Tottenham defender Danny Rose has revealed he was left in awe of manager Mauricio Pochettino as he lifted the lid on what was said in the dressing room during the draw against north London rivals Arsenal.
The Lilywhites came from behind to seal a point against the Gunners, Harry Kane equalising from the penalty spot having gone into half time one goal down.
Speaking over the result, left back Rose admitted it was his manager’s team talk at half time which inspired him, insisting it was one of the greatest things he had ever seen in football.
He made his fascinating reveal to the Mirror, saying: “The manager said some things at half-time and that was the turning point, because he’s usually really calm and collected. He normally talks to us at half-time. This time it was like he was really sending us to war.
“That was one of the best things I’ve witnessed in football, his half-time team-talk. It’s one of the best team-talks I’ve been involved in since I’ve been playing football.
He normally talks, he’s really calm — as you’ve all seen, he’s calm on the sidelines… apart from after Burnley. But this time he was really passionate. I felt as if I was going into war after the team-talk that he gave.
“Something needs to change somewhere. I think he just tried a different approach. But I liked what he did at half-time, it really got me firing. As usual, it made me want to fight for him, fight for my team-mates and fight for my club. I love seeing things like that.”
Opinion
Whatever Pochettino said to his stars, it certainly had the desired effect. The Lilywhites were not at their best against their fierce rivals and can consider themselves quite fortunate not to have come away with absolutely nothing. Still, Rose and his teammates found themselves inspired by their manager and came up with the goods. A point does mean that Spurs are now battling it out for a top four finish rather than the title but at least they do not have a derby day defeat to mull over. Focus now turns to the Champions League clash against Borussia Dortmund and Pochettino will be hoping he does not need to repeat his rousing dressing room speech versus the Germans, having seen his men take a comfortable 3-0 lead in the first leg. Still, anything can happen and the Argentine needs to ensure his stars are on top of their game.