The Tottenham Hotspur defender would not sell out his integrity to deny Arsenal the Premier League title.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino shakes hands with Jan Vertonghen
Tottenham Hotspur defender Jan Vertonghen has spoken to Ball Street this week about what he would do if he got the chance to deny Arsenal the title with an own goal.
Last season Chelsea had the opportunity to deny Tottenham the title and hand the crown to Leicester City.
They did just that, a 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge ending Spurs’ challenge for the title and handing Leicester City a famous Premier League title win.
But the Belgian defender would not be tempted to score an own goal in order to deny Arsenal the title.
Speaking to Ball Street, as reported by Het Laatste Nieuws, the Belgian star explained that the competitive spirit within him would not allow him to purposely score an own goal against Arsenal to deny them the league.
Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen in action
“I know where you’re going and I think out of the 11 players on the pitch nobody would do it.
“That (if Pochettino told him to) is something different I think because that’s a direct order you know.
“But as a sportsman, you want to win your game you know. At the end you have to win your game and if you win it, you deserve to win it.”
Of course Vertonghen’s answer is undoubtedly the right one. The urge of Spurs fans would surely be for their players to ensure, at any cost, that Arsenal do not win the Premier League title.
But they are professional footballers and as such could not commit such an act to please the fans.
No matter how tempting.
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