Kieran Trippier wanted to leave Tottenham this summer and was not forced out of the club, according to Mauricio Pochettino.
Earlier this month, we relayed quotes from Trippier suggesting he had been ignored by Spurs chairman Daniel Levy and given a lack of assurances by Pochettino when he brought up concerns about future going into the new season.
The defender left for Atletico Madrid in July, ending his four-year stay at Tottenham, and there have since been question marks over whose decision it was for him to depart.
Because he made a number of mistakes last season, it was believed Pochettino had allowed Trippier to go, a line of thinking that is backed up by the right-back’s recent comments.
But speaking ahead of this weekend’s meeting with Crystal Palace, Pochettino insisted the player made the decision to leave himself – though he also revealed Trippier had tried to text him to say his quotes had been twisted somewhat.
“I didn’t see [his interview],” Pochettino said (via the London Evening Standard). “We had a conversation where he explained he was going to move to Atletico Madrid – nothing more.
“On Wednesday, when Harry Kane arrived back [from international duty] he said to me, ‘Did you get Kieran’s text?’ I said no because I changed my number. Maybe because he doesn’t have the new number.
“He believed his words were twisted – I don’t know anything more. Kieran translated this message to me through Harry Kane. He wanted to tell me. But I’ve got no problem with Kieran.
“In football decisions happen and players move from one club to another. What happened happened, and we need to move on and he needs to think of Atletico Madrid and be happy there.”
Trippier was back in the most recent England squad and started in a 4-0 victory over Bulgaria. It was a typical Trippier performance: his crossing was decent and he was caught out of position defensively a few times.
We will probably never truly know if Trippier was forced out, but what do you think really happened? Let us know in the comments section below.
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