Liverpool clash final reckoning for Mauricio Pochettino, the Tottenham boss who dared to dream

Eyes on the prize | Pochettino's Tottenham face Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool in the Champions League Final on Saturday
Getty Images

If Mauricio Pochettino thought this month could not get any more surreal, he was in for a shock on Tuesday when his hero of 41 years strolled into Tottenham’s training ground.

Mario Kempes, the Golden Boot winner when Argentina won the 1978 World Cup on home soil, surprised his compatriot in a meeting arranged by assistant manager Jesus Perez and club legend Ossie Ardiles.

Lost for words, Pochettino spontaneously grabbed Kempes’ shoulder, as if to prove he was real — and he was still giddy an hour later. “Beautiful... wonderful,” he said. “Mario Kempes in front of me! To see him here was an amazing surprise. Unbelievable. I’m living another dream.”

Pochettino has been walking on air since Tottenham’s unforgettable comeback at Ajax, which booked their place in tomorrow’s Champions League Final against Liverpool . Like Kempes’ visit, Spurs’ presence in Madrid seems to belong in the realms of fantasy, particularly considering the circumstances of their season.

Pochettino began his first press conference of pre-season in a dark mood. As he entered the auditorium at the US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, he was asked if he was enjoying the tour. “What do you think?” he muttered back.

Heroes | Pochettino with Ricky Villa (left), Mario Kempes (right centre) and Ossie Ardiles (right) Photo: Tottenham via Getty Images
Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty I

His irritation was understandable. Tottenham were about to finish the transfer window without a signing and, with a fortnight until the new season, nine of Pochettino’s best XI were still on holiday, having reached the final week of the World Cup.

More than one had already called him to request a transfer and the players he did have available were beginning to succumb to a catalogue of injuries that would plague his squad throughout the season. Remarkably, tomorrow’s match will be the first time he has had a fully-fit group to choose from this term.

The situation would quickly get worse, when Spurs announced indefinite delays to their new stadium, forcing them to play all but five of their home League matches at Wembley and one League Cup fixture in Milton Keynes.

Amid the mayhem, it has felt, at times, like a dark cloud has been hanging over the club, not least when Pochettino said in October that he had never felt worse at Spurs.

Even as their exhilarating European run has gathered pace, fans have occasionally wished the campaign away, with deteriorating form leading to the very real possibility that they could squander a top-four finish. And yet, here they are, on the brink of immortality.

So much of the credit belongs to the manager who, when it became clear his squad would be unchanged, called a team meeting and promised every one of his players a clean slate. The result was an unbreakable spirit, which has been the biggest factor behind their run to Madrid.

The manager’s most stubborn beliefs, which had once appeared to be weaknesses, have proved his biggest strengths. Spurs would never have reached this point if Pochettino had listened to his critics and prioritised the domestic cups. His squad, already stretched, would simply have cracked.

Similarly, his determination to rotate, while insisting that every player would one day be needed at the most critical moments, has proved correct.

A first European Cup Final is all the more significant for Spurs because of what has come before, but what comes after will determine whether tomorrow is truly another step in the club’s transformation into a European force.

Atletico Madrid, who share much in common with Spurs, including inspirational Argentine managers, went from outsiders to the elite after their defeat in the 2014 final; Arsenal went backwards after losing to Barcelona in 2006.

Win or lose, tomorrow night will be the last hurrah for this group of players, with a number likely to leave in the summer and the club already working on a shortlist of targets.

More pertinent, but less certain, is the question of Pochettino’s own future, which he reopened on the eve of the win over Ajax. He has refused to rule out taking a sabbatical, just as Pep Guardiola did after leaving Barcelona, and a gap-year would allow him to take his pick of elite clubs in 12 months.

There is, however, a sense that he is an unconventional coach, who relishes the opportunity to compete for honours in an unconventional way. “Would I like to be a City or a Liverpool?” he has said. “To some extent yes, to some extent no. Those projects, driven with money, run the risk of remaining empty.”

At Spurs, the constant battle against adversity has enabled Pochettino to live a dream and, when he considers his future next week, he may decide he is still not ready to wake up.

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