Tottenham boss Pochettino insists they can handle the pressure at Bramall Lane

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino insists he can handle the atmosphere at Bramall Lane.

Spurs go to Sheffield United tonight defending a 1-0 first-leg lead for their Capital One Cup semifinal.

"I had a lot of semi-finals as a player," the Argentine said. "I remember the semi final in the Copa Libertadores against Amenrica de Cali in Colombia (while playing for Newell’s Old Boys in 1992). We won the final after 24 penalties, it was tough.

"I scored after seven minutes, but afterwards missed a penalty. It was crazy. It’s difficult to play in Colombia. I remember going up the tunnel to the pitch and they started to throw batteries. I remember before the game one of my team mates (Eduardo Berizzo, now manager of Celta Vigo) got hit and cut on the head. He had to get stitches from the doctor, it was very tough.

"In Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Peru or Ecuador, people are very aggressive. It’s nothing like that here. I remember every time we drove from the airport, all the glass on the bus was smashed and we fell to the floor.

"If I can cope with that, we can cope with anything. When I came over to France, England or Spain, people told me it was difficult to play in. But when we arrived, it was nothing. They shout when something goes wrong but nothing else. This is easy."

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