Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou insists he has no interest in scuppering the title chances of rivals Arsenal and that Spurs are targeting another home win over Manchester City on Tuesday night.
Postecoglou also rubbished suggestions that many Tottenham fans would rather lose the game than achieve a win or a draw which would boost their north London rivals Arsenal’s chances of winning the Premier League.
“I understand rivalry. I was part of one of the biggest ones in the world in the last couple of years with Celtic and Rangers,” he said.
“But I’ve never and will never understand if someone wants their own team to lose. That’s not what sport is about. It’s not what I love about the game.
“What I love is the competitiveness, challenging yourself to beat someone and coming out successful. Anything outside of that has got nothing to do with sport, nothing to do with me.
“If other people want to treat it that way, they get pleasure from other people’s misery, that’s not how I’ve lived my life and how I perceive my role. My role is to bring success to this club.
“Whether it’s two mates or 99 per cent of people you know, I know 100 per cent of Spurs supporters want us to win, be successful and win trophies.
“That is without a shadow of a doubt, and us winning [against City] will help us bring joy to 100 per cent of Spurs supporters.
“You think the majority of our fans want us to not win? I don’t see it that way. I think the majority of our fans will create the atmosphere they always create at our home games.
“Real success looks like trophies. Anything else in between, bragging rights, whatever it is, it is absolutely meaningless to me.”
City can return to the top of the table and take a major step towards a record fourth consecutive Premier League title by beating Spurs, yet their recent record in N17 is poor.
Before January’s 1-0 win in the FA Cup, the champions had lost all five visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium without scoring a single goal.
“It’s obvious. We have just one option: win the game. We travel for that,” said City manager Pep Guardiola.
“Many times we have played really good and not been able to score and win. You have to do something special, exceptional, and it has never happened in the Premier League.
“We have to do it this time. Now is the time to do it otherwise Arsenal will be champions. The right tension and focus has to be there. If we play these games relaxed, it’s a big problem.”