Pierre Højbjerg Speaks After Tottenham Draw with Palace
By Aaron Coe
After a tough match in difficult conditions, Pierre Højbjerg shared his thoughts about the game, the state of Tottenham, and the game coming with Liverpool.
It was not Bill Belichick saying it is “on to Cincinnati” but Pierre Højbjerg thanked the schedulers multiple times in his 3-minute interview for the opportunity to play again so soon. Such is the mindset of Tottenham Hotspur where they are upset and disappointed with a draw at Crystal Palace but will not dwell on the loss with a tough road ahead.
What Went Wrong
Pierre Højbjerg indicated that it was not any one thing that went wrong for Tottenham Sunday, rather it was death by 100 cuts. Højbjerg said, “I think the small details, we let small details and small moments go into their favor go into their hand. And sometimes small things can create one big thing and maybe I think this happened today.”
Of course, as was echoed by Coach José Mourinho following the game, it was not all Tottenham playing poorly as Crystal Palace were there too. Regarding the Eagles, Højbjerg said, “Palace have a physical presence in and around the box they have some good individual players, and they are not easy to play against.”
If Pierre Højbjerg is talking about an opponent having a physical presence, they must be something. Højbjerg and Moussa Sissoko battled with James McArthur and Luka Milivojevic all afternoon long. Between McArthur’s five tackles – leading all players on either team – and Milivojevic’s three interceptions, Palace held their own in the middle making it difficult for Spurs.
All that said, Højbjerg made it clear Spurs were not okay losing the points.
Disappointed Spurs Dressing Room
When asked at the top of the interview about how he felt about the draw, Højbjerg referenced the team’s disappointment. “Well, if you see the dressing room after the game, it’s definitely a feeling of disappointment, which is good”.
Pierre continued that showing disappointment is good because it shows the team wants “to compete and win every single game, so I think it is a good sign that we are not happy in the dressing room after the game with the one-one”.
I know fans are not happy with a one-one draw, but it is much more palatable, knowing Liverpool, among others, also dropped points keeping Spurs in first place. The good news for players and fans alike is the schedule, as there is no time to dwell on the disappointment of a draw as Tottenham have two days to recover and then are on the road at Anfield for Liverpool.
Højbjerg said, “thank you to the schedule, that we have a touch schedule and we have already on Wednesday have an opportunity to show what we are about and what we can do, in a great game”. Sometimes all you can do is learn from a match and move on and that is what Tottenham will do.
Tottenham Ready for the Moment
While Højbjerg conceded that Liverpool is an important game, he also noted that “like it has been since the beginning of the season, every game is important”. More importantly with a big road trip to Merseyside mid-week, “the squad is competing well, there’s a good momentum”.
Pierre said that “everybody is working well, and we need to maintain that. Because again if you want to compete with the best, if you want to win every single game, it is something that you have to sustain”. Despite the results today, sustaining solid performance is something Tottenham have done most of the year.
According to Højbjerg Tottenham, “are doing it. We are performing. And we need to keep going and like I said we have the momentum, but we cannot let it slip away. As Højbjerg continued he repeated his refrain that Spurs “cannot let it slip away and get out of balance. And again, we look forward to Wednesday, we look forward to Sunday and to the game after that.”
Højbjerg finally, brought it back to the disappointment of today to provide some closure for himself and move forward. The Dane said, “We were not happy with the 1-1, which is okay, because it gives us fuel for Wednesday and after Wednesday we look forward and we are ready to go Sunday again” because Tottenham “want to compete and yeah win every single game, so this is what we have to do and are doing”.
While it was not exactly on to Cincinnati, it is on to Merseyside and Liverpool and the next match and then the one after that for Spurs. Afterall, there really is no other alternative with the schedule ahead.