Tottenham Hotspur welcomed Huddersfield Town to our new White Hart Lane Stadium for today’s early kickoff in the Premier League and with Manchester City looming large, plenty of fans wondered if this would be the ‘rest’ match for manager Mauricio Pochettino or whether he’d double down and go for the win.
Whatever his own thoughts were, losing Harry Kane to injury and Dele Alli for the weekend with his own fractured hand, we did see some rotation as is the norm.
Victor Wanyama opened the scoring 24 minutes in and Lucas Moura quickly doubled the advantage three minutes later. With so many chances and a largely safe defensive line on the day (only one shot on target from them), the scoreline was tied up late on by Moura who added a second and third to secure his hattrick from the day.
4-0, a comfortable win and a rest for some players as we now look to do the unthinkable next Wednesday.
Speaking to the BBC following the fulltime whistle, a delighted Poch said of the game.
“I am so pleased. Football is about the squad, the collective. Of course we had some injuries after Manchester City like Alli and Kane, and we were forced to make changes and we needed to provide fresh legs and it’s good because we have a tough period ahead and the performance was very professional. It’s always important to open the game and score in the first half to give belief and confidence. After a few minutes we score the second goal and lift the stadium and fans – it’s fantastic to play here and gives the players fantastic energy and belief.”