Postecoglou reacts to 3-4 defeat to Chelsea

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Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou reacts to 3-4 defeat to Chelsea  08/12/2024  Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium, London, UK

Transcript

00:00Was that just about key moments of concentration?

00:06Yeah, obviously it's a painful one because we started the game really well obviously,

00:13not just the goals we scored, the way we were playing,

00:16really in control of the game and we had some really good opportunities apart from two goals.

00:22Then you lose Christian after the second goal, which is just the way our season has gone.

00:27But everything sort of runs smoothly and they obviously capitalise on it.

00:33By the time we sort of settle back down they score,

00:35but I still felt in the first half we had the better moments to get a third goal,

00:39a couple of key ones.

00:42In the second half they came out and obviously put us under a bit of pressure,

00:46but I felt we were handling it not too badly when they score.

00:51We then have a big moment to go 3-2 up

00:55and in these kind of games those kind of moments are important.

01:01We don't take it and then both penalties were poor on our behalf.

01:05It's kind of self-inflicted and unnecessary challenges

01:08and you're kind of giving them two goals away for no reason

01:12and you give yourself a mountain to climb, which proved too hard.

01:16What was good about those three potential injuries, Romero, Van der Beek and Johnson?

01:20Yeah, Romero was just obviously hugely disappointing.

01:23He felt something in his quad.

01:25He trained really well, he wasn't the one I was worried about to be honest.

01:29But it's just the way the season's going for us unfortunately,

01:32so we'll just have to wait and see.

01:35Brennan just didn't feel well.

01:37He didn't feel well at half-time but he wanted to give it a go,

01:40but he just wasn't feeling 100% so we had to sort of take him off.

01:44The plan was always for Mickie to play 60-70 today.

01:47I thought Romero would be okay to play 90 but Mickie probably 60-70,

01:52so we were always going to take him off.

01:55He didn't feel anything significant, he just felt tightness,

01:58but we were always going to take him off anyway.

02:01Did you gamble at all with the two centre-backs in particular?

02:05Because obviously they weren't there and then some of the other ends didn't matter.

02:09No, like I said, Romero, it's not like he re-injured the same thing.

02:12It's a totally different injury.

02:15They're also people I'm sure are aware of our situation.

02:19It's not like I've got a multitude of options there,

02:22so you've got to make these decisions.

02:25Both players trained and trained well.

02:30And look, they both want to help,

02:32so you make these decisions with all the best information.

02:36Like I said, it's not like Romero re-injured his toe.

02:39It's a totally different injury which could happen at any time.

02:43Some people say maybe this defeat has come in the most damaging way possible

02:47to the team of the Panthers and players.

02:49How have you seen them overcome the challenge that much?

02:53Oh, look, every sort of challenge you have is one you need to overcome.

03:00Ultimately, the pain of the defeat today, for me anyway,

03:12doesn't diminish that we also played very well against a top team at times.

03:16Look, the better side.

03:18So I always kind of look for that in terms of our growth.

03:24Like I said, it was disappointing that we worked awfully hard,

03:28but to give away two goals,

03:30when you give away two penalties unnecessarily,

03:34you're against a quality side anyway.

03:38It makes things very difficult for yourself.

03:42How does it feel to meet with Moses

03:44and say that it was a tough win in the first half for New York City

03:46that won the penalty in the second half?

03:50Oh, look, I think it's kind of where we're at

03:52with the current state of football

03:55where people are just frozen to make big decisions.

03:58I think referees don't want to make them because they'll go to VAR.

04:01VAR doesn't want to intervene because they think it's so –

04:05you're kind of left in no-man's land.

04:08There was a couple of decisions I thought today

04:10that definitely went against us.

04:12I thought Lyons would put his flag up for –

04:15bizarrely for Deke when he was through.

04:17I don't know what for.

04:19So, yeah, but they're things that are out of our control.

04:21We can't do anything about that.

04:23Hopefully, the powers that be sort of work that out.

04:29Frustrating, is it, for you to have a loser under control?

04:32Yeah, it's just the space we're in at the moment.

04:37Like I said, we just don't seem to get that sort of ability

04:46to just gain some traction every time we seem to.

04:50Something comes along and disrupts us.

04:54People keep referring to City game,

04:56but we lost Vic straight afterwards for three months.

04:59So it seems like we're just not able to do that.

05:03But like I said, they're uncontrollables.

05:05Our goal is to try and maintain the course of the things we can control

05:09and keep sort of making sure we're focused on continuing to grow as a team.

05:18I always feel with these things that at some point they even themselves out

05:24and if you do the right things, they'll come back to you.

05:29When you said a couple of decisions didn't go your way,

05:33were you surprised that that's not the case?

05:36Yeah, that's what I was talking about.

05:38But like I said, that's kind of where we're at.

05:44I just don't think – I've said it before – that technology has helped our game.

05:51I just don't see how it helps,

05:53because it means instead of one person being in control of a game

05:58and you're kind of accepting that,

06:00it almost feels like no one's in control

06:03because everyone's scared to make a decision to overturn somebody else.

06:08Referees are scared to make a decision

06:10because in case they get it wrong, VAR don't want to intervene,

06:13which I get that because they don't want disruptions to the game.

06:16So you've just got to cop it.

06:18When you talk about momentum, just finding that consistency,

06:24because it's difficult to – I know you've got injuries,

06:28but it's difficult to play off certain parts of today's game

06:31against other performances.

06:33Yeah, but that's what I mean.

06:34Every time we have sort of seemed like we're on solid footing,

06:39something has come along

06:41and sort of become an impediment for us to do that.

06:47It's just the way our season's gone so far.

06:50I've had to say it went down like that last year.

06:52It's not like since I've been in this unusual territory,

06:56but ultimately, as I said,

06:59my role in that is to focus on the things I can control

07:02and keep preparing the team the best we can

07:05to keep progressing as a football team and turn our season around.

07:12Just confidence and belief among the players

07:15because of the finish you made today?

07:20When I look at today's performance,

07:21I don't see them lacking confidence or belief.

07:24I think it's probably the other way where I think both penalties we conceded

07:30were born out of desperation.

07:32I think they're desperate to kind of turn our season around

07:35and are really disappointed with the way it's gone.

07:37When you're in that mode,

07:38you kind of lose that sort of composure and discipline you need.

07:42It's not like we're hanging on in games.

07:46We wouldn't play like we did today

07:48if there was lack of belief or confidence.

07:50I just think when you get into this kind of situation we're in,

07:55there's also this sense of desperation from the players

07:58and I thought that cost us today.

08:00I also felt even at 2-0 there was a bit of a tension in the crowd

08:05in the middle of the winning.

08:06I just wondered whether that transfers to the team?

08:09Look, fair play to them.

08:11I thought the crowd were good today.

08:12I thought they got behind the team.

08:17But I guess when the season's gone, as it has for us,

08:21and then like I said, at 2-0 to lose your centre-back,

08:26it does disrupt you.

08:29It's not like you started the game so well you have to make a substitution,

08:33which means you're hampered in making substitutions in the second half.

08:38All these things come along and you just go,

08:40here we go, another challenge for us.

08:42Nothing's really running smoothly.

08:44The crowd probably senses that as well.

08:47Like I said, it almost becomes a bit of a self-fulfilling thing

08:50where you're almost expecting things to go wrong.

08:53Dave, final one, please.

08:54Just to say, actually, you touched on it before,

08:56but this is uncharted territory for you as a manager.

08:59Can you sort of, I don't know, turn the focus inward?

09:02How do you sort of, A, stop everyone feeling sorry for themselves

09:05because everything's going against you,

09:07and B, process it, maybe try it in practice?

09:10Yeah, look, I don't sense anyone's feeling sorry for themselves.

09:14But, yeah, look, it's a tough moment because you're kind of,

09:22there are all these tools you could possibly use as a manager

09:25when you're going through tough moments to sort of turn things around.

09:32Our limited sort of resources from a playing perspective at the moment

09:35doesn't allow us to do that, so you've got to find other ways.

09:38I mean, it's not through a lack of effort.

09:40I mean, the players who are constantly out there because we can't rotate

09:44are giving everything they can,

09:45but it also kind of diminishes performance as well

09:49because they probably need a rest, but we can't give them a rest.

09:53But, you know, I think it's just something we need to kind of tackle head on

09:58and keep pushing on.

10:00There's still plenty sort of to play for for us in terms of,

10:05between now and January, just to make sure that we keep performing.

10:10I think I still sense within this squad there's a real kind of conviction

10:17in what we're doing, and if we maintain that, then we'll turn our season around.

10:23And like I said, hopefully at some point we hit some smoother waters

10:27just in terms of some of the things that are happening at the moment.

10:31Yeah, some of it's self-inflicted,

10:33but hopefully we can get some more consistency.

10:37Thanks.

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