Xavi: “You could see the atmosphere in the stadium – we feel that”
Xavi Simons said the players could feel the atmosphere inside Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as he reflected on what might have been against Brighton on Saturday.
The Dutch playmaker was central to what looked like being a crucial win in the Premier League until Brighton dug out a heartbreaking equaliser five minutes into the eight minutes of added time.
It was tough to take – not least for Xavi, who was at his best throughout, set up our opener for Pedro Porro on 39 minutes, hit the post and then fired home a beauty for 2-1 on 77 minutes, lifting the roof off in N17. Alas, it wasn’t to be as Georfinio Rutter provided the late, late show for Brighton to make it 2-2 on 95 minutes.
Speaking to us afterwards, Xavi said: “You could see the atmosphere in the stadium from the first minute. We, as players, we feel that as well.
“What I can say is that we are really working hard to get through this situation. New manager has come in, so we have to adapt on things, but what I can say, we're going in the right direction and we're going to work hard for sure. The fans were fantastic, and we have to keep working because we have to get through this.”
Reflecting further on the match, Xavi added: “We started really good, really aggressive as well. We wanted to play football, as the coach said, and enjoy the game.
“New coach coming in, new idea of playing football. It's a coach that really wants the ball, especially for me, it's something I really like and I think I can put my best game on it. Improving day by day with the ball is most important. Today we tried, and obviously, having that late goal... yeah, it hurts.”