"It was the players' personal mistakes."
Football London reported on the 14th (Korean time) the press conference remarks of manager Ang Postecoglou (60) after the match against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Postecoglou noted that all four goals allowed were due to individual player issues.
Tottenham Hotspur lost 2-4 in the Premier League round 32 match against Wolverhampton held at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, on the 13th.
With this result, Tottenham failed to gain points and maintained 37 points (11 wins, 4 draws, 17 losses), placing 15th in the league. Wolverhampton secured 35 points (10 wins, 5 draws, 17 losses) and temporarily moved up to 16th. Additionally, they extended their winning streak to four games, gaining momentum.
Tottenham started with a 4-3-3 formation. Matheus Tete, Dominic Solanke, and Brennan Johnson were positioned at the front, while James Maddison, Pape Sarr, and Yves Bissouma filled the midfield. Jed Spence, Ben Davies, Cristian Romero, and Archie Gray made up the back four, and Guglielmo Vicario guarded the goal. Son Heung-min was left out due to a foot injury.
Wolverhampton employed a 3-4-3 formation. Jürgen Strand Larsen took the front position, while Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Marçal Munetsi played in the attacking midfield. Rayan Ait Nouri, André, João Gomes, and Nelson Semedo managed the midfield, and Toti Gomes, Emmanuel Agbadou, and Matt Doherty formed the back three. The goalkeeper's gloves were worn by Taxes. Hwang Hee-chan was on the bench.
In the 2nd minute of the first half, Rayan Ait Nouri scored the opening goal in a chaotic free-kick situation, and in the 38th minute, a header by Munetsi was deflected by Vicario, which resulted in an own goal by Jed Spence.
Tottenham responded with a goal from Tete in the 14th minute of the second half and a goal from Richarlison in the 40th minute, but they failed to close the gap as they conceded goals to Larsen and Cunha. Particularly, the scene where Cunha scored in the 41st minute was severely impacted by a mistake from Bervival.
The match concluded with Tottenham suffering a 2-4 defeat. Tottenham has only managed one win in their last six league games, falling into a deep slump.
The reason Son Heung-min was completely absent from the lineup that day was due to injury. Tottenham is set to face Eintracht Frankfurt in the UEFA Europa League second leg on the 18th, and Son's absence from the lineup appeared to be a simple rotation for this match. However, manager Ang Postecoglou explained in a pre-match interview, "Son Heung-min has potentially sustained a foot injury. So, we are being cautious."
After the match, Postecoglou remarked about the game against Wolverhampton, "It was a bit different. The goals we allowed were not due to lack of concentration but rather players' personal mistakes. It was a rare situation for our team, but those kinds of mistakes emerged in this game, and we ultimately paid the price. When such situations arise, obtaining results becomes very difficult."
He added, "That doesn't mean they did it on purpose. In particular, the two players who made mistakes are usually very reliable in such situations. However, this game was compounded by several unusual circumstances, which significantly affected the result."
Postecoglou stated that he still trusts goalkeeper Vicario, who conceded four goals. He said, "My trust in Vicario is 100%. Of course, we made several individual mistakes, which is uncommon for our team. However, all those mistakes occurred in one game, and ultimately, we had to pay the price for them."
He expressed, "I believe the players have not mentally succumbed. The match against Frankfurt is extremely important for us. In the first leg against Frankfurt, we played well and should have essentially won. If we play our style of football like that day, we can significantly impact our opponents," vowing for victory in the second leg.
He continued, "I will focus on recovery physically and mentally, ensuring that the players can maintain good condition. I believe that resting some players in this match will help for the Frankfurt game as well."
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