Harry and Heartbreak

Eight.

Semi final defeats.

In a row.

They say time is the greatest healer, but with every FA Cup loss at Wembley, the scars are torn open afresh, joined by a new wound.

Heartbreak.

We are a work in progress, but the only title that progress had led us to thus far is 'bottlers'. It is painful to admit, but we lack that winning mentality. That spark when it matters the most. Time and time again, we fall short on the biggest stage. At the most crucial of moments. And it hurts.

The collapse of our season can broadly be attributed to Harry Kane's return and the golden boot debacle. Harry is no doubt an ambitious character, and as the best striker in the league he seeks to retain the one piece of silverware he can personally get his hands on. While trophies fall by the wayside, the golden boot is something of a safety net, proving that even if the team as a whole is not good enough to win a trophy, Kane personally is doing all he can.

But, in some ways, I think Pochettino has failed Kane at the back end of this season. We will never know what went on behind closed doors, whether Kane's rehabilitation was rushed in order to stake his claim for another top goalscorer award, but the evidence certainly suggests our talisman is not right. Mentally, despite his resilience, I imagine he also suffered slightly after being mocked relentlessly for claiming the goal against Stoke. Something is not right with Kane at the moment - he looks jaded and ineffective up top, at the detriment of the team. It also poses a quandary to Pochettino - does he rest his best player for these important matches? Or is it a case of 'player power' taking over? Kane clearly feels fit enough to play, but on Saturday's showing, it would be better if he sat a few weeks out in order to fully recuperate.

Digging deeper than the half-injured Kane as the main reason for our shortcomings, we must also question Pochettino. Do not get me wrong, I wholly believe he is the right man for the job, and I want him to lead this side to glory. But he cannot escape criticism here. Would Hugo Lloris, given his recent form, have made a difference yesterday? I do not know. But he is our club captain, and has consistently been one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League over the past five or so years. He also captains one of the best footballing nations in the world. Hugo is extraordinary, and to not play him for our biggest game of the season is farcical. I understand Alderweireld's omission, since his contract issues have made it difficult for him to play all the time. But Lloris is the first name on the team sheet, and it should remain that way for as long as he is at the club.

There is something else holding us back, too. I know rival fans will point to the diving strategies sometimes deployed by Dele Alli, but on the whole, we are a fairly honest and clean team. To put a negative spin on things, we are lacking that little bit of street smarts. We do not spoil the game. Our players do not feign injury for two minutes at a time, breaking up the opposition's momentum. We do not hold onto freekicks and the like until our players are booked for time wasting. Over in America, the NFL calls it 'chew clock' - running down the time in order to safely maintain a winning lead. Perhaps in England, we should attribute a similar name to this practice. Then maybe it would not feel so underhand when you see Valencia take fifteen minutes to walk off the pitch after his 'injury'.

On the subject of heartbreak, rumours have already began regarding Pochettino's own future, and it will not be soon until they are joined by whispers of Eriksen, Alli and Kane leaving this summer. We have already heard about Toby Alderweireld's impending exit, and based on the amount of game time he has been afforded since returning from injury, it seems like another Kyle Walker situation. Kyle Walker, the man who left for more wages and two trophies in his first season away from Tottenham. I wonder what message that has sent to our squad?

It has seemed to me that we were on the precipice of greatness under Pochettino, but with every crushing defeat when it matters the most, greatness feels a million miles away. For all of our fantastic football week in, week out, I find myself envious of Mourinho's ability to grind out a win in the most ugly manner. But he is a winner. And so far, Pochettino and Tottenham are not. It is not easy to maintain optimism after being let down consistently.

It hurts now, and perhaps our brilliant young squad truly is on the brink of collapse. We could lose Alderweireld and others this summer, and there is no guarantee that we can continue to replace quality with quality. Eventually, your luck will run out. Just look at Southampton's method of consistently selling their stars and losing their managers, starting again year after year. We cannot afford to lose another key defender if we do not improve across the board because of it.

But all hope is not lost yet. The majority of this squad will remain next season to see,in all likelihood, Champions League football in a fantastic new stadium - our new home. The lift that can give us will be phenomenal. While Wembley became our temporary house, it was never a home. We did not put teams to the sword as consistently as we did at White Hart Lane. With a couple of shrewd investments and the support of the new era of White Hart Lane faithful, we can come again next year. We have to be ready to fight for these trophies. Take the lack of respect we show big teams like Chelsea and United in league games and apply it to cup semi finals. This is a major dent to our collective confidences, both the players and us fans, but we can rise again.

In Pochettino we trust.