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Mauricio Pochettino believes that he is under just as much pressure as Jose Mourinho , as he prepares to take his Tottenham side to Old Trafford on Monday evening.
Spurs face Manchester United at what already feels like a hinge point for United’s season, after last weekend’s 3-2 defeat at Brighton and Hove Albion , and the deteriorating relationship between Mourinho and his employers.
There is more focus on Mourinho than ever before, especially speculation over whether he is due to lead United into another ‘Mourinho Season’, like when he was sacked from Chelsea three years ago.
Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tipsShow all 10 1 /10Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Richarlison, Price: £6.8m Opponent: Bournemouth (A) Ownership: 36.5% It’s time to stop waiting to see if he is just a ‘one season wonder’, he’s not. Marco Silva was determined to reunite with him at Everton and the reasoning is now clear for all to see. Three goals in his first two games is a great reward for those who put their faith in the Brazilian winger at the start of the season, and you sense that he’s just getting warmed up at Goodison. In spells, Everton have been playing some really good fluid football, which benefits the tricky wide player. Everton travel to Bournmouth this weekend, and if recent history is anything to go by, there should be goals in this. There has been an average of four goals in the last six games between these two sides, meaning there should be goals in in this. Which perfectly sets up the inevitable 0-0…
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Benjamin Mendy, Price: £6.2 Opponent: Wolves (A) Ownership: 28.1% There are only a small number of players in the Manchester City team that will play every week, Kyle Walker, Raheem Sterling, Nicolas Otamendia and Leroy Sane can tell you that after starting on the bench in their 6-1 win against Huddersfield. One player which is emerging as a constant is their left-back by name only, Mendy. Against Arsenal and Huddersfield he occupied the same kind of attacking positions as Gareth Bale would and has already shown he will be taking a key role in setting up goals with four assists to his name already. Seriously, get him in your team.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Joe Gomez, Price: £5m Opponent: Brighton (H) Ownership: 1% You would be forgiven for hesitating at putting Liverpool defenders in your team early in the season given their often humorous attempts to defend last season. This year, however, Jurgen Klopp seems to have a much better defence now he has better players available to him. Joe Gomez is beginning to form a good partnership with Virgil Van Dijk at the back and is a cheap way to consistently gain those four points for a clean sheet. He’s also a very left-field choice, which might give you an edge in the long run.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Aleksandar Mitrovic, Price: £6.5m Opponent: Burnley (H) Ownership: 6.2% Anyone that saw him in the Championship last season will know what a handful he can be for defenders and he proved that he can score in the Premier League too, with his first goal for Fulham in the top-tier against Tottenham last week. With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang misfiring and Jamie Vardy suspended, Mitrovic could be a good value alternative to your normal strikers. Burnley are Fulham’s opponents and will be travelling to Craven Cottage after a long trip to Greece to play Olympiakos in the Europa League.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Price: £7.1m Opponent: West Ham (H) Ownership: 17.6% It’s only a matter of time before the Unai Emery revolution fully kicks into gear, and it could begin this weekend against West Ham. The Hammers will continue to play their curiously high line, something that will allow Henrikh Mkhitaryan to play precise passes from deep or get in behind himself. Mesut Ozil and Aubameyang have had stuttering starts this season, but Mkhitaryan looks like he could emerge as a key player for the Gunners this season. If none of these reasons float your boat, then Arsenal are playing West Ham, Cardiff, Newcastle, Everton, Watford, Fulham, Leicester and Crystal Palace before meeting any of the top six, so now might be the right time to fit him in.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Eden Hazard, Price: £10.5m Opponent: Newcastle (A) Ownership: 12.6% Will he stay at Chelsea? Has recovered from a long World Cup? Is Maurizio Sarri going to get the best out of him? Yes, yes and yes. Eden Hazard’s cameo roles from the substitute bench against Huddersfield and Arsenal show that none of these concerns will stop the Belgian winger from being a big point scorer in fantasy football.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Neil Etheridge, Price £4.5m Opponent: Huddersfield (A) Ownership: 3.4% If short-termism is your game, then Neil Etheridge is your man. Cardiff take on Huddersfield this weekend and Neil Warnock’s stubborn defensive side should keep out the Terriers, who aren’t exactly free scoring at the minute. That said, once Cardiff draw 0-0 against Huddersfield this weekend, they face Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham in their next five games.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Sadio Mane, Price: £9.8m Opponent: Brighton (H) Ownership: 34.6% Oddly listed as a midfielder, Sadio Mane should really be on the verge of making his way into your team. Mohamed Salah already appears to be attracting the close attention of opposition defenders, and a much cheaper alternative is Mane, who has already scored three times. Liverpool host Brighton and have scored nine goals against them in their two meetings last season. Expect goals and lots of ‘ohhh Mane Mane’.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Marcos Alonso, Price: £6.6m Opponent: Newcastle (A) Ownership: 27.2% You are forgiven if you took one look at Marcos Alonso in the community shield final defeat against Manchester City and thought: ‘nah’. In a back four he looked lost, to put it kindly, and a shadow of his former attacking self. However, against Huddersfield and Arsenal he returned to his old ways and was influential in the goals Chelsea scored. Don’t back him for clean sheets or defensive bonus points, mind. Arsenal exposed the attacking nature of Chelsea’s defenders by getting to the byline with little resistance.
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Fantasy Football Gameweek 3 tips Patrick van Aanholt, Price: £5.5m Opponent: Watford (A) Ownership: 5.8% If you were one of the many thousands to bring Aaron Wan-Bissaka into your side after watching him score and get a clean sheet against Fulham on the opening day of the Premier League, only for him to go and get sent off against Liverpool, Patrick Van Aanholt might be your man to replace him with. The Dutch wing-back’s attacking adventure is very similar to Wan-Bissaka’s and he has a knack of providing goals and assists. Palace’s defence may not be tested too much by Watford this weekend, or Southampton, Huddersfield, Newcasltle or Bournemouth in their next games.
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But when Pochettino was asked at his press conference whether Mourinho was under more pressure than he was, Pochettino replied that that pressure was universal in the Premier League , and that all managers found it “impossible to relax” in this line of work.
“You don't believe I'm not in the same position? We feel the pressure every week. Of course the circumstances are different, but every game you play you're under pressure. And if you lose or don't perform as you expect the pressure touches you.
“We are always under pressure. It's impossible to relax. I am only relaxed in summer when I spent a week with family and friends.”
Mauricio Pochettino says all managers are under the same amount of pressure (Reuters) For Pochettino, the exposure and pressure has been the same in the three managerial jobs he has held. That is why he does not believe that any particular top-flight job is harder than another. “At Tottenham, Southampton, Espanyol the people are judging you, talking about your decisions,” Pochettino said.
“When you win, all the people know you were so good. When you lose all the people know the manager was wrong. In the Premier League clubs, we're so exposed to you and the fans.
“In all the clubs you feel a similar pressure. I was never Manchester United manager, but I promise you it was similar at Southampton and Espanyol.”
Going into Monday’s game, Pochettino said that his job is to convince the Spurs players that they can win or even score at a ground where they have lost every game under Pochettino. “In football, if you don’t believe, you lose before you arrive,” Pochettino said. “We are confident, just like we were confident in the last four years.
“Trust in yourself and in your team, believe you can win, that is always the most important. Then you can focus on aspects of the game. But the most important is your mentality, and the way you approach the game. In our minds, we need to go there and believe we can win.”
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