Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino says he "spent 10 days in my house, and I didn't want to go out" after their 2-0 loss to Liverpool in the Champions League final last month in Madrid.
The Argentine boss said to the Daily Mail that he spent a long time over the summer in discussions with his assistant at the North London club Jesus Perez, "we talked every day to find the reason. Always you try to analyse, but in the end, the analysis is different. It's the small details that make the difference."
Spurs had to come back from the brink to get victory in Amsterdam in the semi-final against Ajax, which Pochettino believes gave them momentum:
"The three weeks to prepare were unbelievable and then you are massively disappointed in the way you lose. Then you need to go home — I took a train from Madrid to Barcelona the day after."
After the loss at the Wanda Metropolitano, the 47-year-old manager said, "I tried to play golf after a few days — not to play, to swing. I was focused, with my son to try to hit the ball perfectly but it was impossible.
"My family tried to lift me, but they were in the same situation as me. Then I started to move on. The people that appreciated our job also helped.
"In Spain, English fans in restaurants in Madrid, also in Ibiza, people from Liverpool, people from Tottenham, different football people said: 'Fantastic Tottenham'. That started to build happiness again because people recognised our job was fantastic."
"Winners move on quickly. Maybe 10 days like me, or 15. When it's holidays it's worse because every day you are thinking the same, but when you start to train you put the bad things in the past. The moment you move on, the fire inside starts to appear again"
Tottenham Hotspur get their Premier League campaign underway at home to Aston Villa on August 11th. The club will enter this season's Champions League at the group stage.
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
