Mauricio Pochettino will target Thursday night as an opportunity to build on his fractious relationship with those Chelsea fans who have not forgiven his Tottenham Hotspur past, with this reunion of rivals falling on the eight-year anniversary of the Battle of the Bridge.
Pochettino’s Spurs drew 2-2 at Stamford Bridge on May 2, 2016 – a night of unbridled enmity which ended with Leicester City being confirmed as the Premier League’s 5,000-1 champions.
The 52-year-old Argentine is aware that his history posed a problem for some supporters when he took over at Chelsea.