Zinedine Zidane shares his verdict on Mauricio Pochettino and Spurs’ three-at-the-back tactics

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Zinedine Zidane has hailed Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino.

Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane has told Football.London that he thinks ‘very highly’ of Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino – but isn’t concerned with the prospect of him playing a three-man defence.

Spurs head into the game having suffered disappointment in their last two games, first throwing away a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 at home to West Ham United in the Carabao Cup, before also losing 1-0 at Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday.

The buzz from drawing 1-1 at Real Madrid and beating Liverpool 4-1 has somewhat dissipated, but they now have the chance to recapture some momentum as they take on Real once again in the Champions League.

Spurs claimed a valiant point at the Bernabeu last month, with Cristiano Ronaldo’s penalty cancelling out a Raphael Varane own goal as Mauricio Pochettino’s men excelled on the big stage.

Tottenham must find that level of performance again this evening when they face the Spanish giants again, with Pochettino aware that a win would send Spurs through to the knockout stages of the Champions League.

It also seems like a great time to play Real Madrid; Zinedine Zidane’s men lost 2-1 at Girona in a shock defeat on Sunday afternoon, and Spurs could seize their opportunity at Wembley this evening.

Ahead of the game, Real boss Zidane has told Football.London that he rates Tottenham boss Pochettino highly, praising him for building a team and a club with high aspirations, pointing to Spurs’ results under his stewardship.

Zidane added that Pochettino’s three-man defence is not a problem for Real, and the Frenchman is aware that Spurs could yet play four at the back, meaning Real can’t get too hung up on Tottenham’s defensive formation.

“Yes. I really think very highly of Mauricio Pochettino,” said Zidane. “I think he’s doing a fantastic job at Tottenham Hotspur. He is building a team and building a club that has high aspirations. You don’t need to rely on what I say, the results speak for themselves.”

“Three defenders is not a particular problem. We come up against three, four, five defenders and tomorrow we will see how Tottenham play. You may think three at the back but we will wait to see what the formation is,” he added.