‘We were the better team’

Nuno’s surprise claim after toothless Tottenham lose ANOTHER derby

NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO rejected accusations that Tottenham were too negative against West Ham, despite another toothless display as they lost a fourth successive London derby. Instead, the Spurs boss bizarrely claimed that his side were the better team, despite struggling to create opportunities as Michail Antonio’s second-half goal extended the Hammers’ positive start to the season. The loss and the manner of the defeat raise more questions about the direction Tottenham are heading in under Nuno. Chairman Daniel Levy promised the fans, following the dismissal of Jose Mourinho, a coach who would implement an attacking brand of football more in line with the club’s forward-thinking traditions. But not for the first time this season, Tottenham flattered to deceive up front, although Son Heung-min and Harry Kane missed two good first-half opportunities. Nevertheless, Nuno refused to condemn his team after another disappointing afternoon. Asked directly whether he felt his side had struggled creatively, he responded: ‘No, I think the team needs to be balanced, in terms of the presence of the players. Besides being good players, they give us the balance the team needs. And we have enough creativity with our full-backs, our attackers.’ Asked why his team laboured to create chances, Nuno said: ‘Because West Ham defend in the box with a lot of men. ‘There was not much space and we should have moved the ball faster and gone to wide areas. But it is always difficult when the team and all men are behind the ball, it is difficult to find spaces.’ The result and performance were particularly disappointing given that Nuno had made 11 changes from the team that lost to

Vitesse on Thursday. Everyone who started at the London Stadium had stayed in London to prepare for this clash. Harry Winks, who started in Europe, was not even on the bench yesterday, and in hindsight Nuno may feel he could have done with the midfielder’s technical quality as Spurs floundered once more. But yet again, Nuno refuted claims that his fully-rested XI lacked freshness, adding: ‘I don’t agree. All the players worked very hard and fitness-wise were available to deal with the game. ‘Where did it go wrong? The way we conceded. But apart from that I think we had a good game. We had possession, we had control of the game, we created. Besides the counter attacks of West Ham we didn’t allow many situations. ‘We should be better in the offensive box, the chance to be aggressive in that moment of the game. ‘It is always frustrating, a London derby that means a lot to our fans and to us and we were not able to win it. I am disappointed because it hurts. ‘There are not too many positives but when you lose a game like that — I believe we were the better team.’ Meanwhile, following an excellent win that propelled West Ham into fourth spot, David Moyes said: ‘We are growing characters. If you look at where these boys were two or three years ago, they have all blossomed. ‘The club is blossoming. That comes from the team and from inside the building. Those players are all improving together. ‘I am pleased with today because there was a resilience to the team. ‘Patience is a good word for today, lots of good displays. All credit to the players for how they continue to grow.’