Mauricio Pochettino went to great lengths to get his Tottenham team to deal with their “fears” ahead of the Champions League final in Madrid on Saturday.
With the assistance of his friend and motivational coach Xesco Espar, Pochettino had Spurs players go through several exercises to help them overcome fears including walking on hot coals in a training session on Wednesday.
It may sound crazy, but the Tottenham manager, who did the same exercise with Southampton players when he was with Saints, said there is a method to the madness.
– Champions League final latest from ESPN FC
– When is the Champions League final?
– Who qualifies for Europe from the Premier League?
“The thing that’s important to say is we all have fear. People without fears don’t exist,” Pochettino told reporters. “It’s not that the players are not going to fear anything, but they are going to be free to work [through them]. There are people that freeze with fear. Successful people have the same fears — it’s just that they take them on.
“The players have learned a lot in these three weeks because we’ve had the capacity to work in a different way, to create a different plan. When you have only one objective and three weeks to prepare, it’s easier than when you play every three days.
“We are going to arrive in a perfect condition and the most important thing is that the players have enjoyed the journey over these three weeks. They’ll always remember it. It’s been an amazing time to share all together.
“And if you build something special, it is going to be remembered forever. If we win the Champions League, it’s going to be a massive example for football — I think forever.”
Pochettino wouldn’t be drawn on whether or not Harry Kane would start or play in the final and the Spurs boss faces some tough decisions with Kane back to fitness after seven weeks out and his replacement Lucas Moura having scored a hat trick in the remarkable semifinal win against Ajax.
Pochettino said he would not take any decision on whether to start with Kane or his other selection choices until after Friday’s training.
“It’s difficult to put yourself in my place,” he said. “It’s not going to be easy to take a decision tomorrow and every game you need to take a decision. Tomorrow we will have all the information and we will take the best decision to try to win.
“You can use only 11 players from the beginning — that is the most painful situation. The whole squad will be on the pitch before the game tomorrow.
“Tomorrow is to show togetherness. Tomorrow will show football is a collective sport, the energy even from the players who do not play in the dressing room will be decisive.”
Meanwhile, Spurs captain Hugo Lloris said the final was a game where the entire squad would have a role.
“We are going to need everyone,” he said. “It’s a good mix in the changing room with experienced players and young players. Then you follow the leader, the manager. Every player is important at this stage of the competition. Any player can be decisive.”
Lloris said the comeback win in Amsterdam showed the strength of Spurs as a collective unit.
“It was the togetherness — players with the staff, with the chairman, with the fans. It was one of the best moments in my career,” said the French World Cup winning goalkeeper.
“And obviously we want a better moment after the game tomorrow. We know football is a collective sport and we spend so much time together.”
Information from Reuters was used in this story.