Mauricio Pochettino is minded to start Dele Alli and, possibly, Christian Eriksen at West Ham in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night as he faced up to his latest problem at Tottenham – chronic fixture congestion.
The manager has said that he is at his lowest ebb since joining the club in 2014, as the new stadium project encounters more delays, costs soar and he and the team feel the effects.
Spurs announced last Friday that they would not move into the new ground until January, at the earliest, and they have arranged to borrow a further £237m – previously their loan facility at the banks stood at £400m – to cover the spiralling costs of the work, which have exceeded £1bn.
Pochettino has been increasingly outspoken of late, struggling to suppress his frustration at how the delays have kept the team consigned to Wembley and, effectively, put their future on hold. They lost 1-0 to Manchester City at the national stadium on Monday, playing on a pitch that has failed to cope with the demands on it and in front of a crowd of 56,854.
Against the backdrop of angst, Real Madrid have sacked Julen Lopetegui and they are looking for a manager. Pochettino has been on their wishlist in the past and he remains of interest. On the other hand, Pochettino signed a new five-year contract at Spurs in May and Daniel Levy, the chairman, would resist any attempt to prise him away.
Tottenham’s financial situation was a factor in why they did not make any summer signings and Pochettino is feeling the squeeze. The cup tie at West Ham is game No 2 in a run of four in nine days. Pochettino will make wholesale changes, with the fit-again Alli – who signed a six-year contract on Tuesday – and Eriksen in his thoughts. He used them as substitutes against City.
“If I start the same players, there is a risk that they become injured,” Pochettino said. “It is less than 48 hours to compete again, having played on a pitch that is so difficult to play. A lot of players didn’t have a pre-season [because of the World Cup] and that is why it is so difficult.
“It is going to be difficult to repeat some players from Monday – maybe Eric Dier, who played 65 minutes. Eriksen could start and Dele, too, is possible. We will see if Dele can play an hour or 70 minutes. I asked Christian to play 90 minutes against PSV Eindhoven last Wednesday and it was difficult to overload him again against City.”
