Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Mourinho says Spurs ‘controlled’ Gunners following derby victory
JOSE Mourinho hailed Tottenham for successfully adapting to their tactical switch as they edged to a hard-fought 2-1 victory against arch rivals Arsenal.
In his first north London derby since arriving at the club last November, the Portuguese manager saw his side come from behind to claim the three points which saw them leapfrog the Gunners in the Premier League table and into eighth.
Alexandre Lacazette fired Arsenal into a 16th-minute lead but their advantage lasted less than three minutes as Son Heung-min capitalised on a slack Sead Kolasinac pass to equalise.
The visitors dictated possession in the second half, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang rattling the crossbar, before Toby Alderweireld won it for Spurs when he headed home Son’s inviting corner with nine minutes left.
Mourinho, who adopted a 4-4-2 formation, hailed how his side “controlled” Arsenal and also believes Tottenham can qualify for next season’s Europa League.
The Tottenham manager said: “I think the game was more tactical than anything.
“To be honest I think Mikel (Arteta) found a way for them to play, to be stable and to improve – they are improving and we felt that we should adapt slightly to them and I think we did it very well.
“Because how many times (Arsenal full-backs Kieran) Tierney and (Hector) Bellerin normally reach the last third and how well they were controlled today. I think they were very controlled at that level.”
Mourinho added: “Even in the first period of the second half when they had more of the ball and they were more in our half, we were quite comfortable.”