Pochettino apologises to Rochdale for judging their pitch

Mauricio Pochettino has apologised to Rochdale after admitting he judged their pitch from one photo he was shown by his coaching staff after the last round of the FA Cup.

Rochdale postponed their game against Fleetwood Town last weekend to lay a new pitch after a row erupted over ahead of this Sunday’s fifth-round tie.

Pochettino suggested the Spotland surface was ‘not in a condition to play football’ and claimed it could pose ‘a massive risk’ after seeing the bare state of the turf for Millwall’s visit in the fourth round.

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino apologises for prematurely judging Rochdale’s pitch

But the Tottenham manager now says his comments were taken ‘in the wrong way’ — although he admits he made a judgment based on one photo he was shown by his staff earlier this month.

‘I want to apologise to the people in Rochdale and the chairman and the people who took my comment the wrong way,’ Pochettino said.

‘My comment was about the care, first of all the players of Rochdale, our players and the competition that all of England watches on TV.

‘After the replay against Newport, I was with my coaching staff and they showed me a picture from Rochdale’s pitch after the Millwall tie and the pitch was not in a great condition.

‘I was conscious about the FA Cup, the football, and the image that we are going to sell, but care for the players, too.

‘Then there was a lot of comments around Tottenham, but I was always respectful.’

Millwall played Rochdale at Spotland where large parts of the pitch were covered in sand

Millwall played Rochdale at Spotland where large parts of the pitch were covered in sand

The Spurs manager feared for the safety of both sets of players after seeing photos of Spotland

The Spurs manager feared for the safety of both sets of players after seeing photos of Spotland

Rochdale postponed their game with Fleetwood Town last weekend to lay a new pitch

Rochdale postponed their game with Fleetwood Town last weekend to lay a new pitch

Pochettino claimed it could pose 'a massive risk' after seeing the bare state of the turf

Pochettino claimed it could pose ‘a massive risk’ after seeing the bare state of the turf

Rochdale published photos on Thursday and Friday of their players training on the new surface — and Spurs are understood to be much happier now the new pitch is in place.

Pochettino added: ‘When I watch the pictures and the videos through the Rochdale website, I need to congratulate them because the effort was massive to get the pitch in the best condition to play without risk and only thinking to have a great game and the football is going to win.

‘Our performance will dictate who is going through to the next stage. The conditions are fantastic so I congratulate them. The effort was massive and I apologise if someone took my words in the wrong way.’

Tottenham produced a huge performance to draw 2-2 away at Juventus in the Champions League in midweek and Pochettino is set to make big changes for the Rochdale game.

The League One side posted photos on the newly-laid surface on their official website

The League One side posted photos on the newly-laid surface on their official website

Spurs' cup opponents trained on the new Crown Oil Arena pitch on Thursday afternoon

Spurs’ cup opponents trained on the new Crown Oil Arena pitch on Thursday afternoon

But he wants to see the Champions League level of desire from his players again after they struggled to rise to the occasion in a 1-1 draw against Newport which forced a replay in the last round.

‘It’s a massive challenge for us to keep the same level,’ he said. ‘I think I will be a little upset if we’re not able to keep the same level of motivation.

‘Newport is a good example, if you don’t learn from Newport you’re not clever enough.

‘This is a different game, a different competition and it will be tough. For me it will be a tougher game than Juventus or Arsenal because it is a challenge to be motivated in a competition that we want to go far in, but you have to perform at your best if you want to win.’

Rochdale chairman Chris Dunphy said he chose to ignore Pochettino's comments on the pitch

Rochdale chairman Chris Dunphy said he chose to ignore Pochettino’s comments on the pitch



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