Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has explained why he didn’t pick Kieran Trippier in the squad for the Premier League clash against Stoke City.
The 27-year-old was excluded from the squad in Spurs’s 2-1 win against Stoke City at bet365 stadium on Saturday, and Pochettino was asked to explain the reason behind his omission at the post match press conference.
Trippier joined from Burnley in the summer of 2015 for a fee believed to be in the region of £3.5 million, and has mainly emerged as a key player for Pochettino after Kyle Walker departed last summer to join Manchester City.
The 27-year-old has cemented his position as the club’s first choice full-back, and he is playing regularly for Gareth Southgate’s England national team as well.
However, Pochettino chose not to include him in the starting line up against Stoke City, as he opted to rotate the squad to give the defender a breather.
The Argentine explained that Trippier “was overloaded” and “tired” after his recent exploits with the national team during the recent international break, and that is why he didn’t want to take the risk.
“In the case of Kieran Trippier, he played two games in the international break with England and was overloaded and was a little bit tired,” said Pochettino, as quoted by Football London.
“We cannot take a risk. He’s okay, he’s fit and everything but if in this type of situation we can look to avoid taking risks and we have players like Serge Aurier, who is working hard, why not give him the possibility. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t happy with Kieran.”
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