Vertonghen denies Spurs have turned against coach
DEFENDER SAYS CITY HAMMERING WASN’T DOWN TO DISENCHANTMENT
Jan Vertonghen has denied there is a rift between coach Andre VillasBoas and the Tottenham Hotspur players that might have been to blame for Sunday’s 6- 0 humiliation by Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Two goals each from Jesus Navas and Sergio Aguero, plus an Alvaro Negredo strike and a Sandro own- goal consigned Tottenham to their heaviest Premier League defeat since 1996.
Villas- Boas’ side crumbled from the moment Navas found the net after only 14 seconds. Yet Vertonghen said: “Is there a problem between the players and the manager? Absolutely not. There are also no troubles between [ individual] players. This [ defeat] was painful. Also the way we lost. I’ve the feeling I want to play this game again.
“We even could have conceded more goals. This is a painful experience, but it’s just a snapshot. Not everything is lost. Not only the defence was to blame, the whole organisation wasn’t there. The manager tries to make the right choices. Sometimes the choices turn out to be good, sometimes not.”
Vertonghen, a recognised central defender who is continuing to be played at left- back in place of the injured Danny Rose by Villas- Boas, maintains he has no problem with the decision. “That I was playing as a left- back is not important,” he said. “Our left- back is still out for a few weeks, so only when he’s back I will be playing in a central role again.”
Despite the defeat to City, Vertonghen insists Tottenham can beat the champions, Manchester United, on Sunday at White Hart Lane, claiming the defeat was “not a big problem”.
Looking to bounce back
He said: “Of course we didn’t play well but we are better than this. We can solve the problem. We will talk and bounce back on Sunday against Manchester United. It is a good thing we play Manchester United next [ in the league]. We play at home. I know we have the support of our crowd and we can win that game on Sunday.”
The defender did admit that the Spurs players were upset after their performance.
“It is very disappointing. We came here for a better result than this,” he said.
“It is a shame we end up losing 6- 0. We came here with a good motivation and for a good result. If you concede a goal after 15 seconds it is a bad thing if you want to win. We did well after that but then we conceded a second goal and it became a very difficult game for us,” he added.
Manuel Pellegrini’s side have amassed 26 league goals in six games at the Etihad Stadium, with Wigan Athletic also being beaten 5- 0 in the Capital One Cup and CSKA Moscow 5- 2 in the Champions League there.