Jose: We thought we had already won it

JOSE Mourinho conceded that Tottenham were punished for believing West Ham were dead and buried as his side surrendered a three-goal lead. Three strikes in the final eight minutes — the last a Manuel Lanzini long-range thunderbolt with the last kick of the game —secured a breathtaking point for David Moyes’s men after Harry Kane and Son Heung-min had put Spurs 3-0 up by half-time. Tottenham boss Mourinho refused to publicly criticise his team despite their calamitous capitulation but did indicate that he would read the riot act to his players privately. However, the Special One admitted his players had paid a high price for presuming they were already home and dry. ‘I don’t think we believed that it could ever happen, what happened, and we were punished by that and punished by their belief,’ said the Portuguese. ‘It’s easier for me to praise them than criticise us. It’s easier for me to analyse internally and discuss with the players than speak about it and my feelings now. We were not good enough or strong enough to cope with the last 10 minutes.’ Gareth Bale made his first appearance since returning to Tottenham when he was introduced as a 72nd-minute substitute. But his homecoming turned into a nightmare as West Ham produced their brilliant comeback during the time when he was on the pitch, and the Welshman also squandered a golden opportunity just moments before Lanzini’s equaliser. On the matter of starting Bale on the bench, Mourinho added: ‘The decision not to start him was I think a good one, a decision to show that he doesn’t have a beautiful chair waiting for him in the team and he sits there the first time he can. ‘It was a message to the team that in this team everybody has to fight for positions. ‘He’s very well accepted in the group. Everyone likes him, and I believe he likes what he’s found here.’ West Ham manager David Moyes said: ‘We are building a very strong team spirit, and our performances in recent weeks have been very good. ‘It’s one of the moments in football you don’t get very often, to be 3-0 down, to get back to 3-3 in the last 10 minutes. ‘The key was not to do anything stupid at half-time, make changes as everyone thinks that’s what you do when you’re 3-0 down. ‘Trying to win is really difficult, then when you get something from nowhere it gives you the emotions. That’s why you’re in it. ‘We never gave up, it was a really proud performance. We’re proud of what the players have done for West Ham.’