Tottenham captain Micky van de Ven has conceded that Spurs fell short in their defeat to Aston Villa, saying parts of the team’s display were unacceptable.
The 25-year-old defender said going a goal down while the team was briefly a man short made things harder. He had left the pitch for treatment on a cut beneath his eye when Villa struck: Johan Manzambi’s shot took a deflection off Boubacar Kamara’s effort and beat Antonin Kinsky.
Van de Ven told TNT Sports that Spurs were impressive in the first half and created plenty of chances, but that the second half was well below standard and the way they conceded was poor. He said he wanted to watch the game back before saying more, but some of what happened was unacceptable and needs to improve. He added that the squad must stay positive, even though the international break makes the moment tough, and get back to work when they return.
Tottenham did score their first Premier League goals of the season, netting twice late on to raise hopes of a comeback, but it wasn’t enough. It was their third loss of the campaign and leaves them second from bottom. They could drop to last if Fulham avoid defeat against Manchester United on Sunday, which adds to the pressure on Roberto De Zerbi heading into the break.
De Zerbi was particularly annoyed at how the first goal came about. He said he didn’t want to dwell on a first half his side dominated, when they created more chances and played well. His concern was conceding while down to ten men for only about a minute. He said the team should have been more solid, communicated better and defended compactly.
He explained that during Van de Ven’s absence he moved Rodrigo Bentancur to centre-back and Mateus Fernandes into midfield. In his view, a team that can cope with a red card for 40, 60 or 70 minutes should be able to handle one minute a man down.
He was also unhappy that a Mohammed Kudus goal was ruled out for offside, and then that Spurs conceded from a long goal kick and a long ball. He wondered whether some players ran out of energy, but called that goal unacceptable. He said the squad had prepared for exactly this, because Villa are playing 86% more long balls than last season, and it had been discussed in several meetings over the previous two days.
The result reminded him of the earlier defeat to Newcastle United, where Spurs started well, were fine for about an hour, and then lost control. He accepted responsibility, saying he wouldn’t walk away without owning it.
De Zerbi added that his players must learn to cope when a match isn’t about possession and attacking in the final third, because no team can play 90 minutes there with an opponent on the pitch. He described Villa as a good side with good players, and said that when Spurs have to defend they must do so compactly, with the senior players leading the team.
