Mauricio Pochettino suggested that Tottenham Hotspur had been unhinged by their lack of experience as their Premier League title hopes suffered a serious blow in Monday night’s 1-1 home draw with West Bromwich Albion.
Pochettino has the youngest team in the division and they have thrilled during their surprise challenge for the championship. But, after they went ahead through Craig Dawson’s own goal, they allowed another lead to slip at White Hart Lane, following those lost to Stoke City, Newcastle United and Arsenal this season.
Dawson scored the equaliser and Pochettino was left to lament his players’ inability to close out a narrow win – something that Leicester City, the league leaders, have routinely done of late. Pochettino refused to concede the title but Leicester now need only three points from their final three matches to secure the most remarkable of triumphs.
“You need to kill these games if you want to win the title,” Pochettino said. “It’s very disappointing and it’s hard but in football you have to capitalise on the experience. We need to use this experience in the future. This was a game that we must have won.
“We played very well in the first half and we spent a lot of energy when it was only 1-0. In the second half we lost a little bit of the control and allowed them to believe and create chances. When you do not kill the game, you always allow them to believe.”
The Football Association is expected to look into the off-the-ball flashpoint from the first half in which Dele Alli, the Tottenham midfielder, appeared to punch Claudio Yacob in the midriff. The referee, Mike Jones, took no action, which may open the way to a retrospective punishment. Alli claimed that he was hit twice by Yacob before he retaliated.
“You know sometimes that the opponent tries to find Dele and to provoke him, as they know that he has a strong character and he could react,” Pochettino said. “But I did not see it. I don’t know what happened. We will see on the TV. I have nothing to comment now. Dele has a strong character.”
Yacob was keen to play down the incident. The Argentinian said: “I don’t remember it. It was nothing. It stays on the pitch.”
