Mauricio Pochettino admitted that Vincent Janssen needed stern words in order to give him a wake-up call in order to kick start his career at Tottenham Hotspur.
Janssen will once again be in the spotlight for Spurs now that Harry Kane will be out for a while with an ankle injury and will be hoping that his goal in the 6-0 rout against Millwall last week will kick start his career at Spurs.
Janssen needed a wake-up call, admits Pochettino
It was Janssen's first open play goal for Spurs since joining the club in the summer and Pochettino accepts that Janssen has endured a difficult opening season at the club but is backing him to still be successful at the club.
Pochettino, speaking at his pre-match press conference before the Southampton game, said that "it's true that in some period in the season" Janssen's form "was down" and therefore it was clear that "he needed a wake-up call" in order to help him realise that their was still "the possibility of playing could arrive."
The Argentinean went on to say that Janssen is still "very young" and that he is still very "happy with him" at the club but he also understands that the players are sometimes "not happy with some situations" but they must get on with it and show they are motivated.
Pochettino reveals that Janssen was 'relieved' to score against Millwall
Pochettino insisted that this is the case for Janssen, saying "he is okay, he is motivated and confident" of improving and he is now "feeling a little bit of relief" after netting his "first goal from open play and that is important" as now it will be important from him to kick on and score even more goals.
Janssen will be hoping that he is in the starting lineup for the game against Southampton on Super Sunday in order to prove that it wasn't only a one off goal and that he can do it on a consistent basis.