LONDON • Mauricio Pochettino is sick and tired of being told he needs to win a trophy with Tottenham but the route to glory in the FA Cup appears to have opened up.
The routine dismissal of fourth-tier Newport County - a 2-0 victory - has set up a visit to Rochdale on Feb 18 and, if his players can negotiate the treacherous surface at Spotland, they could find themselves in the quarter-finals.
Tottenham got past Wimbledon - who are 19th in the third-tier League One - in the third round, while Rochdale are second from bottom in that division.
Never before have Spurs had a more straightforward route to the competition's last eight.
Manager Pochettino would never admit it but he has to hear the knock of opportunity.
On Wednesday, the Argentinian backed his countryman Erik Lamela to hit top form after the midfielder scored in the fourth-round replay win over Newport - his first goal since returning from a hip injury that kept him out for over a year.
The 25-year-old, who last found the net for his club in September 2016, struck the second goal after defender Dan Butler's own goal in the first half.
"I think he is going to find it easy to recover his real level, or improve because he is more mature and you learn in a tough moment a lot. No doubt," Pochettino said of the forward after the game.
"Always it's important to feel the net for offensive players and for him to play 90 minutes. It's an important feeling for him. It's important because he's an important player."
Lamela underwent hip surgery last April before returning to the team in November. He has made 13 league appearances this season and two more in the FA Cup.
The 25-year-old played the full 90 minutes against south Wales team Newport, who are 11th in League Two, only the second time he has done so this season.
"Of course it was a massive problem, more than one year out. It's never easy to come back and perform as he was before. But he loves football, and he loves to train. I think his mentality is fantastic," the Spurs manager added.
Tottenham are fifth in the Premier League with 49 points from 26 matches and take on sixth-placed north London rivals Arsenal tomorrow.
THE GUARDIAN, REUTERS
