Tottenham news: Mauricio Pochettino promises ‘200 per cent’ effort to revitalise Spurs

Mauricio Pochettino says he reciprocates the love of Tottenham fans and will give “200 per cent” effort to deliver the results they demand.

Spurs supporters repeatedly chanted the name of the under-fire manager during the emphatic 5-0 Champions League success over Red Star Belgrade.

Pochettino is facing the first real test of his five-year tenure in north London following a dismal start to the season which has seen his position come under increasing scrutiny.

Braces from Son Heung-min and Harry Kane, plus a strike from Erik Lamela, helped alleviate pressure on the Argentinian.

Pochettino accepts the club’s current predicament is a challenging one but believes his squad are determined to return to previous heights.

“I say thank you, I want to be grateful with them,” Pochettino said of Tottenham’s fans. “I think the same love is in both ways. I feel that they love me and I think they need to feel that I love them too.

“But I think always the most important is the team, the players are the principal actors and always I am here to help the club and help them to be happy, like it was the previous season.

“Of course now is a tough situation. We are a club and that commitment that we showed in the past, we are now showing.

“That makes me feel more responsible about my job and I need to work every day 200 per cent to try to provide the result that they expect from us.”

Victory over significantly inferior opposition was Tottenham’s first in Europe since memorably reaching the Champions League final against Liverpool by producing a stunning comeback against Ajax in May.

Spurs’ squad will be rewarded with a day off on Wednesday before they begin preparing for a rematch with Jurgen Klopp’s Premier League leading Reds on Sunday.

After winning just four of 13 fixtures in all competitions this term, Pochettino insists time is all he needs to revive his side’s fortunes.

“It was an important result, one for our confidence and another because to add three points in the table was very, very, very important tonight,” said Pochettino.

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“I feel good because we start to see that it’s only time we need to recover our best feelings.

“We need to build that confidence, we need to go step by step, being solid again and that is only the first step to build again our confidence and to try to perform in the way that everyone expects.

“It’s now about to stay calm, it’s a good result but only three points. Now we have ahead a lot of tough games and we need to be solid. That is why I want all fresh, that is why tomorrow they are going to have the day off.

“Sunday is going to be a fantastic game. A few months ago we were playing the final against Liverpool and now in Anfield.”

Serbian champions Red Star were backed by a sizeable pocket of travelling fans for the Group B encounter at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The away fans defied a Uefa ban issued for racist chanting to attend the match and made their presence felt with relentless singing.

Asked if he was surprised to see away supporters inside the ground, Red Star coach Vladan Milojevic replied: “I’m not surprised. Red Star is one of the biggest clubs in the Balkans.

“There are many of our fans, some of them live in this country, in London, or maybe surrounding countries and for them Red Star is a very important club.

“It’s a love that they feel for the club, I can’t describe this with words, this sort of love. People came, I’m sure they weren’t organised as a group.

“Just like at Liverpool (in October 2018), we had a ban. There were very few fans tonight but we could hear them. Again, I thank them for their support.”

PA