Tottenham were dealt a blow in their pursuit of Champions League qualification, suffering a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Liverpool on Tuesday evening.
A late goal from Mario Balotelli of all people saw the Reds close the gap on Pochettino’s men to just one point whilst victories for Manchester United and Arsenal gave them a four and two point lead respectively.
Pochettino and Tottenham fans should not be too disheartened by the result however after playing their part in one of the most entertaining games of the season which on another day could have gone in their favour.
With a Capital One Cup Final place already assured, Tottenham supporters are preparing for an exciting end to the 2014/15 season.
Although, had they resolved these five issues in the January transfer window, perhaps they would have even more reason to feel confident.
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Click on Mauricio Pochettino to reveal 5 issues Tottenham failed to resolve in the January transfer window.
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A partner for Harry Kane
Harry Kane has been scoring goals for fun this season with 23 to his name in all competitions. Whilst Kane is very much the man of the moment, there is the fear that Tottenham are too reliant on the 21-year-old uncapped England star.
Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado have contributed next to nothing in terms of goals this season so a decent strike partner for Kane would have been ideal.
As things stand, Spurs will be hoping he can keep up the kind of form he has been showing of late until the end of the season – which is a big ask.
Failure to offload Adebayor
Tottenham looked set to offload a few players in the January transfer window but for whatever reason, Emmanuel Adebayor ended up staying put.
One of the highest paid players at the club, Adebayor has fallen out of favour once again at White Hart Lane, not only with Pochettino but the supporters.
West Ham United and QPR attempted to take the former Arsenal and Manchester City forward on loan for the remainder of the season but Tottenham failed to negotiate a deadline day deal that would have seen his wages removed from the books.
Failure to add that elusive defensive midfielder
Pochettino has been on the hunt for a defensive midfielder since his arrival in the summer.
Nabil Bentaleb has done a decent job alongisde Ryan Mason but the Tottenham manager is after someone with Premier League experience and international pedigree.
It is no secret Tottenham were after Morgan Schneiderlin in the summer and some expected another bid in January.
It never materialised however, and Pochettino will keep his faith with the youngsters from now until the end of the season.
No replacement for Aaron Lennon
It came as little surprise that Aaron Lennon ended his seven-year spell at Tottenham last month, completing a loan move to Everton on deadline day.
The former England international has been struggling for regular first team football since the arrival of Pochettino but you would still have expected the club to have brought in a replacement.
An injury to the likes of Andros Townsend or Erik Lamela – neither of which are out of the question given their fitness records – would leave Tottenham extremely short in the wide areas, and force a tactical re-think from Pochettino.
No support for Christian Eriksen
Whilst it has been a decent run of late from Tottenham, you have to question where they would be without either Kane or Christian Eriksen.
The Dane has 11 goals in all competitions this season and is the team’s most creative force. Erik Lamela has only shown flashes of brilliance whilst Ryan Mason, Mousa Dembele and Nabil Bentaleb make up a solid rather than spectacular midfield at present.
An injury to either of Tottenham’s star men would leave them in big trouble so a marquee signing in January of someone of similar quality would certainly not have gone amiss.
In the end, Spurs signed MK Dons wonderkid Dele Alli but Lilywhites fans will have to wait until next season to see the ‘new Steven Gerrard’ with Karl Robinson’s side re-signing him on loan until the end of the 2014/15 campaign.
