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Ex-Player Watch Player Watch: Kyle Walker

goughie1966

Well-Known Member
Aug 28, 2008
5,150
17,874
upload_2017-9-2_15-17-6.png

:eek:
 

Paolo10

Well-Known Member
Apr 6, 2004
6,179
7,621
He's giving what seems to be his best mate at the club some banter, who knows if it's true or not?
 

Bus-Conductor

SC Supporter
Oct 19, 2004
39,837
50,713
Re the criticism Tripper got for not creating more against the bus parking Burnley, nice to see the player to whom "Tripper isn't fit to lace his boots" create so much, with his running in behind and what not, against the plumbers and postmen of Malta.....oh wait....
 

ebzrascal

Well-Known Member
Sep 13, 2009
2,635
4,670
Re the criticism Tripper got for not creating more against the bus parking Burnley, nice to see the player to whom "Tripper isn't fit to lace his boots" create so much, with his running in behind and what not, against the plumbers and postmen of Malta.....oh wait....

why go there... Trippier is a Walker backup but now we have Aurier I am totally fine :cool:
 

branchie

Well-Known Member
Jan 20, 2009
967
2,724
Did Grey Fox ever drop the itk on why Poch allowed walker to go?
Yup in the transfer roundup thread (which has now disappeared). Basically he wanted to return north if we didn't win anything - and his head was turned during England meet ups.
 

Dharmabum

Well-Known Member
Aug 16, 2003
8,274
12,242
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...boss-Mauricio-Pochettino-Kyle-Walker-row.html



Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino lifts lid on Kyle Walker row... from right back turning up late, to him dropping transfer bombshell during title battle
  • Mauricio Pochettino has had his say on Kyle Walker's final 12 months at Spurs
  • The Tottenham boss told all in Guillem Balague's new book 'Brave New World'
  • Walker left Tottenham to join Manchester City for £54million this summer
  • He turned up late for a pre-season meeting in 2016 and Pochettino flipped
  • They clashed again last season when Walker complained about being dropped
  • With Spurs fighting for the title in April, Walker told his boss: 'My heart isn't here'
By Mauricio Pochettino For The Mail On Sunday

PUBLISHED: 17:30 EDT, 21 October 2017 | UPDATED: 20:47 EDT, 21 October 2017



In a second week of extracts from the brilliant new book, Brave New World, by Guillem Balague, Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino reveals how he agonised all summer over his team's 5-1 defeat by Newcastle to end the 2015-16 season, their title hopes having being extinguished by a 2-2 draw at Chelsea.



In August 2016, having completed a pre-season tour where they played Atletico Madrid, Spurs return to London for a meeting.

Kyle Walker turns up late and Pochettino snaps...



I don't like preparing for talks with too much detail. I think of a list of tactical topics and ask for some videos, but I don't always use them. Sometimes things might happen that make you change tack.

That's just exactly what took place during the first pre-season talk. We'd trained well with the whole squad and it was time to speak to everyone as a group. Miki [first-team coach Miguel D'Agostino] stood up with his computer. I usually stand next to him, but today I sat down to wait for the players to arrive.

Kyle Walker came into the room late. Not good. Something clicked in my head at that moment. I said to myself, 'I'm going to make a speech. But they also need to watch something.' I spoke for what seemed like half an hour. When our title hopes were extinguished after putting in such a colossal effort, finishing second turned into an insignificant prize.

We lost sight of the fact that it would still be marvellous for our fans, like winning a trophy because it would mean finishing above Arsenal.



The group lost its focus and started to be influenced by factors that, until that time, we had left in a room with a triple lock on the door. Until that game against Chelsea, that insufferable 2–2 stalemate, holidays didn't exist, nobody was focused on personal challenges at Euro 2016, transfers or improved contracts.

That draw meant the league slipped away and that door was flung wide open. Suddenly we were distracted and forgot just how important it was to win our last two games. Our performance against Newcastle explained everything. Football is a team sport and if it starts to revolve around individuals, or if your game becomes disjointed, a relegated team can put five past you.

The disappointment can make you feel like killing your players. And yourself. I spent the whole summer thinking I had to remind them when the moment came. Seeing Walker turn up late to the talk was the trigger I needed to tear into them.

Part of my talk went something like this: 'Football is a screen that shows you how a group co-exists.



'Have a look at this video. I got goosebumps watching how in the friendly the other day [in Australia against Atletico], Fernando Torres ran after a loose ball in stoppage time, after 93 minutes of slogging it out and travelling for 30 hours the day before, without sleeping well.

'The guy sprinted to try to score, when his side were winning 1-0. A player who has won everything. That is passion. That feeling that you're a footballer and you enjoy it, that's what you need.


'Not the attitude we had at Newcastle where we showed a face that does not define us as a team. We didn't seem to care and we were distant from what football is and the feeling that brought us together and got us to this point. You should be ashamed.'

And ciao. To hell with it.

We had to put that chapter to bed between ourselves and dig out all our feelings.

So I said all that and more. I spoke about things that had happened, about respect and life. We all ended up red-faced, but I liked it.

Over the season, Pochettino becomes more and more impressed with the form of Kieran Trippier and in April he starts two games against Burnley and Watford, picked ahead of Walker...

I knew there would be speculation over why I left Walker out of the starting XI, but we felt Trippier was the right pick. He didn't have a great start to the season, but he got into gear when his opportunity came.

His form dipped again over the Christmas period, but after that he kept upping his game, despite not being a regular starter. And sometimes, however much you put it off, you have to take the plunge and give a player a chance at another's expense. Leaving out a regular always wounds them, creating a rift between them and the coaching staff that can be very difficult to heal.


Walker had just played back-to-back games for the national team. Our first match after his return was against Burnley. Trippier had been doing well in training for a few months and got the nod, meaning Walker was on the bench. We played Swansea on the Wednesday and Walker started. Trippier came back into the team to face Watford on the Saturday and was man of the match.

We won all three fixtures and were happy to have two regular starters competing for a place, with both players looking fresh for the final stretch of the campaign.

Walker came to my office after the Watford game. 'Gaffer, I've been at Tottenham for nine years. I've thought about it and my heart isn't here any more. Nor is my head. I've given all I have to give. I wanted to tell you before I tell my agent that I want to leave this summer.'

'Kyle, you have to stay professional. There's a month and a half to go. We're battling for the Premier League and FA Cup. We have to be focused and finish the campaign strongly.'

'OK, gaffer. But it's already decided.'

'Well, that doesn't just depend on you or me. It depends on the club, above all. You've disappointed me because you've decided to tell me that you want to leave when there is a month and bit left in the competition... You could've sucked it up, kept quiet, trained, played and helped the team when not picked... and at the end of the season you could have come and told me.'

Miguel was present. I always try to ensure there are witnesses during private conversations. I considered it to be an alarming lack of respect for his team-mates and a slap in the face for the club. None of that could be explained to the public at the time.

I had to bite my tongue. From that point, the rumours started to proliferate


In November 2016, Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy invited Pochettino and his coaching staff, including assistant manager Jesus Perez, goalkeeping coach Toni Jimenez and first-team coach D'Agostino, to the estate of Joe Lewis, Tottenham's major shareholder, at Lago Escondido in rural Argentina for a week of hiking, adventure sports and meetings...

We went rafting around the lower River Manso, eight of us plus the guide. 'You'll fall off at some point,' they warned us, 'but don't worry, we won't leave you behind.' The first to take a tumble was Jesus, at the very first rapid, and the guide grabbed his leg and pulled him back in.

No sooner was the next rapid upon us than Jesus once more plunged in head first. We were all laughing, but then it started getting rougher. Still, everything was going more or less fine until the last rapid. Suddenly, the boat flipped and several members of the group were flung out. Jesus went flying, joined by Daniel [Levy], Nicolas [the caretaker of the estate], Toni and Miki, scattered in different directions. I'd promised the chairman that I'd fish him out if he fell in. I saw Daniel in the water, looking at me, a picture of seriousness.

I grabbed his hands and heaved him in. Then we joked about how I should've demanded a new contract, saying, 'Daniel, either you double our salary or you're not getting into the boat.'



Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...Pochettino-Kyle-Walker-row.html#ixzz4wA54pXog
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
 

Bobbins

SC's 14th Sexiest Male 2008
May 5, 2005
21,548
45,031
This, plus the other sections on Dier and the trip to Argentina with Levy, are pretty astonishingly honest and eye-opening.

Bit uncomfortable reading them to be honest, they sound like they should be in a post-retirement autobiography.
 

Database

Active Member
Dec 17, 2014
403
612
This, plus the other sections on Dier and the trip to Argentina with Levy, are pretty astonishingly honest and eye-opening.

Bit uncomfortable reading them to be honest, they sound like they should be in a post-retirement autobiography.

It's nice to have a genuine manager, but these comments (Dier, Walker) are kinda unprofessional. What Pochettino is talking with his players should stay behind closed doors.
 

Yid_Summers

Active Member
Apr 27, 2012
722
762
It's nice to have a genuine manager, but these comments (Dier, Walker) are kinda unprofessional. What Pochettino is talking with his players should stay behind closed doors.

I disagree. If said players are putting in the effort, disrespecting the club and wanting to leave. We as fans deserve to know the truth.
 

Gilzeanking

Well-Known Member
May 7, 2005
6,093
5,019
We need some heavyweight analysis here of this mountain of new info .

I tend to agree that this new info is slightly unwelcome at this moment . Players now know that what they do behind the scenes may not remain confidential . Not sure this is an entirely positive development
 

Vincent30

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2012
900
3,694
Not sure why people are getting upset etc, Walker behaved in such an unprofessional way it's actually refreshing to know the full truth now, he isn't with us so who cares what is said. After 9 years at the club and being dropped for a game or two, he runs to the manager during the most important time in Spurs recent history and acts like a baby saying i'm off in the summer. I actually think it's great to air this kind of bullshit, who the fuck does Walker think he is acting like that. It's disgusting.

As for the Dier stuff, no problems there either. He had a massive dip in form and looked distracted, Poch has only mentioned what happened and no doubt he knows this will be in the upcoming book. If this makes Dier start crying, then he isn't the type of character we want at the club, if this kicks Dier into gear and puts more fire in his belly then great.

It can't be one sided, players can't have all the power. If they disrespect the club, the manager, the other players and more importantly us as fans, then they have to deal with the consequences. Laughing and joking with the other manager in front of Poch after a defeat. That's so poor and unacceptable.

We want to build a team of winners and people who respect our club. I have no problems with this at all. Poch hardly ever goes to the press and is one of the most respectful managers out there. I completely see no issue in how this has been handled.
 

tiger666

Large Member
Jan 4, 2005
27,978
82,214
I disagree. If said players are putting in the effort, disrespecting the club and wanting to leave. We as fans deserve to know the truth.

You may feel you deserve to know the private conversation between a player and his employer but you certainly aren't entitled to it, any more than I'm entitled to know private conversations between you and your boss.
 

Tucker

Shitehawk
Jul 15, 2013
31,130
146,014
This, plus the other sections on Dier and the trip to Argentina with Levy, are pretty astonishingly honest and eye-opening.

Bit uncomfortable reading them to be honest, they sound like they should be in a post-retirement autobiography.

Is there more stuff about the trip to Argentina then? Don’t see much wrong with a bit of banter about falling out of a boat.
 

Hazardousman

Audere est Facere
Jul 24, 2013
4,619
8,944
I am kind of divided on this, part of me feels it's really refreshing to hear the truth, I get tired of all the secrecy around players when, us as fans, basically make their careers, they would be nothing without the fans, football as it is, would not exist without us and I think the fans deserve honesty and I respect Poch for showing that to us.

However, on the other hand, I know how players work and their egos, I know that they will be alarmed by Poch and his honesty here and I worry it might cause a problem with the dynamic in the dressing room, maybe players will start to not trust him with their private conversations etc and it will affect things on the pitch?

I don't know what to think, but like I said, I think the honesty is refreshing and frankly, I like that Poch is setting the tone for the club to be respectful and honest, I really feel like he puts the fans and the football first before anything else.
 

Everlasting Seconds

Well-Known Member
Jan 9, 2014
14,914
26,616
However, on the other hand, I know how players work and their egos, I know that they will be alarmed by Poch and his honesty here and I worry it might cause a problem with the dynamic in the dressing room, maybe players will start to not trust him with their private conversations etc and it will affect things on the pitch?
.
Thing is, you are reading this from the outside, being caught off guard by something you hear for the first time. All the players won't have the same reaction, though. There is probably nothing in the extracts or the entire book that the players are not already familiar with and probably most of them think those incidents are of little importance now.
 
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