Danny Murphy is worried that Mauricio Pochettino could axe Tottenham attacker Lucas Moura for the clash with Liverpool on Saturday.
Spurs are set to face the Reds in the Champions League final and the former Tottenham player is worried that the 26-year-old could miss out on Pochettino’s first team for the game if he opts to play Harry Kane instead.
Murphy shared he has no concerns that Kane could pull up if played against Liverpool after his recent injury, but added he’d struggled to cope if the English forward played at the expense of Moura.
? Ex-#THFC midfielder Danny Murphy thinks Harry Kane will easily make it through 60-70 minutes, but Poch's biggest problem will be if he'll drop Lucas Moura after his semi-final heroics?
? Tune in – DAB
? Listen – https://t.co/XWhRQh9myF pic.twitter.com/HsdEvPxs2q— Love Sport Radio (@lovesportradio) May 31, 2019
“Everyone wants to play in the Champions League final, but what’s the point if you’re not quite at it?” said Murphy on Love Sport Radio, as seen in a clip of their Twitter account.
“But the manager knows him well, but the bigger problem for me if he does start, it isn’t about Kane as I think he will last 60 to 70 minutes as adrenaline will get you through it, it’s more who you leave out?
“Cause Son, Eriksen and Alli has been his first-choice, does Lucas Moura get left out after scoring a hat-trick in the semi final? I mean if that does happen to him, I don’t know how I’ll cope with that.”
OPINION
It’s easy to see why Murphy is worried for Moura as it’s a possibility he could be axed from Pochettino’s first-team for the Champions League final. The 26-year-old, who earns £80,000-a-week (Source: Spotrac), scored a hat-trick against Ajax in the Champions League semi-final to get Spurs to the final round, but football is a harsh business. With No.1 forward Kane potentially fit again, then Moura may have to start on the bench in order to make room. Kane has scored 24 goals in 39 outings in his 2018/19 campaign and with numbers like that, how can Pochettino ignore him ahead of arguably the club’s biggest game in recent history? Also when you consider that the 25-year-old has been involved in 31% (Source: Transfermarkt) of Spurs’ league goals this season and that the club are set to face a fellow Premier League side on Saturday, he is worth taking a risk on. However given Kane’s recent injury problems, maybe that risk should be throwing him on from the bench; not starting him.