Mauricio Pochettino full of praise for AFC Wimbledon after Tottenham Hotspur’s FA Cup win
AFC Wimbledon's George Francomb (right) and Tottenham Hotspur's Kyle Walker-Peters battle for the ball at Wembley Stadium (pic Adam Davy/PA) - Credit: PA Wire/PA Images
Spurs secured their place in the next round with a 3-0 win, but only after the Dons had held them until the hour mark
Mauricio Pochettino hailed the effort of AFC Wimbledon after watching Tottenham Hotspur progress into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 3-0 win at Wembley.
It was far from easy for Spurs with the Dons holding out until 63rd minute at the national stadium in front of 47,527 spectators.
Once Harry Kane broke the deadlock, the floodgates briefly opened with the forward netting another two minutes later in the 65th minute.
Jan Vertonghen made it 3-0 six minutes later with a long overdue goal, but Pochettino felt it was important to praise the south Londoners.
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“It’s so difficult to play in the FA Cup – it can be so tough and Wimbledon played very well,” the Spurs boss told the official club website.
“They created a few chances and I think it was a solid performance from us, but I think full credit to them because they tried to play. They are a very strong side and it was very difficult to beat them.”
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Pochettino continued: “They played well and they came to play and tried to win the game – that is good to see in a team like this.
“Of course, in the end our performance was good and we deserved to win, but it was a tough, tough game.”
Spurs included youngsters Juan Foyth and Kyle Walker-Peters in their starting XI, but the rest of the team contained genuine first-teamers.
Michel Vorm, Kieran Trippier, Vertonghen, Moussa Sissoko, Victor Wanyama, Mousa Dembele, Erik Lamela, Kane and Fernando Llorente made up the rest of the Tottenham side with Pochettino showing great respect to the competition.
After Arsenal fielded a weakened XI at Nottingham Forest on the same day and lost 4-2, the Spurs boss was delighted to see a strong display from his team.
Pochettino added: “After a very busy week, to keep up the performance and the effort is difficult, but I am very pleased with everyone.
“Of course the younger players like Kyle and Juan are learning and improving and it’s so important to play this type of game to get more experience.”
