Ray Parlour has admitted that he is ‘staggered’ by Mauricio Pochettino’s comments over his side’s exit from the FA Cup.
In the aftermath of Tottenham’s 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace on Sunday, the Argentine suggested that Spurs’ focus should be on finishing in the top four, and that trophies only build egos, as reported by Goal.
Speaking on talkSPORT, former Arsenal man Parlour suggested that Pochettino’s comments were win of the mark.
He said: “At the end of your career, people come up to you and say ‘what did you win?’, and you’re quite proud to say ‘I was very lucky to win a Premier League, I was very lucky to win an FA Cup’, or whatever.
“That’s what it’s all about. It’s not about how much money you earn. You can have a big house and have earned £300,000 a week for the last five years, and it’s great to do that, but it’s still all about trophies.
“I’m staggered by what he said. Of course Champions League football is so important for every single club because of the financial side of it, but you’ve still got to win trophies haven’t you?”
OPINION
It’s such a hard balance to strike for managers these days between the cup competitions and a financially beneficial league finish, but for Tottenham, a trophy has to be the priority. Losing out on the top four would be a nightmare, and the squad has been ravaged by injuries of late, but surely even then Pochettino has enough at his disposal to see his side past Crystal Palace and still beat Watford in midweek. Spurs have had this reputation for a while now that they choke in the vital moments, and while that may be little harsh, it would be a cryogen shame if Pochettino were to leave the club without anything to show for his time there. Unless they can pull off a miracle in the Champions League it’s looking as if it will be another trophyless year in north London, and with mounting speculation about the Argentine’s future amid interest from Manchester United, yesterday might be looked back on as the day that Spurs wasted their last chance.