Jose Mourinho admits Tottenham Hotspur paid the price for being unable to “kill” Liverpool – and claimed Jurgen Klopp is being given preferential treatment by officials.
Roberto Firmino’s 90th-minute winner earned the Reds a 2-1 win on Wednesday night as they leapfrogged the Londoners to move three points clear at the Premier League summit.
Mohamed Salah’s first-half opener had been cancelled out by Heung-Min Son in a game the Reds dominated with 74% possession and 11 shots on target.
Tottenham, though, wasted two gilt-edged chances in the second half when Steven Bergwijn hit the post when clean through and Harry Kane sent a free header over the bar from a corner.
And Mourinho said: “We deserved more, of course. Even a draw would have left us not with the best taste because we had them there to win it.
“It was not just about the big chances, it was the moment of the big chances and the moment was when they were in trouble in their worst moment and we had it there to kill it but we missed it.
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“Normally in matches at this level, you pay for it. I thought we were going to pay just by taking a point but in the end we didn’t get that it was very disappointing.”
Mourinho appeared unhappy with Klopp after the final whistle with the Liverpool boss having been ecstatic on the touchline at Firmino’s late winner.
And the Tottenham manager later suggested his Anfield counterpart is allowed to behave in a manner he would not.
“Everything is fine between us,” said Mourinho. “The referees let him behave the way he does.
“It's not my problem. I feel sad for it because I can not do it but it's just the way it is.”
Reflecting on only his team’s second Premier League loss of the season, Mourinho added: “I’m happy with the team. I’m happy with our proposal of going into every game to win.
“In such a difficult game against such a good team, the boys were very good. But we were punished.
“We had to kill the game. We were in the face of their keeper a few times. Bergwijn was face-to-face with the keeper twice, Harry was there with the header, we had it, we knew how to hurt them and we should do much more than we did.”
