 

[Habs]

With his "Trophies only boosts ego" thing, that's a second howler in few days.

Maybe the true character comes out only when things don't go well. Or at least I guess every manager is smiling and lovely when things go well, they become a bit of an ass when things dont go well.

Don't think you'd ever hear a manager who's won a trophy ever come out with that nonsense. That's a loser comment from Poch

 

[Keeps It tidy]

With his "Trophies only boosts ego" thing, that's a second howler in few days.

Maybe the true character comes out only when things don't go well. Or at least I guess every manager is smiling and lovely when things go well, they become a bit of an ass when things dont go well.

After bad results people are going to twist however you answer to a negative.

 

[matherto]

He's not a winner.

He'll never be a winner.

His teams play nice football but he's not that good and they don't win anything. Spurs are stuck now with the new stadium meaning they haven't added much to a squad that didn't even win its best chance of a title back in 2015/16 and now they're ripe for the picking. Losing Eriksen will hurt them massively more than any other player and he's the most likely to go.

 

[RedDevil@84]

After bad results people are going to twist however you answer to a negative.

Partly true. But you do get a pass if you put your hand up and say we didn't do well and this is not what we trained for. You don't go about s**t talking about cups because you lost.

I could understand losing to Chelsea in League cup. Winning at Bridge is a tough ask and besides they did lose only on penalties and put in a good team with all their injuries. But then he followed it up with the "Heritage" talk which kind of puts him in a complete negative way of thinking.

 

[Fortitude]

Bet fans of those club love their sweet trophies playing in League One or fighting Championship relegation today.

errr?

 

[staniswin]

It's disgrace how this guy has been given more excuses by United fans more than LVG and Mourinho who were serial winner and actually won something with us. What excuse for him if he end up being here ? "Poch wasn't used to win so we should give him time and back him till he finally win doesn't matter how long at least He played good football and we have more possession against Arsenal" Don't fix something that ain't broken. Give Ole the job so he can make history here just like Pep made it with Barca and Zidane with Madrid.

 

[Snow]

I have no idea what you are saying. If you expect a team to win a cup, that means they've already lost? Is that what you are saying?

If the players have the mentality that they expect to win then they have already lost. The easiest way to lose a match is to have that kind of mentality.

 

[ravi2]

This discussion reminds me of Suarez who was often criticized for not scoring enough in big games at Liverpool. Then he goes to Barca and scores in plenty of big games because guess what, he now plays for a better team.

I have no doubt about Poch being able to win trophies with a better squad than Spurs.

I think the same, if he goes to a big club he will tear it up

 

[RedDevil@84]

This discussion reminds me of Suarez who was often criticized for not scoring enough in big games at Liverpool. Then he goes to Barca and scores in plenty of big games because guess what, he now plays for a better team.

I have no doubt about Poch being able to win trophies with a better squad than Spurs.

It is a weird way of comparison and extrapolation.
The basic argument is Poch is able to make it to top 3 with Spurs ..... extrapolated... so he should be winning the league and cups with either of United or Pool or City.
But why bring in Suarez? He is not a manager.

 

[bond19821982]

Did he just say that ??? I am a huge Poch fan and still want him to take over. But that was bottom line stupidity.

All we needed in 2006 was a league cup and the rest is history. He really doesn't have a clue about the difference a trophy (however small it be) can make. It can really kick start your trophy haul.

 

[Sky1981]

Did he just say that ??? I am a huge Poch fan and still want him to take over. But that was bottom line stupidity.

All we needed in 2006 was a league cup and the rest is history. He really doesn't have a clue about the difference a trophy (however small it be) can make. It can really kick start your trophy haul.

I agree... people shouldn't use united standards on every club. We're blessed abundantly with the luxury of treating cups as mickey mouse club having won a lot.

For most clubs one cup here and there is their entire history.

For all the good period pochetinno has at spurs 5,10,20 years from now nobody would remember a team that won nothing and a manager that won nothing.

 

[beycont]

Ok. Nice logic.

"One guy we hired a few years ago was a failure, therfore this other coach who is completely unrelated and in a totally different situation would surely be a failure too."

The average internet poster being totally incompetent at talent evaluation and unable to differentiate between situations is nothing new.

I guess you are not one of the "average internet poster"? If that's the case, you do have a high opinion of yourself.

 

[Miscemayl]

More and more he's showing he's not a winner, and not the one to manage us.

He doesn't understand the value of a trophy, he doesn't back himself to stay in the top 4 without needing to sacrifice the FA cup.

Give me Ole, he's won the audition

 

[hellohello]

So I guess the criticism he gets is:

- He is just another David Moyes.
Can do well on a small budget, but nothing more.

- He is a bottler with a weak mentality/He is a loser
His team lose any match they are expected to win.

- He hates cups/wrong priority
He doesn't prioritize the cups, which should be a springboard to win more.

- He is not that impressive, all other teams are just in transition.
Pochettino's Spurs are performing as a 6th placed team, but gets 2nd/3rd because teams that should be above are just under performing.

Did I miss something?

 

[Eric7C]

It's amazing that some Spurs fans are buying the false dichotomy that Poch is selling here. You can do well in the league AND also compete to win the cups. It's not one or the other.

Levy has to take most of the blame when it comes to squad building, but Poch does not get a pass either because he has not rotated his team well this season. The reason Llorente looks so rusty is because he was never brought on for those 5 to 10 minutes at the end of games where Spurs were winning comfortably. That's simply poor squad management and they are now paying for it.

 

[Hawks2008]

Keep this loser away from United

 

[Water Melon]

So I guess the criticism he gets is:

- He is just another David Moyes.
Can do well on a small budget, but nothing more.

- He is a bottler with a weak mentality/He is a loser
His team lose any match they are expected to win.

- He hates cups/wrong priority
He doesn't prioritize the cups, which should be a springboard to win more.

- He is not that impressive, all other teams are just in transition.
Pochettino's Spurs are performing as a 6th placed team, but gets 2nd/3rd because teams that should be above are just under performing.

Did I miss something?

It is quite clear that caftards generally rate Poch, and if not for the likes of Glaston, you'd see less sarcastic posts about your team. Personally, I think Poch is a top manager but he either needs to be supported more by Levy and get more players, or leave to get a job where he will get the players to compete for top honours. If I were a Spurs fan, I'd personally support Mauricio and question the owners' willingness to invest in the team to help take that final step to the very top of English football.

 

[redIndianDevil]

Again you're treating them like an underdog. That's the problem with these "resources and budgets" discussions. People are treating them like they have a much weaker team than the rest of their rivals. The fact that's not true. They have a WC winning GK, 2 of the best defenders in the league, the best English midfielder and an attack that'll go straight into their rivals team including the best striker in the world. They're not pushing above their weight. In fact you can't convince me their squad is weaker than the Liverpool one who's challenging for the league now or even Chelsea. This budget thing will make sense if they have a pretty weak team but that's not true.

The problem isn't winning trophies. The problem is their manager is undermining these trophies in his pressers and is acting like top 4 is far more than enough as a success, so he's a point at not even trying. He has thrown Fa Cup now and I remember him throwing Europe League away as well when they got out against Gent for the sake of top 4. They're basically finishing in top 4 to get enough money so that next season they sacrifice everything for top 4 again and so on. This underwhelming cycle is what Wenger was doing at Arsenal and was driving their fans mad at him. It's not like Poch is angry with that, on the contrary he comes to the pressers saying Spurs glory days were in black and white and top 4 is success while Fa Cup isn't an actual trophy.

The problem isn't winning, it's that he's not even trying and is content with regular top 4 finish. Top 4 ceases being progress at this point and it's called stagnation. It's the same season every year : Sacrifice everything to get top 4, get enough money to not spend much anyway, then sacrifice everything for top 4 again to not spend the money you get ..etc. What's exactly the progress in this ? This is fine in the first or second season but after that, not progress by any means whatever you look at it.

This Spurs squad is far more than enough to finish 3rd and win a Cup regularly. I find no reason why people are acting like they have to choose. It's just two, two ! competitions.

It's only after Spurs lost that Pochettino has admitted he wants top 4 more than cups, plus they have a injury crisis now what with Kane, Alli and Son out(their main three creative players, even Liverpool or City or us would struggle if three of the main men go missing for a month). IMO he is just being sour after losing two cup matches, if they had Kane or Son or Alli they would have won against Chelsea or even in this match. You may criticize him for not trying to win cups last season or the year before that but he is 100% correct in prioritizing top 4 this season with the current amount of injuries.

 

[Keeps It tidy]

It's only after Spurs lost that Pochettino has admitted he wants top 4 more than cups, plus they have a injury crisis now what with Kane, Alli and Son out(their main three creative players, even Liverpool or City or us would struggle if three of the main men go missing for a month). IMO he is just being sour after losing two cup matches, if they had Kane or Son or Alli they would have won against Chelsea or even in this match. You may criticize him for not trying to win cups last season or the year before that but he is 100% correct in prioritizing top 4 this season with the current amount of injuries.

If City had say Aguero, Sterling and De Bruyne out it would just mean it would be Jesus, Mahrez and Bernardo Silva out there. That is the key difference for a side like City compared to say Spurs. That is why they are probably going to win the league cup, still have a chance at the FA Cup and are still in the title race. They have a side strong enough that their rotated sides can still blow most sides away. Spurs do not.

 

[hellohello]

It is quite clear that caftards generally rate Poch, and if not for the likes of Glaston, you'd see less sarcastic posts about your team. Personally, I think Poch is a top manager but he either needs to be supported more by Levy and get more players, or leave to get a job where he will get the players to compete for top honours. If I were a Spurs fan, I'd personally support Mauricio and question the owners' willingness to invest in the team to help take that final step to the very top of English football.

Thanks for your reply, and I know many rate him, I just wished the criticism or the praise wouldn't be this over the top, but I guess it's a forum where people enjoy having strong opinions with a preconceived narrative with little nuance. I'm sure we all do to some extent, but I don't even know how to engage with or respond to 90% of posts in here.

What you say about investment is very true imo, and he might leave or he might get more money from Spurs if he stays and then he should be judged accordingly. However, the club is investing in the club although not in the first team (infrastructure and stadium) and all our money is going there right now. I would love it if our owner would spit in some of his own money to invest in the team, but since he isn't doing it I can understand the decision of under-investment in the squad although it hurts as a fan.

It's only after Spurs lost that Pochettino has admitted he wants top 4 more than cups, plus they have a injury crisis now what with Kane, Alli and Son out(their main three creative players, even Liverpool or City or us would struggle if three of the main men go missing for a month). IMO he is just being sour after losing two cup matches, if they had Kane or Son or Alli they would have won against Chelsea or even in this match. You may criticize him for not trying to win cups last season or the year before that but he is 100% correct in prioritizing top 4 this season with the current amount of injuries.

We tried to beat you in the FA cup semifinal last season, but lost. I don't know how you can criticize Poch this much over not prioritizing cups when he has been in 3 semi finals and one final for 5 seasons in charge, my biggest concern for him is some of his big game management, but like you say; this semifinal against Chelsea I can't really blame him for. This season we beat Watford, West Ham and Arsenal before we lost to Chelsea on penalties without 4 of our top scorers. I'm sure if we beat Chelsea and lost to City the narrative would be that Poch doesn't care for cups or bottled it again.

If City had say Aguero, Sterling and De Bruyne out it would just mean it would be Jesus, Mahrez and Bernardo Silva out there. That is the key difference for a side like City compared to say Spurs. That is why they are probably going to win the league cup, still have a chance at the FA Cup and are still in the title race. They have a side strong enough that their rotated sides can still blow most sides away. Spurs do not.

Indeed. If Pochettino spent the money Guardiola spent over 5 years without a trophy I would say he failed and want him sacked. This is the difference.