Spurs 1-0 Boro - Mauricio's reaction

He would have liked more goals but Mauricio Pochettino wasn’t looking beyond three valuable points after a 1-0 win against Middlesbrough on Saturday.

Chances came and went with the key moment arriving in the 58th minute when Heung-Min Son tricked Espinosa Bernardo in the box, the defender swept his legs away and Harry Kane made no mistake from the penalty spot.

There was a late fright as Marten de Roon missed Middlesbrough’s best chance deep into injury time and that was why Mauricio was talking about needing more than one goal to show for the team’s dominance.

“We dominated the game, played very good football, created a lot of chances and we’re a little disappointed because you need to score more than one and not leave the game open,” he said.

“At the end we suffered a little, we were a little nervous because in the Premier League, the game is never closed if you don’t have that gap. In the end, we’re happy with a good performance and happy because three points puts us in a good position in the table.”

Below: Mauricio's full post-match interview with Spurs TV

We dominated the first half but it ended goalless - what did you say at half-time?
Mauricio: “We fixed some situations and said keep going in the same way and try to break them down. The important thing was to be patient, to move the ball quickly and try to find the best position to shoot or create chances. The second half was good as well, we dominated again and okay, it’s 1-0, but it’s three points.”

It’s another clean sheet and if we continue keeping clean sheets, one goal will win these games…
Mauricio: “Sometimes it’s difficult, scoring goals is not an easy task but to keep a clean sheet is important, our defensive position is very good, we need to keep going, work hard with and without the ball, try to create chances and be more clinical than today.”