Football
Dan Kilpatrick, Tottenham Correspondent 8y

Tottenham's Vincent Janssen, Victor Wanyama impress Mauricio Pochettino

LONDON -- Mauricio Pochettino was delighted with the performance of full-debutant Vincent Janssen in Tottenham's hard-fought 1-0 win against Crystal Palace, decided by Victor Wanyama's 82nd-minute winner.

The Spurs manager handed Janssen his first start for the club after the Netherlands international, 22, impressed from the bench in a 35-minute spell in last weekend's 1-1 draw at Everton.

Harry Kane, last season's Golden Boot winner with 25 Premier League goals, started behind lone-striker Janssen at No. 10, and Pochettino was impressed with their partnership.

"It was a position he [Kane] has played a lot," Pochettino said in his postmatch news conference. "When I arrived here, I wanted him to play him with another striker.

"You could see Harry was more free. He had a lot of chances to score and to shoot -- a lot, a lot, more than at Everton. It was a very good combination. I'm very happy with the performance of him and Vincent -- it's an important option to both play in the future, or sometimes to play with one. It's good to have options.

"I'm pleased with all the players. I'm very happy with Victor because I was a player and it's very important to score in your first home game and feel the love from your supporters. With Vincent too, it was important to feel the love. This is fantastic to help them to be in a good place. I'm very happy for them because our supporters recognised their effort. That's very good for the future of the team."

Janssen, who finished as top scorer in last season's Eredivisie, missed a golden chance to open his Premier League account, skewing wide with his right-foot when one-on-one with Palace goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey.

"It was the same last season with Harry -- I'm worried when it's impossible for them to have chances to score," Pochettino said. "When, like today, Vincent had lots of chances, it's about luck or being a bit more clinical. He showed very good energy, he played well and I'm very happy with his performance. He's a great lad and the most important thing is to keep working, to follow in the same way."

Pochettino left PFA Young Player of the Year Dele Alli on the bench to accommodate Kane and Janssen, and the Argentine revealed the midfielder missed training this week through illness.

"We can't play with 12 or 13 players. [We have] different rules to basketball! It's impossible to play with all. We have a lot of games ahead, and Dele Alli was ill during the week -- he didn't train on Tuesday and Wednesday," he said.

"It's normal. He came from the Euros and we need to ensure he's in a good position to avoid injuries in the future. It was a good opportunity to see both strikers -- Harry and Vincent. It was a natural decision, but Dele Alli is a great player, he'll be a very important player for us this season."

Pochettino cut a frustrated figure on the touchline during the first-half, yelling at his players throughout and, at one point, screaming an expletive in frustration before storming back to his seat in the dugout.

The Argentine, however, insisted he was happy with the display before the break and praised his team's determination.

"I was happy with the performance," he added. "I wasn't happy [in the first half] because we didn't score. We created a lot of chances -- clear chances to score -- so I was disappointed. It was one of those times when you don't say too much at halftime. The first half was very good. The second half we played well, we created many chances too.

"It's important to recognise the team fought to the end. They never gave up and always believed it was possible to win the game. In the end we fully deserved the victory."

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