Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Hugo Lloris pleaded guilty to a drink-driving charge and received a 20-month driving ban.
Mauricio Pochettino pointed the finger at his players after Tottenham’s loss at Watford, but the FC crew agree he should be pointing at himself.
LONDON — Tottenham Hotspur will be without midfielder Dele Alli and goalkeeper Hugo Lloris when they face Liverpool at Wembley on Saturday.
Speaking at his prematch news conference, Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino said Alli had a hamstring problem while Lloris — who he said would remain captain despite pleading guilty to drunk-driving in London — could be out for several weeks with a thigh injury.
“He [Alli] suffered a small injury after 20 minutes of the game against Spain at Wembley,” Pochettino said. “I am disappointed because we are going to miss him for this game and maybe the Champions League game against Inter Milan [on Sept. 18].”
Alli withdrew from the England squad for Tuesday’s friendly against Switzerland after suffering a strain during the 2-1 loss to Spain on Saturday.
But Spurs can call on Son Heung-Min, who left for the Asian Games after the opening Premier League fixture at Newcastle and won a gold medal that has exempted him from military service in South Korea. He had not been allowed to play in the tournament by his old club Bayer Leverkusen four years ago.
“First of all I want to congratulate him, because it’s such an important victory to avoid the military service,” Pochettino said. “Then [I want] to congratulate the club because the club has protected a big asset.
“I told him today: ‘Where is my present, Sonny? I want a watch or some Korean food.’ Because when we see in the past that different clubs didn’t allow [him] to go to play in this tournament, who took the risk? I did.
“Rather than congratulate him and the club, people need to congratulate me and say thank you because I allowed him to go there and put his individual situation in front of the collective.”
Harry Winks is closing in on a first start since February, having been sidelined by an ankle injury last season and undergone surgery in the summer.
“He is close because I am happy with him,” Pochettino said. “The last two weeks were fantastic for him. He has trained so hard and I am so happy with his evolution.
“It is a chronic injury. He needs to adapt and understand and accept that he needs to play with this little bit of pain. For a young player, it is difficult to accept that because you want to feel 100 percent and not feel anything in your body and feel free.
“In this situation he has spent a period where he was fighting with this situation, and now I think he’s accepting that and he’s going to move on and play his best, of course. It will be a massive impact for us for the future, and we are so happy that he is so close to being at his best.”
Pochettino confirmed that Lloris would remain captain despite his drunk-driving case, replying “of course” when asked whether that would be the situation.
“He’s the first that regrets everything, and all that happened yesterday is not good,” he said. “Of course, he doesn’t feel great. He said he was guilty of this situation.
“But I think everyone can make a mistake. He made a mistake and he’s suffered the punishment of society. He’s the first that told me: ‘Gaffer, it’s a massive mistake, and I need to pay like a man.’”
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