In what was a real test of title credentials for Mauricio Pochettino’s men, they fell short as Liverpool ran riot and a brace from Sadio Mane was enough to beat the men from London. Tottenham looked set to buck the trend of not winning against Liverpool off late but they started the game poorly and the manager was not happy about the result of performance.
Tottenham were unbeaten in their last nine games before facing a Liverpool side that had not won a league game in 2017. The Reds had fallen out of contention for the title but the loss meant that Pochettino’s side could not close the gap on Chelsea at the top of the table.
Speaking to the press after the game, the Argentine gave a damning verdict for his team and even labelled them as “sloppy”.
As quoted by Sky Sports, Pochettino said:
“They were better than us and fully deserved to win. We started the game very sloppy.”
“They were better than us and fully deserved to win. We started the game very sloppy.”
The Argentine further added that he was unsure as to why the London side were poor in the first half.
“It is difficult to understand. I am very disappointed in our first-half display. Second half we reached their level, but it is really late.
“The whole team were poor. It is about balance and today it was poor. That is the truth. We are in a position that is up to us.
“But if you show like today that you cannot cope with the pressure to play to win the league, then it is difficult to challenge and fight for the Premier League.
“In the first 45 minutes you saw a team that is not ready to fight for the Premier League.”
Pochettino did concede the title more or less and is looking forward to a battle for the top six.
“We need to show more. In the end we will fight for the top six, but it’s difficult to fight for the Premier League.”
While the win was an important one for Liverpool it further raised questions about Tottenham succumbing to playing against the top sides away from home. This wasn’t the first time that the men in white failed to perform away from home and maybe it is a question about mentality more than anything else.
If Tottenham do want to win the Premier League under Pochettino, they will have to win games away from home against the big sides. For now, it doesn’t seem likely they will lift the title but they do have a good chance of glory in the Europa League and FA Cup.