Garth Crooks suggests what he senses about Tottenham following Mauricio Pochettino’s comments

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Mauricio Pochettino openly admitted that his Tottenham Hotspur side were not good enough against Liverpool.

Garth Crooks has told BBC Sport that Mauricio Pochettino’s post-match comments following Tottenham’s defeat to Liverpool at the weekend suggested something positive to him about Spurs’ chances of finishing in the top two this season.

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Spurs are still second after the weekend, but watched their advantage over their top four rivals largely evaporate as they were undone by two goals in quick succession from Sadio Mane on Saturday evening.

Following the defeat, Pochettino was very honest about his team’s performance. And interestingly, Crooks suggested that those comments in the wake of the defeat lead him to believe that his old side have what it takes to go on and establish themselves as Chelsea’s closest rival.

Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino

“It was the honesty of Mauricio Pochettino that made me think that Spurs still have the desire to finish in the top two. ‘We started only four points above Liverpool, but we didn’t look like that today,’ said the more than slightly irritated Argentine,” he told BBC Sport.

“Spurs fans can forget league titles if their team can’t go to Anfield and get a result… Chelsea did.”

Though they did not put in their best display at Anfield, there is still plenty for Tottenham fans to be positive about ahead of a crucial few months for the team.

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Before their defeat to Jurgen Klopp’s men, Spurs had not lost since mid-December and had won nine of the 11 games they had played in between the two defeats.

And while those looking to put some kind of pressure on Chelsea have all bunched up following the weekend’s results, Spurs are still second so have not been punished that greatly, though Manchester City can push them down to third with a win on Monday night.

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And Crooks perhaps feels that the ability to honestly assess his team’s display will stand Pochettino in good stead as he will be able to identify what it is the team needs to do to win the race for the top two.