Ange Postecoglou was quick to point out that Tottenham maintained “good control” during the game, although critical moments didn’t go their way as Manchester City clinched a 2-0 victory in the Premier League at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Tuesday night.
The data supports this view – as Spurs dominated in possession (53%), made more passes (541 to 476), and took more shots (10-8). However, the crucial stat was that Erling Haaland secured the win for the visitors with a straightforward tap-in from Kevin de Bruyne’s cross at the 51-minute mark, followed by a late penalty that cemented the final score at 2-0.
Despite opportunities to equalize after City’s first goal, both Dejan Kulusevski and Heung-Min Son saw their efforts stopped by substitute goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, who came on for the injured EdersonEderson at the 69-minute mark.
This outcome pushed City back to the top of the Premier League standings just before the final weekend. Meanwhile, Tottenham’s chances of overtaking Villa for fourth place have vanished – as they now need at least a draw in our last match against Sheffield United on Sunday to secure fifth place and qualify for the Europa League.
Postecoglu reflects on disappointing result against City
Speaking to the club’s social media channel, Ange reflected: “It’s a disappointing result, a tight game decided by big moments that they took, and we didn’t, so, disappointing. They didn’t dominate in areas they normally dominate. We had good control of the game for the most part, limited their opportunities, and had some good moments ourselves.”
“The first goal was disappointing, because there was a lack of discipline there, but after that we had two or three big chances to get back into the game, and you have to take them against opposition like City. You’re not going to create a bag full of chances against City and when they come, you have to take them.”
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Ange added: “Big moments for both teams which they capitalised on, and we didn’t. That sort of brought the outcome that happened.”
“I don’t think they dominated us at any point. Probably towards the end we opened up a bit to try to equalise but up until the first goal, we were well in the game and in some areas, I thought we were dominant. Ultimately, if you want to win those games, you’ve got to take the big moments. You’ve got to be disciplined and it’s fair to say it’s one of the areas we have let ourselves down in all year, not capitalising on big moments and lacking in discipline.”
Spurs will now look to end their season on a high when they take on Sheffield United in their final game of the Premier League season on Sunday.
