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Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino was disappointed by his side’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, a match that saw Marcos Alonso score two goals, including the match winner in the 88th minute. However, he said in post match comments to the press that he was pleased with his team’s overall performance against a very good Chelsea team.
“I’m not frustrated. I’m disappointed. I think the performance was good. We were the team that created the most chances. We weren’t clinical in front of the goal. For us it was difficult to score.
“There is nothing to say about the tactics or performance. We were much better than Chelsea. It was clear that the idea of Chelsea was to counter-attack.
“We were unlucky and I am of course disappointed with the result, but not with the performance. I’m pleased with the players.”
Poch and the Spurs squad probably has a right to be frustrated. They owned an 18-9 advantage in shots, which included a 6-2 advantage in shots on target. Spurs played very well over portions of the match and on another day could have picked up a result or even a win.
Pochettino also too issue with the press inquiring about the size of the pitch at Wembley, doing his best to shut down that narrative line.
“[The Wembley narrative] doesn’t affect me, but I understand we have to talk. The reason we lose the game is not that. I think the team played really well. It’s not fair to blame Wembley. For me it’s one of the best places in the world...
“Please we need to stop [talking about the pitch]. If you watch the game again, Wembley was not the problem or the size of the pitch. We struggled to score. Sometimes you have to accept that. The opportunities we created. There’s a lot of games to play. Be sure we will win a lot of games in the future.”
Spurs will have a great opportunity to rebound at England’s national stadium. Their next two home matches are against Burnley next weekend (in what looks like a sold-out Wembley), and against Swansea on September 16.