‘My players are heroes’: Mauricio Pochettino hails his Tottenham stars as they plant one foot in Champions League quarter-finals with emphatic win against Borussia Dortmund
- Tottenham have taken a massive step into the Champions League quarter-finals
- The London club beat Borussia Dortmund 3-0 at Wembley on Wednesday night
- Mauricio Pochettino has urged his side to travel to Germany in a bid to win
Mauricio Pochettino hailed his players as ‘heroes’ after a second-half demolition of Borussia Dortmund left Tottenham with one foot in the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday night.
Spurs stunned the Bundesliga leaders at Wembley Stadium, scoring three times after the break.
Pochettino will now allow his stars a few days off following this famous victory but urged them to finish the job when they travel to Germany for the second leg in March.
Mauricio Pochettino has hailed his Tottenham players after their victory over Dortmund
‘I feel so proud,’ Pochettino said. ‘My players are heroes. When you are in front of a team like Borussia Dortmund, you have to show respect. We need to go to Dortmund with the idea to win.
‘Of course, we are happy now because it was a very good result but there is still a lot of work to do. For me, I am happy. I want to congratulate my players. A massive performance.
‘For me, it is only the first leg, it is only the first half of the tie.
‘We need to think that we need to finish the job. Always, when you play a very good side like Dortmund, it is difficult and there is still lots of work to do.’
Son Heung-min continued his fine goalscoring form in the absence of Harry Kane as he met a cross from Jan Vertonghen to open the scoring in the 47th minute.
Vertonghen, who surprisingly starred on the left wing, then made it 2-0 in the 83rd minute before substitute Fernando Llorente completed the scoreline in the 86th.
Pochettino was told that Spurs have won every single game that Son has scored in this season
Spurs, who were without Kane and Dele Alli, will meet Dortmund in the return fixture on March 5.
Pochettino was told Spurs had won every time Son had scored this season.
‘Next time Son scores I will go to the dressing room, have a shower and wait for the game to finish,’ Pochettino joked. ‘He was fantastic again.
‘He is a player who provides the team with a lot of very good things. He smiles and he creates energy in every single game. We are so happy with him. It’s obvious how good he is.’