After the pain, Pochettino and Spurs look to the next steps forward

A debut appearance in the Champions League final and a top four finish in the Premier League is a scenario most Tottenham Hotspur fans would have happily signed up to, if offered prior to this season.Yet, after Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to Liverpool, there was a sense that Spurs had perhaps missed a chance to write a truly memorable chapter in their club’s history.During the journey to Madrid, Spurs, who struggled in the group stage, eliminated Borussia Dortmund, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City and the exciting Ajax Amsterdam.But Liverpool took the glory with their sixth European Cup but they were significantly below their usual high standards and Spurs created the better chances, despite also being some way below par.“It’s hard to take the positives right now but over time, players, staff and fans, when we look back at the journey together... this isn’t the end,” said Spurs midfielder Dele Alli.“We have to keep working, keep improving and take the feeling we have now of disappointment, that hurt and use it to drive us on,” he added.Certainly there is nothing to suggest any finality to the growth of Spurs under their Argentine manager Mauricio Pochettino but where exactly do Tottenham go from here?With no new signings and the added complication of a move to a new home stadium, this year could easily have been written off as a season of transition for the North London club. Instead it has been a period of raising hopes and opening up new possibilities.Pochettino drew comparison with the progress that Liverpool have made under Klopp in the past four years.“We’ve been playing against a team that three or four years ago was being designed to reach finals, not necessarily to win them, but to get to them,” said Pochettino.“We are a team that has priorities that is shared with the stadium. We looked at the quality of our players in the final but it would have been incredible to win today and lift the trophy.”