Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino admits they must improve away record against top-six rivals if they want to close on Chelsea

MAURICIO POCHETTINO sends his Spurs stars out at Anfield tonight demanding they improve their record against their top-six rivals.

Tottenham travel to Liverpool having won just ONE of their 14 trips to the big boys since Poch became boss in 2014.

Pochettino knows his second-placed side will have to improve that record in front of the Kop if they are to close the nine-point gap on Prem leaders Chelsea.

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He said: “It’s true and that’s what we are looking to do.

“Against the top six clubs away, we have struggled because we have had some draws and some losses. This is now the time and a good opportunity to change that stat.”

Pochettino, currently in his third season in charge, has seen his Tottenham team draw one and lose one of their previous two top-flight clashes at Anfield.

His men have lost all three of their league clashes under him at Manchester United and drawn all three of their North London derbies at Arsenal, while they have also drawn one and lost two of their three trips to Chelsea.

Pochettino’s only Premier League triumph with Spurs at a top-six rival came in their 2-1 victory at Manchester City last season. That followed a 4-1 defeat at the Etihad, where they drew 2-2 this term.

Tottenham’s home record may have improved significantly under Pochettino.

But their abysmal away record against the top six has blighted their top-four and title hopes in the past and will continue to do so unless it is rectified.

Pochettino remains unfazed, though, and denied their top-six travel sickness has affected his players’ heads as they embark on one of their trickiest and most important trips of the campaign.

He said: “No, it’s not psychological. Come on, we are in a good mental state today.

“If you analyse Liverpool, they too struggle to win away to the top six. We are not the only team that does that.”

Tottenham can make Liverpool pay for their poor recent run by sealing a win tonight at Anfield that would increase the gap between them to seven points.

And it would surely put the final nail in the title hopes of the hosts, who start the day in fifth place, a whopping 13 points off Chelsea.

With the Blues not playing until tomorrow, a Spurs win would close the gap on Antonio Conte’s runaway leaders to six points — and surely send out the message that the race to be crowned champions is not done and dusted yet.

But Pochettino resisted the chance to play mind games as he insisted: “No, it would not be a message to Chelsea.

“We are competing with ourselves, like we were last season. We are our own enemies and if we win, we win. It is important to be focused on ourselves.

“It is true that in the last four or five games when you need to reduce the gap, you are not only thinking of winning games, you are looking to reduce the gap to your opponents.

“But now it is about us. We need to be able to keep that level of winning, winning, winning games, then hope afterwards that Chelsea drop points.”

So should Chelsea be worried about ?

Poch replied: “No, no, no. Chelsea aren’t worried about us.