Pochettino bemoans penalty call in Liverpool loss

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino felt his team merited a stoppage-time penalty in the 2-1 loss to Liverpool.

Spurs were second best for long periods at Wembley as Georginio Wijnaldum and Roberto Firmino scored either side of half-time, but a goal from substitute Erik Lamela set up a grandstand finale.

And they might have had the chance to snatch a point from the spot, only for referee Michael Oliver to remain unmoved when Sadio Mane clumsily challenged Son Heung-min.

“Of course, I think they were better. We competed, we were close and the last action was crazy because it was a penalty,” Pochettino told Sky Sports.

“We should be talking in a different way, but Liverpool were better.

“I am disappointed with the result. We need to keep working and improving. It’s only early in the season, we need to improve a lot.”

Tottenham have now suffered back-to-back defeats, with Watford puncturing the early season optimism that followed a 3-0 win at Manchester United.

Yet Pochettino insisted flaws were also on show at Old Trafford and believes the heavy workload a number of his first-team stars undertook during the World Cup have taken a toll.

5 – All five of Tottenham’s goals conceded in the Premier League this season have been headers. Hindrance. #TOTLIV pic.twitter.com/kiB3Gcb2i8

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 15, 2018

“It is easy to criticise the performance because we lost the game and conceded many chances, but the circumstances were the same when we beat Manchester United,” he said.

“It is a lot to analyse and try to fix. I think we are far way in terms of performance.

“It is early in the season. It is a moment to be calm and clear with the assessment, help the team to improve and be more consistent in our performance.”

Pochettino added: “I am not a person who suffers too much. I try to find the solution. Don’t worry for me – we need to be worried for the real things. I am so good, I am so happy.

“We started the season with good results, but we knew the circumstances and the reality after the World Cup were completely different.

“I was relaxed and not worried and today I am relaxed and not worried. My faith in this group of players is 200 per cent, not 100 per cent.”