Tottenham defeated Manchester City 2-1 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to hand the visitors their first defeat this season and advance to the Carabao Cup quarterfinals. Amid the jubilation, coach Ange Postecoglou spoke to the significance of the victory. "Yes, it was an important win," he said. "Obviously, in cup competitions, you have to win to stay in, so that's the first thing. Look, you're up against an incredible team, and they're going to ask you all kinds of questions."
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There, Ange pointed at the challenge of being in front of Manchester City and how every move from Spurs was thoughtfully prepared to resist the fierce attack of their opponent.
Clever Defence: How Tottenham Stopped City
Spurs, with their incisive and disciplined backline, denied City clear-cut chances, and the team of Guardiola had to look elsewhere for a breakthrough. Postecoglou praised the approach of his players: "I thought we defended well; we didn't give away many clear chances. We had to defend, and I thought we did that well.
Spurs were able to resist all the pressure from City with great patience and organization. "When you play against City, they're going to throw every question there is at you, and for the most part, I thought we handled that well," he said. Tottenham thus resisted the heavy onslaught of City and converted their few chances to make sure of a victory.
Timo Werner: Confidence Back, Decisive Goal
Another big talking point was Timo Werner, who scored his first in a while after his lean period. "Yes, a lot," said the forward about how much finding the back of the net again meant for him. He added, "The crowd didn't say, 'Finally he did it.' It was more of a relief for them toward me. They were like, 'Yes, we saw he'd do it one day,' and finally I could deliver.".
Werner said this goal had been the product of a very specific plan. "When I saw us breaking down the right side, I wanted to get to that area as quickly as possible, because that's exactly what the coach said before the game," he said. Through tough weeks, Werner never lost sight of where he was going. The shot felt a lot more confident, and yes, I wanted to score that goal," he explained, showing some of the mental toughness of a player who knows what he's after.
Persistence and Hard Work: Werner's Philosophy
Despite his struggles, Werner really does believe in being ever-ready. "Honestly, when you are a forward and you're not scoring, you think a lot in front of the goal, but I never think about making the runs to get into position," he said. And he added, "I think it'd be stupid to stop making those runs just because of a fear of not scoring."
It is this consistency and belief in his skills that speaks directly to Werner's philosophy and parallels Tottenham's mentality as a team. Sharp, taking advantage of every opportunity, not yielding-this is the signature of this Tottenham team now growing under the management of Postecoglou.
Postecoglou's Contribution to Changing Tottenham
Still, Postecoglou made it quick to mention that the win against City didn't change anything in a big way. "I'm not going to make big steps forward or backward. We're the same team we were three days ago," said the coach, affirming that the development of his team was gradual.
"I've seen progress, and I'll continue to see it, but we'll have stumbles along the way," he added. For him, though, it is all about focus in the long term. "We'll just keep working on what we've been doing and keep believing in the process of what we're trying to build," Postecoglou said.
That journey is fuelled by Tottenham's victory over City, yet, as Postecoglou reminded them, it is a long path and every step is necessary to their vision for the future.