Giovani Lo Celso: Tottenham have four finals to make it into Europe
Signed on loan by Mauricio Pochettino, a fellow Argentine who also made his football reputation in the city of Rosario, Giovani Lo Celso has seen more change than he bargained for in 11 months at Tottenham Hotspur and reflects that things will have to change again under Jose Mourinho.
Spurs face Arsenal on Sunday in the first north London derby at their new stadium and without supporters for the first time in this historic rivalry - with the game itself carrying huge significance for both sides’ ambitions this season. At 24, Lo Celso has had a solid first season in English football, his loan from Real Betis converted to a permanent move in January and after a slow start is now established in Mourinho’s first team.
He signed originally for Pochettino, whose career began at Newell’s Old Boys, one of two great sides in the city of Rosario, where Lo Celso began at Central. That derby is legendary, a fixture in which away fans are not permitted because of the potential for trouble and where Newell’s ground is named after the man considered their greatest manager, Marcelo Bielsa.
Speaking this week through an interpreter, Lo Celso said that the squad accepted Mourinho’s demand that they become a tougher, more ruthless side. “Nice boys, Fair Play Cup,” was Mourinho’s damning assessment in the aftermath of the 1-0 win over Everton on Monday – and that was before the goalless draw with Bournemouth in which they failed to get a shot on target.
“We spoke after the game,” Lo Celso says. “We needed to show a different side to us against Everton, following the Sheffield [United] game, and to get into the European places, we especially needed the win. I think the reaction of the team against Everton was good. We showed great intensity, we created chances at times, we were compact in defence and we needed a reaction after what happened.
“I think that over these last few months we've tried to take on board the manager's ideas as quickly as possible. In some games we've done this better than in others but we've got four finals still to play to get ourselves into those European places. We've got some really important, really tough games, so we need to finish up there.”
The battle for Europe
Lo Celso is the latest in a long run of great players from Rosario and the surrounding Santa Fe province to make their names in Europe, none more so than the city’s greatest son Lionel Messi who left as a 13-year-old to join Barcelona. Pochettino was a Newell’s player who won the league under Bielsa and was a runner-up in the continental club competition, the Copa Libertadores, in 1992. Lo Celso was one of his last signings at Spurs before his departure in November.
“I think each manager has their way of playing, their identity, their way of approaching games,” Lo Celso says. “That goes for the majority of managers. They view football in a different way. So, during the past few months, we've been working on what the coaching staff have asked of us, taking on board their playing style as quickly as possible and that's what we're working towards.
“I wasn't worried [when Pochettino left] but when I came to the club Pochettino was manager. At that time he'd contacted me to come here. He was here for a few months and then left and a new top-class manager and coaching staff have come in, and this will also put the club in a good position. So, now we're hoping to finish off these final four games in the best possible way.”
Lo Celso is now an Argentina international and has played alongside Messi, “a unique, wonderful experience, a beautiful feeling”. He featured briefly as a substitute at the Emirates in September in the 2-2 draw between the two north London sides. “It's different,” he says. “Every derby is different. Obviously here people experience it in a different way but it's a really well-known derby throughout the world.”
