It's not how you start, it’s how you finish.
That’s the advice Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino is giving his players ahead of the club’s first-ever Champions League final.
After a rollercoaster European campaign, Spurs overturned a 3-0 deficit against Ajax in the second half of their semifinal second leg in Amsterdam to book a place in Madrid.
And with recovering star striker Harry Kane and defensive lynchpin Jan Vertonghen not guaranteed to start in the showdown with Liverpool on Saturday, Poch is hoping his stars know that substitute roles will be key.
RACE AGAINST TIME: Mauricio Pochettino. Photo: Matthew Childs/Reuters.
On the the fitness of his players, the Argentinian says: “We are happy.
“Whether to start him [Kane] is a point we’re thinking about a lot. It is a decision that, one way or the other, will be judged after the game.
“If we win: fantastic decision. If we lose: s*** decision and you are going to kill me.
“We are working that everyone will be available to play and, at the moment, Harry is on course.
“And then it’s going to be our decision to see if they will be available from the beginning.”
RETURN: Defensive ace Jan Vertonghen. Photo: Frank Augstein/AP.
He adds: “Maybe people are not in their best [shape] but they want to be in [the starting XI] because they want to be in the picture just in case they win.
"And then, if there is a problem, you have to make a substitution.
"You avoid that if you say: ‘Hey, the whole squad is [in the picture].’ You’re all going to be in the history then. People care a lot about this.”