A 1-0 win over Middlesbrough saw Tottenham pick up three vital points even if they left things open near the end for a potential draw.
Winning games, even with a 1-0 scoreline, still gives teams all three points.
Scoring more goals improves a club’s goal difference while also making sure that the opposition is unable to come back for a late draw or an upset win.
With Tottenham holding onto a one-goal lead for a little more than half an hour, Mauricio Pochettino is a little disappointed that his side were unable to score an extra goal or two.
The Argentine manager will be pleased regardless of the outcome so long as Spurs win, but he knows that a 1-0 win — even at 2-0 — is far from over in the Premier League.
“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,” Pochettino 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.”
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Although Tottenham managed to dominate the first with an overwhelming 71 percent possession, 12 shots (two on target), and seven corners, Middlesbrough managed to contain the hosts.
Credit to Aitor Karanka for nailing his tactics perfectly — even if the Spanish manager more or less instructed his players to park the bus for nearly 45 minutes.
With the match at a standstill come half-time, Pochettino didn’t change his gameplan too much. Just some slight fixes. It was down to being patient and finding the best passes in order to create scoring chances.
“We fixed some situations and said keep going in the same way and try to break them down.” Mauricio Pochettino said when asked about any half-time adjustments.
“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.”
Because Spurs have the league’s best defense for the second season in a row, is it possible to get away with 1-0 wins even if Tottenham are dominating and not coming away with more goals?
For Pochettino, he believes that having a great defense gives his side a little leeway.
Yes, it would be difficult to continually win games like the way Spurs did over Middlesbrough but finishing is a fluctuating process. It’s not simple to aim towards the net and score 100 percent of the time.
It comes down to the players shooting and whether or not the opposing defense and goalkeepers are able to keep the ball out of the net.
Next: Tottenham 1-0 Middlesbrough: Winning is All That Matters
Look back from mid-December to mid-January, Spurs scored plenty of goals but now they’re struggling a bit to breakdown defenses. A part of that has to do with the current formation, but either way the chances are being created.
Like Pochettino said, more work needs to be done still.
“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.”