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Mauricio Pochettino wants Tottenham to be positive against Nottingham Forest

Tottenham Hotspur's manager Maurico Pochettino celebrates after final whistle during the Barclays Premier League match at Upton Park, London.
Image: Mauricio Pochettino: Looking for more intensity from Spurs

Mauricio Pochettino feels Tottenham need to change their mentality if they are to avoid similar disappointments to the defeat by West Brom.

Sunday's reverse at White Hart Lane left Pochettino's men in ninth place and meant a second home defeat for him in three Premier League games since taking over from Tim Sherwood.

Spurs are on home turf again on Wednesday when Nottingham Forest are the visitors in the third round of the Capital One Cup, and Pochettino wants his team to play with a higher level of intensity.

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"We need to be more prepared and more ready because the Premier League is strong and the Europa League is strong," Pochettino said.

"We need to change the mentality and make sure we are ready every time.

"You go to the stadium and you have to be able to compete and be strong because every game is different.

"We need to move the ball quicker, faster. West Brom played long balls and tried to win the second ball.

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"We had a problem because we were always late to the second ball - we took a lot of time to get into the opposition's box. We need to be more aggressive in the last third of the pitch."

Changes

I'm not worrying about the situation. I believe at the moment we need to have more points to reflect the table.
Mauricio Pochettino

Pochettino is likely to make changes against the Sky Bet Championship pace-setters but he says that can be no excuse for a poor performance after making 10 changes on Sunday from the side that drew 0-0 with Partizan Belgrade.

"Our best starting team depends on each and every game - there is no doubt about that," Pochettino added.

"It's not an excuse. A bad performance on Sunday is not because of the changes. We have a very strong squad and we need to use our players - we have a lot of games ahead and after each match we analyse every player.

"At the moment the players are not in a position to play three games in one week.

"When I arrived here I knew the situation - I knew that maybe there would be some ups and downs at the start of a new period.

"It's always different when you arrive at a new club with different players and you need time to get to know each other.

"I'm not worrying about the situation. I believe at the moment we need to have more points to reflect the table.

"It's the beginning of the season, it's not how we start it's how we finish. We are sure our team will improve not only in how we play but in the results over the next few weeks."

Watch Tottenham's clash with Nottingham Forest live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 7.30pm on Wednesday.

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