Tottenham 2 Arsenal 2: Mauricio Pochettino frustrated by Spurs’ lack of killer touch

The Argentinian saw his side surrender a 2-1 lead with 14 minutes to go against the 10-man Gunners

Jack Pitt-Brooke
White Hart Lane
Saturday 05 March 2016 15:14 EST
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Mauricio Pochettino watches on during Tottenham's 2-2 draw with Arsenal
Mauricio Pochettino watches on during Tottenham's 2-2 draw with Arsenal (Getty Images)

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Mauricio Pochettino was left “disappointed and frustrated” yesterday at Tottenham Hotspur’s failure to hold on and beat Arsenal yesterday, with the Argentine head coach admitting he was with the 2-2 draw at White Hart Lane.

With 14 minutes to go, Spurs were 2-1 up, against 10 men, and set to go top of the Premier League before Leicester City’s late kick-off. But Alexis Sanchez equalised for the visitors, leaving Spurs stranded in second.

“You feel a little bit disappointed and frustrated,” Pochettino admitted. “With 11 v 10, when you turn the game, you need to keep hold of that. We are still improving and need to move forward. The feeling is that we missed a big opportunity, but we need to stay positive.”

Pochettino denied, though, that his team threw the game away because of their inexperience. “It is not about maturity, not about character,” he insisted. “I can give you lots of examples of big clubs with experienced players who concede goals in the last minute. Any team can concede a goal like this.”

Arsène Wenger was “happy and proud” with how Arsenal fought for the draw and “refused to lose the game” despite Francis Coquelin’s dismissal. Wenger insisted that Spurs’ Eric Dier should also have seen red, having pulled back Olivier Giroud when already booked.

“I cannot complain about Coquelin,” Wenger said. “I can complain that Dier was not sent off. I could not understand that. [Referee Michael Oliver] looked ruthless with us and different with Tottenham.”

Wenger said that referees should have to justify their decisions post-match, as managers are. “I did not see a reason for [the Dier decision],” he said. “Referees should come into the press conference after the game as well. We are questioned, they should be questioned as well.”

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