We won’t throw in the towel 1 1
DUSK had just descended on Turf Moor when a ray of light shone on Tottenham’s dark season.
Time will tell how significant Jose Mourinho’s side’s second-half fightback will be but, after feeling like they have gone 12 rounds in the ring against Tyson Fury in recent weeks, it was a much-needed lift. Spurs were battered in the first 45 minutes and were set for a fifth straight loss when they trailed to Chris Wood’s opener at the break. Mourinho’s response was to rip up his 3-4-3 formation that had too many square pegs in round holes and switch to a flat back four. He hauled off Tanguy Ndombele and Oliver Skipp and brought on Giovani Lo Celso and Lucas Moura.
Lo Celso’s direct running helped invigorate Spurs and they levelled when makeshift striker Dele Alli scored his 50th league goal from the penalty spot.
Skipper Hugo Lloris was partially to blame for Burnley’s goal when he spilled Jay Rodriguez’s shot, allowing Wood to score.And he was heartened Spurs have stopped the rot ahead of tomorrow’s Champions League clash with RB Leipzig, which they go in to trailing 1-0 from the first leg. He said: “We have to be ready to go there and make the perfect game.
“We could talk for many hours about what happened [on Saturday], but we have to show more.
“We have to stay positive and in the second half we could have won it. I don’t know what’s going to happen between now and the end of the season, but we have to keep faith.”
Tottenham are outsiders to qualify for the Champions League for a fifth consecutive season in a campaign that has been distinctly underwhelming.
They have won 11 and lost 10 of their 29 league games, and Lloris admitted: “We’ve had a very difficult season. We had a bad start, a new manager, a lot of injured players and you can feel things are against us.
“You can see players fighting and giving their best, but the confidence is not right up there.”
BURNLEY (4-4-2): Pope 6; Bardsley 6, Tarkowski 7, Mee 6, Taylor 7; Hendrick 6 (Lennon 89), Cork 7, Westwood 7, McNeil 8; Wood 7, Rodriguez 6 (Vydra 68, 6). Goal: Wood 13. TOTTENHAM (3-4-3): Lloris 6; Sanchez 6, Dier 7, Alderweireld 5; Vertonghen 6, Skipp 5 (Moura 46, 7), Ndombele 4 (Lo Celso 46, 8), Tanganga 6; Lamela 7 (Aurier 78, 6), Alli 7, Bergwijn 6. Goal: Ali 50.
JONNY EVANS admits the pain of Leicester’s heartbreaking Carabao Cup semi-final loss to Aston Villa will never leave the Foxes’ stars.
But he has urged the team’s youngsters to use the experience to fire them up for the rest of the season – and their entire careers.
Brendan Rodgers’ side play Villa tonight for the third time in 2020 after their two-legged semi-final.
Villa won
3-2 on aggregate courtesy of Trezeguet’s 90th-minute strike, which sparked a pitch invasion when the final whistle blew moments later.
Evans admits the feeling is still raw, but is determined Leicester focus on a successful campaign as they chase Champions League qualification and FA Cup glory.
“As you get older, you think back to those moments,” he said. “They don’t leave you. They might not be as hurtful but they are in the memory.
“But it is important after moments like that, which do hurt, you respond and show you’re stronger.
“They’re learning experiences.
“We have got a young team, and you’ve got to deal with moments like that, bounce back and show character.” Dean Smith has told his Aston Villa players to expect an almighty reaction from the Foxes. “Somebody told me that Marc Albrighton had said they probably took us a bit lightly,” Smith said.
“They felt they were going to progress, so we’ve got to be ready for that backlash.” LEICESTER (probable): Schmeichel; Pereira, Evans, Soyuncu, Chilwell; Ndidi; Perez, Tielemans, Maddison, Barnes; Vardy.
ASTON VILLA (probable): Nyland; Konsa, Engels, Mings; Guilbert, Nakamba, Douglas Luiz, Targett; Grealish, Samatta, El Ghazi.