Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has made the brash claim that his team’s deserved to win in their 2-1 defeat to Inter Milan on Tuesday and that it was their best performance of the season.
Spurs crashed to their third defeat in a row in all competitions, the first time that such a run of form has happened under the Argentine, but Pochettino was pleased with the display nonetheless, making the surprising claim that it was the best performance the fans have witnessed so far.
“I think the performance was good from the team. I think in the end the result should be different. Everyone would agree with me,” he told the Daily Star.
“I am happy with the performance but unhappy with the result. We did not take the chances and kill off the game. For me it was the best performance that we’ve had from the beginning of the season.”
OPINION
This sounds pretty bizarre coming from Pochettino after another high profile loss, but Tottenham did actually play OK against Inter. They were in control of proceedings for the majority of the game, but were undone by a lack of composure at the end. This inability to close games out is becoming something of a pattern for Pochettino’s men, and they’re starting to get the reputation of chokers. Tuesday’s collapse was all too reminiscent of last year’s embarrassing Champions League exit at the hands of Juventus. Spurs seemed to have that encounter in the bag as well, but somehow contrived to suffer defeat against a different Italian outfit. It’s disappointing because there is so much talent in this Tottenham team, they simply seem to have a mental block. While they did perform well for the most past at the San Siro, it’s hard to agree with Pochettino that it was a better performance than their victory over Manchester United last month, for example.