Pochettino glad Kane able to feature in derby squad

Harry Kane will be fit to play some part in this weekend’s North London derby, Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino said Friday.

The England striker has been out for nearly seven weeks with an ankle problem but Pochettino said it would “not be a risk” for the 23-year-old to feature in some capacity away to Arsenal at the Emirates on Sunday.

Victory for Spurs, who have the last unbeaten record in this season’s Premier League, would see them go level on points with local rivals Arsenal — who are themselves currently second to league leaders Manchester City on goal difference alone. 

“He will be in the squad,” Pochettino said of Kane.

“He will be available for Sunday and then I need to decide (whether he should be in the) starting XI or (on the) bench.

“I am happy after yesterday, (it was a) very good training session, he is fit.”

The Argentinian added: “It would not be a risk to play him. We try to avoid risk. 

“If he is on the pitch or the bench it’s because we’re sure it’s not a risk for him to play.

“In football you can’t avoid all risk because it’s a contact sport (but if) the doctor said he is available to be selected it’s because there is no risk of injury.”

For all that they are unbeaten in the Premier League, Spurs have not won any of their last six games in all competitions and have not found the net in open play in their last five. 

Kane though has scored four goals in three league games against the Gunners and scored in both league fixtures last season.

“Always it is important to have Harry Kane,” Pochettino said. “In the last few seasons he has been very important for us. He was top scorer in the Premier League (last season) and always the player who is top scorer in the Premier League is important for any club.

“It is true he has a good record against Arsenal. It is important he is back and can help the team get a good result,” the Argentinian added.

While Arsenal beat Ludogorets in the Champions League in midweek, Spurs’ latest outing in European club football’s elite tournament was a lacklustre 1-0 loss to Bayer Leverkusen at Wembley.

“We were poor, we can’t play that way against Arsenal,” Pochettino said. “We need to be calm. When you have a period when you don’t win games, you need to be calm.

“We need to be very quiet and in the same way critical and assess and be sure for the future to take better decisions.

“It is true we are very young and we are a team in a process where the club is building a massive stadium, an unbelievable stadium, the best in England or in Europe. The team is in the same process.

“We settle the principle and the way to play. The players can be here for the next few seasons and the players need to show more to be here.” – Agence France-Presse