Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has admitted he set his team up with the wrong tactics during their 1-0 defeat to Ajax in their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday.
The Eredivisie side dominated the game during the first half and took a deserved lead through Donny van de Beek's 15th-minute effort. A nasty head injury to Jan Vertonghen forced Spurs to change their shape, but they were unable to find a way back into the game.
FULL-TIME: van de Beek's strike hands Ajax the advantage. Work to do in the second leg.#UCL ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/pJHEIIXoHY
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) April 30, 2019
Speaking to BT Sport (via Yahoo Sport) after the game, Pochettino confessed that he deserves the blame for the defeat.
He said:
“I think it was our lack of energy from the beginning, our approach, it made our game difficult.
...still in the game @SpursOfficial. @ChampionsLeague far from over... Take it to @AFCAjax next week. #COYS....
— David Ginola (@teamginola) April 30, 2019
“In the second half we started to push them. It was an even game in the second half.
“Of course, watching now the game, I can accept it was a mistake maybe to start in the shape that we used, but we did not have too much option to play today.
“You cannot guess if we play with different shape we play in different way. I think it was our lack of energy, it was a little bit sloppy.
Source : 90min