Tottenham Hotspur fans will be the far happier supporters coming away from the Etihad tonight, as Ange Postecoglou’s men snatched a point in an entertaining 3-3 draw. The manager has been speaking after the game about the way his side hung on, and the team he wants Spurs to be.
Ange Postecoglou went into the game against Manchester City today having to deal with a growing injury list, and his top centre-back, Cristian Romero, still out due to a suspension. Still, speaking before the game, the Australian insisted he would not change his ways.
He is true to his word, too, as his Tottenham side well and truly went for it against the Premier League champions, despite the odds being against them from the start.
Spurs took the lead early on thanks to a Heung-min Son goal, but the skipper then turned the ball into his own net moments later. City went in at half-time in the lead, after Phil Foden rounded off a lovely move by Pep Guardiola’s side.
But, in the second half, Tottenham nullified the threat of City and got themselves back in the game through a Giovani Lo Celso goal. Ten minutes later, City had the lead once more through Jack Grealish, but Spurs did not stop battling, and got their reward when Dejan Kulusevski prodded the ball home on the stroke of 90 minutes.
(Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
Postecoglou knows Spurs have more to give
In his post match interview with Sky Sports (3/12/23 at 6:30pm), Postecoglou discussed his approach to the game and how important it was not to fold and change the system.
He said: “We weren’t anywhere near the the level of our standards and City will do that to you, they are unbelievable. They put pressure on you and haven’t lost too many games here at the Etihad. Second half we had more belief in ourselves and the team we want to be and we clawed our way back into the game.”
On the character his players showed, he added: “It has been there all year, the last few results have hidden that a little but we are at the bare bones a little bit. I have asked players to play in unfamiliar positions but we have still played some decent football.
“I think the character has been there all year but we certainly needed it today. City are an unbelievable team and there are times where you just have to hang on like we did today.”
Despite a tricky first half, Postecoglou believes his side got what they deserved though, saying: “It was an entertaining game, plenty in it. We were lucky to be in it by half-time, City could have blown us away in that period, a bit similar to what happened to us against Villa last week.
“We hung in there, second half were a lot better, a lot more control and a lot more belief in the team. We got our reward for that which is great for the lads.”
Spurs Web Opinion
One thing’s for sure, watching Spurs is never dull these days. A brilliant game for the neutral, and ultimately, a decent result for an injury-plagued Spurs side. Ange and the players have to be commended for just going for it, which is exactly the kind of bravery and commitment we want as fans.
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