Mauricio Pochettino’s starting line-up against West Ham is going to get a lot of attention.
Having rotated between Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier this season, the Spurs boss opted for the latter in arguably the two biggest games of the campaign against Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final and for the last north London derby at White Hart Lane.
Inevitably, questions over Walker’s future were high on the agenda in Pochettino’s press conference. The Argentine has reiterated countless times that he refuses to speak about rumours, but he did address concerns that Walker was being overlooked for the big games.
“For me, every game is big. Crystal Palace was a big game for me, not for you?
“I cannot confirm (whether Walker is unsettled) because it is rumours. If I speak about all the rumours, we extend the conference (for) two hours.”
Pochettino also insisted that all of his players are remaining focused ahead of the end of season run-in as they try and close a four-point gap at the top of the table.
“You can see yes, with a few games left, there’s many rumours,” he added.
“But it doesn’t affect me. I’m so calm, the players are, they know what happens inside.
“It is important our fans know here is all calm. We will see what happens in the end, whether the rumours are rumours.”
Walker’s performance against Palace was far from his finest, so perhaps it was unsurprising that he was then displaced for the 2-0 win against Arsenal.
The Independent claimed earlier this week that Manchester City, Barcelona, and Manchester United are all interested in luring the right-back away from Spurs if he is indeed unsettled.
However, a deal is only going to happen on Daniel Levy’s terms.
