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Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino points to Eric Dier and Dele Alli after Danny Rose's Google jibe
Tottenham Hotspur defender Danny Rose has apologised over his “ill-judged” comments about the club’s transfer policy and his future at White Hart Lane.
The England international said Spurs needed to sign “well-known” players to keep up with the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea, and that he had “one big contract left” and that “time is running out to win trophies”. He also suggested that, in the current market at least, Spurs players were underpaid while revealing that he hoped to play for a team back up north at some point in the future.
On Friday, he released a statement apologising for the way he had expressed his feelings. “Having had time to consider my actions, I acknowledge now that the timing and manner of what I said was ill-judged,” it read. “My words were not meant to offend and for that I would like to apologise to the chairman, manager, my team-mates and the fans.”
Despite Rose’s act of contrition, Mauricio Pochettino, his manager, made a point of tackling him over the assertion that Spurs need to sign players that do not require “Googling” by reminding him people had to consult their search engine when the Argentine first took charge at Southampton after moving from Espanyol in 2013.
Pochettino also pointed out that many Tottenham fans knew little about now-influential midfielder Dele Alli when Spurs signed him as a teenager from Milton Keynes Dons.
“When I first arrived here, people wanted to know who Mauricio Pochettino was too,” he said. “If you remember five years ago, people said, ‘Who is Pochettino?’ I’m sure they used Chrome or Google or Yahoo to find out.
“But the problem with that was that straight away it was the penalty against Michael Owen [in the 2002 World Cup]. That situation killed me but it’s OK, look now.
“When you sign players like Eric Dier, who are internationals today, nobody knew them, or Dele Alli who was in League One or [N’Golo] Kante.
“I don’t think it’s a matter to joke about because with some of the international players today, maybe one or two years ago, none of us knew them very well.”
The issue of Tottenham’s wage structure is still seen as troubling to a club desperate to compete with the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal.
Tottenham’s key players like Harry Kane, Alli and Rose himself, know that they could earn twice or even three times as much by moving to one of the other top clubs.
Pochettino, however, was guarded on the subject and said Rose’s apology suggests he did not mean what he said in the first place.
“You need to understand that he gave his opinion,” Pochettino said. “Then to know [if they are happy here] you need to ask every single player if they are happy or not happy.
“I don’t understand why I have to answer this question because the player has [shown] regret and has apologised for what he said regarding everything.
“You can’t judge the situation because if he apologised for what he said we don’t know now if he is thinking the same thing or not.”
What is without question is the timing of Rose’s initial interview was far from ideal, with Sunday's opener against Newcastle looming.
But Pochettino, who also revealed that he has no say in what his players earn, was adamant that the comments have not affected his squad in any way.
“I’m relaxed because when you see the team and players, they are so focused,” he said. “We were focused from the beginning of pre-season to try again to prepare ourselves to compete in a very tough league, I think the toughest league in the world.
“When you see the team so relaxed and so calm and focused to prepare for the game on Sunday that is the most important thing for me to feel. If I feel that why can I be nervous? I have no doubt about the team.”