Ryan’s verdict on Palace: “We were good value for the win”

Ryan Mason underlined the importance of teamwork as we got back to winning ways with a hard-fought 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Harry Kane did the trick again with the winner in first half injury time, an impressive team goal that saw him switch play to Pedro Porro, then rise at the far post to meet Porro’s cross with a textbook striker’s header, down into the ground and beyond Sam Johnstone.

Milestones fell as that header hit the back of the net - Harry moved ahead of Wayne Rooney into second all-time record goalscorer in the Premier League with 209 and became the first player to score 10 headers in a Premier League campaign. It was also his century of home goals in the competition - the first player to hit three-figures home and away.

Three points were all-important though after a tough run of four matches without a win, the foundations laid by a clean sheet - our first in 10.

Acting Head Coach Ryan made a tactical tweak with Emerson Royal back from injury, one of three changes that saw us line up with five at the back without the ball, but four in possession, with Porro raiding forward down the right.

Here’s what Ryan had to say afterwards to SPURSPLAY...

‘Overall, I’m very happy’

“First of all, I’m very pleased with the three points and, secondly, with the clean sheet after the week we had previously. That’s very positive for us. It was a very difficult match, we knew it was going to be tough, Palace are in a very good moment, so to win and keep a clean sheet is a very good thing for us. Obviously, in the last five, 10 minutes, when you haven’t won in a while, there was a bit of tension, but overall, I thought we were good value for the win, and probably could have scored one more goal with Sonny in the second half but, overall, I’m very happy.”

‘It’s a great goal, a great finish’

“With our system with the ball, we were keen to try and change the play, switch it as much as possible, stretch the pitch. It was a great run from Sonny, ball into Harry, the touch, the quality and awareness, it’s what we expect from Harry, then the quality on the cross as well and the finish from a top-class striker, to head the ball into the ground on a wet day to generate more pace... it just shows what a top player we have on our hands. We understand how good Harry is and appreciate him so much, also, those connections on the pitch, knowing where your team-mates should be are the things you work on throughout the week. Harry probably played the ball blind, knowing that Pedro should be there, credit to Pedro as well, it’s a long run to receive the ball in that area and it’s a great goal, great finish.”

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‘To get results, you need to be together’

“We talked about it in the last 10 days, to get results, you need to be together in every moment and, naturally, attacking players will score more goals and get all the plaudits from an attacking point of view, but when you work as a team, you work for each other and show you are committed to each other. I think the fans appreciate that, when you see the likes of Sonny, Harry, Richy, players of their stature, tracking back, recovering, fighting for the team, that’s what we want to see.”

‘I thought we could see a difference today’

“I’m very aware of it, I was a player here, I always felt what it was like to play here with our fans, the Club has a history, a certain expectation but, for me, I’m realistic as well and when you don’t have time to change too much, it’s about trying to stimulate the players and create a new feeling for everyone in the stadium - players, fans, everyone. It’s also hard to change too much but, listen, I thought we could see a difference today... we certainly felt a difference. The training week has been good and, ultimately, we’re here to win games of football and we did that.”

More - Ryan on SPURSPLAY