‘Doesn’t feel good’: Lamela says Pochettino’s 2019 Tottenham decision still hurts him

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Erik Lamela left Tottenham Hotspur in the summer and he has revealed his only regret during his eight-year stay in North London.

The Argentian joined the club all the way back in 2013. A lot was expected of him when he first arrived, but injuries were really cruel on him, and he never quite fulfilled the massive potential he once had.

However, Lamela has given Spurs fans a lot of good memories, especially under Mauricio Pochettino. The now-PSG boss is still a hero to many Tottenham fans and rightly so, but one of his tough decisions in 2019 still hurts his compatriot.

Lamela has opened up on how he felt when Pochettino did not give him any game time in the 2019 Champions League final against Liverpool.

Lamela: Not playing in the Champions League final doesn’t feel good

The Argentinian told The Times today: “It was one of the most important games of my life to play this final but I can say nothing because I didn’t play a minute and that’s something I will always have inside me that doesn’t feel good.

“It was hard to lose that game but, at the same time, we knew that the team had never arrived in that position before and that we’d brought the club very high so you have both things.

“If we win that game we could be in the history forever. Of course, sometimes these types of games change your history. After reaching the Champions League final there was a big pressure on the team to do well and to always get better.”

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Every player in the world dreams of playing in the Champions League final and Lamela is no different. He reached that stage with Tottenham, but sadly for him, he watched his side lose from the bench.

It’s no surprise that the Argentinian is still hurting from that. He would’ve felt that he could’ve had some kind of impact if he was brought on, but Pochettino decided to go with other options.

Tottenham started with a front-four of Son Heung-min, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane. Lucas Moura, Fernando Llorente and Eric Dier were brought on, but it just didn’t work, and Liverpool won the game quite comfortably.