Mauricio Pochettino Talks Busy January Schedule After Tottenham Beat Arsenal

Maurico Pochettino has said he does not want to think too much about Tottenham Hotspur's festive schedule, which could see them play as many as nine matches.

Spurs' 2-0 win at Arsenal on Wednesday put them through to the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup, which will be a two-legged affair against Chelsea.

The north Londoners could also play three FA Cup matches in January if they advance to the fourth round via a third-round replay.

Even if they are shocked in the FA Cup by fourth-tier Tranmere Rovers, it will still be a busy month, especially after a run of nine matches in December.

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Spurs do not boast as strong a squad as many of the other top Premier League sides, and Pochettino said it is difficult to rotate effectively across all the competitions, especially as he is looking to win his first trophy in charge of the club, per Jack Rosser of the Evening Standard:

"They are not machines, the players. It is going to be crazy January. We are now in a crazy period, but January...I don't know, I don't want to think too much. When the people talk about why the manager rotates, 'Why that decision, why rest, maybe they don't care about the cups, maybe they don't care about winning games or winning titles.'

"We are the first to have the interest to win and deliver to our fans, sometimes we need to receive some help. It is more to judge after the game if we win or we lose, we play well or not play well, we won with another name on the pitch, but the most important in that competitive country is to use all the squad. 

"If not, you are going to struggle to compete or you are so, so, so good and you have 24 players who are all at the same level and you keep the same level and it is not a problem. But I think it is so unfair because it is so easy to talk about win, but it is not easy to win, look at the League Cup for us how we are suffering because all of the games we against Premier League teams."

Pochettino, 46, has done a fantastic job at Spurs since taking over in 2014.

He has led them to three consecutive top-three finishes in the Premier League, and they sit third in the English top flight after a fine opening to the season.

The one criticism of the manager that often crops up is that he has yet to win any silverware in London.

The Carabao Cup presents the Argentinian with a great opportunity to break that duck, although Spurs will almost certainly meet Manchester City in the final if they get past Chelsea.

Given the packed schedule and the necessity for Spurs to maintain their position in the top four of the Premier League, Pochettino may be forced to rotate his side—even for the semi-finals.

To add to the headache for the Spurs manager, he will also lose Heung-Min Son halfway through January, as he has been selected for South Korea's Asian Cup squad:

Tottenham are building a new stadium, which they hope to move into before the end of the season.

The cost of the build meant Spurs added no new players in the summer transfer window, and they look unlikely to do any business in January, either:

The likes of City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal are not bound by such restrictions.

The fact that Pochettino continues to keep Spurs competitive is an achievement, but he is not relishing the prospect of another packed month of games.