Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola insisted that he was not criticising his player despite taking over an hour after the final whistle to attend his press conference.
Tottenham Hotspur came away with a 2-0 victory on Sunday thanks to goals from debutant Steven Bergwijn and Son Heung-min made sure of the result after Oleksandr Zinchenko was sent off with the score at 0-0.
Having missed a first-half penalty and several guilt-edged chances to take the lead, Guardiola's frustrations were understandable as his side were once again on the wrong end of a match they had dominated for large portions.
There was confusion too, when the City boss took over 40 minutes after the full-time whistle to come out for his post-match interview with Sky Sports.
When quizzed if he spent that time pointing out the mistakes of his players during the defeat, Guardiola was defiant that his players could not be criticised.
"Never. With this performance? How can I be critical with my players with this performance?
"I was talking with my staff, with my wife and with my players," he told Sky Sports after the match.
"With this performance, it would be an incredible mistake to say how bad they are because it isn't true.
"It's not football, football, football, it's to create chances and create few. I always think a good side is when you create more than the opposition and you concede few.
"Always I've believed in this concept and you are close to winning the games. Few times this season it has happened."
