Chelsea won't make Tottenham lose their cool again, insists Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino

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Tom Collomosse21 April 2017

Mauricio Pochettino has warned Chelsea they have no chance of provoking Tottenham into losing their cool.

The sides meet at Wembley on Saturday in the FA Cup semi-final, nearly a year after “The Battle of Stamford Bridge”, when nine Tottenham players were booked in the 2-2 draw and Mousa Dembele was handed a six-match ban for scratching the eye of Diego Costa.

That game took place on May 2, 2016, and in the year since Pochettino insists both he and his team have become considerably more streetwise.

He told Standard Sport: “We played more with our emotions than with our heads in that game. It was a new experience to fight for the title. Now the players are more mature, I am more mature. We have learned a lot from the experience and now we are focused on trying to be better.

“It was a good experience for me, here in England. It was my first time fighting for the Premier League as a manager. Of course I prefer to play to win rather than fighting relegation with Espanyol or Southampton, as I did in the first season.

“We are so open in our minds and every day is a good opportunity to learn. With one more year, I can tell you I have more experience and I have more knowledge of life and football.”

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