Postecoglou bemoans the same mistakes haunting Tottenham Hotspur

Speaking in the post-match press conference (via tottenhamhotspur.com), Postecoglou criticised Tottenham for making the same mistakes against Nottingham despite playing outstanding football. He said:

“It’s another game we have lost where we shouldn’t lose and it’s been a big part of our season in that we are just making things really difficult for ourselves in key moments, just a little bit of concentration, giving away poor goals. It’s a shame because our football was outstanding and we totally dominated the game. Even with the two goals we conceded I still feel like we deserved to win the game. At the same time, it’s another loss and another unacceptable loss. For us it’s just been a season where at times, even with the challenges we have had and we have had challenges today have to make changes to the team, but it’s really frustrating because our football was so good. We have lost another game.”

Nottingham secured a 5th-minute lead through Elliot Anderson after Spurs half-cleared the ball while defending a corner against the visitors. Anderson’s shot also took a nick off defensive midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur before beating Guglielmo Vicario completely for the opening goal.

The Lilywhites conceded the second goal in the 16^th minute when Vicario failed to collect a cross from Anthony Elanga. Chris Woods won the header ahead of Vicario to glide the ball into an empty net and secure an advantage.

Spurs scored a goal in the 87^th minute after Pedro Porro’s impeccable cross received a well-deserved end-product from Richardlison. Unfortunately, Tottenham failed to have enough time to score an equaliser despite their continuous probing throughout the game.

Postecoglou’s men dominated 70% of the possession during the game, with four big chances which they missed. Furthermore, Spurs had 22 shots with only six on target compared to Nottingham’s four shots with three on target.

The overall stats back Postecoglou’s comment during the post-match press conference, but the Tottenham boss needs to accept his role in the overall situation. Many Spurs fans have regularly highlighted the poor defensive performance under the Australian coach, which never improved despite key players’ return from injuries.