Pochettino: Spurs will need miracle
STALEMATE: GAME WAS MAKE-OR-BREAK FOR THE TEAMS
Draw leaves us with minimum possibility to go to next stage, says coach.
Eindhoven
Mauricio Pochettino conceded Tottenham Hotspur will need little short of a miracle to get past the group stage after the Premier League giants’ Champions League hopes were dented by a 2-2 draw away to PSV Eindhoven last night.
With no points from their opening two Group B fixtures, this was make-or-break for both Spurs and PSV at the Philips Stadion.
A dominant Spurs looked to have the points wrapped up after England striker Harry Kane nodded past Jeroen Zoet to give the visitors a 55th-minute lead having seen Lucas Moura level Hirving Lozano’s 30th-minute opener for PSV minutes before the interval.
But when Lozano threatened to catch a through ball in the 78th minute, Spurs ‘keeper Hugo Lloris came rushing out of his goal and caught the Mexican winger with his knee.
The French World Cup winner was immediately shown a red card, with Spurs manager Pocchettino taking off Heung-Min Son for second-choice ‘keeper Michel Vorm.
Vorm’s first task was to push away a superb free-kick at the base of the post, only to be caught ball-watching when De Jong poked a loose ball past him with three minutes left on the clock.
It saw Spurs locked with PSV on one point in Group B.
“In the end (it was) a draw and (it leaves us) with the minimum possibility to go to the next stage of the Champions League,” Pochettino told BT Sport.
“If you score more goals, at the end you’re going to win the game. That’s why we’re so disappointed. It’s a game that you must win,” he added. –