Alasdair Gold has revealed in his column for Football.London that Ryan Mason and Cristian Stellini were both angered on the touchline by the Tottenham players’ inability to use the ball well despite having a numerical advantage over Everton.
Even though Antonio Conte has departed, the game at Goodison Park was not a lot different to what we have seen from Spurs for the majority of the season, with the away side failing to control the game or create clear-cut chances.
Following the 1-1 draw, Stelllini admitted in his post-match press conference that his side should have dictated proceedings better once Abdoulaye Doucoure was sent off just before the hour mark.
The Italian and his assistant, Mason, were both quite animated on the touchline during the second half and Gold has now revealed that their frustration stemmed from the players’ struggles to draw Everton out of their shape by passing the ball around the pitch.
The journalist revealed that the pair were angered by the team’s inability to use the ball properly from Hugo Lloris’ short goal kicks.
He explains that when Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg gifted another frantically miss-hit pass to the Everton midfield, Mason reached ‘boiling point’ on the touchline.
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Gold wrote: ‘The 31-year-old was shouting at the players and at Stellini, throwing his arms outwards towards the Italian as if to suggest “why are they doing this?”‘
Spurs Web Opinion
We simply are not able to control games without a player like Bentancur in the middle of the park who can receive the ball in tight areas and make the right decisions in possession.
That has never been a strength of Hojbjerg’s as his decision-making and passing has always been very hit-and-miss.
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