Presser points | Spurs 1-2 Newcastle | Ange Postecoglou
Sat 04 January 2025, 20:00|
Tottenham Hotspur
Ange Postecoglou spoke to the media at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after our 2-1 defeat against Newcastle in the Premier League on Saturday.
Here's what he had to say...
Ange on being proud of the players...
"Hugely proud. I’m shattered the boys didn’t get the rewards they deserved because we were outstanding, our football was outstanding against a very good opponent in good form and in a good place. I thought it was brilliant and outstanding, a game we deserved to win and on any other day we would have won."
On Brandon Austin's debut...
"He was great, everyone was great, unbelievable, considering what we had to put up with. Radu and Archie literally got off sickbeds to play today, and Radu was shattered at half-time. Brandon, obviously we found out yesterday was playing. I can’t be prouder of the players, I’m just angry and disappointed it wasn’t football that denied them getting the rewards today."
On the sickness bug that hit the squad last week...
"Radu and Archie were bed-ridden all week. Fraser, he’s still bed-ridden and struggling with it, there’s a couple of others struggling. Like I said, at half-time Radu didn’t have any more to give. On Thursday, we literally had 11 fit players for training, but I don’t care about that, what I care about is the players put in an unbelievable performance, fantastic football, created chances, denied them and having to defend strongly which we did, and it’s unfair on them more than anything else that they didn’t get the rewards today."
On leaving Yves Bissouma, James Maddison and Heung-Min Son on the bench...
"I thought we were going to need some running power and energy early on and as the game went on we would be able to use the experience of the guys who came on, and I thought it worked well. We finished really strong. We started the game really well and the only thing that stopped us in our tracks was not football. That was the whole idea about it. Guys like Sonny, Biss and Maddison to a lesser extent, they have played a lot of football and having them fresh helps them mentally as much as physically and I thought all three when they came on made a real difference for us."
On goalscorer Dominic Solanke's performance...
"Brilliant, but I think the whole team was. Considering everything we had to go through and the situation we are in right now, to put on a performance like that, I take my hat off to the players. I thought they were outstanding. I’m just really, really angry, angriest I think I have ever been in my career that they were denied the right rewards for a fantastic performance."
On having confidence we can turn our form around...
Ange: "I have never lacked confidence. I get that the results aren’t there and I get if people want to accept the situation we are in. You saw the performance of Archie, you saw Lucas today he was unbelievable as an 18-year-old to play in that position. I just see so much to be positive about, but we need to win games of football and usually when you play well, you do most things right you get the rewards."
