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Football London
Football London
Sport
Lee Wilmot

Long ball team? Pep Guardiola delivers baffling assessment of Tottenham's style of football

Tottenham were deserving winners over Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

Although City boss Pep Guardiola did not entirely agree.

City may have had more possession at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as they do in most stadiums they go to, but they did not do a lot with it.

Tottenham pressed City from minute one, hassling and harrying their opponents off the ball, not letting the Champions League favourites settle.

And it worked.

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Mauricio Pochettino got his tactics spot on and they might have won the leg by more than the solitary goal given them by Son Heung-min late on.

It was always going to be a fast-paced, open, attacking game, between two side who like to get the ball down and play.

Heung-Min Son of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates after scoring his team's first goal (Getty Images)

But in defending his team selection - Kevin de Bruyne and Leroy Sane were left on the bench until the 89th minute - and his team's display, Guardiola gave an assessment of Tottenham's style of play that will leave the Spurs fans scratching their heads.

The phrase "long ball" was used more than once during the Spaniard's post-match press conference - not a term oft used to describe Pochettino's Spurs.

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Guardiola said: "They have a lot of players, they’re a big club. They have Dele Alli, Son [Heung-min], they can play five at the back, they have alternatives [to Harry Kane] so we will see. [Fernando] Llorente is always dangerous with the long ball. We will see what they do.

"I know how well they play long balls and get second balls, I know how good they are when they regain the ball, they immediately attack you, they’re a team that doesn’t play too much, they play more in the transition, more of the long balls, because they are physically so strong."

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