Tottenham deny Southampton win over Pochettino after Nacer Chadli pounces
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Version 0 of 1. What a stew of emotions for Mauricio Pochettino. Maybe this draw could be considered a diplomatic outcome to the Spurs manager’s return to the club that he professes still to love, but the result edged his team closer to a tournament that he is reluctant to reach. “If we reach the Europa League we need to try to win it, but that’s not my dream,” said Pochettino after gaining a point that keeps his team closer than Southampton to qualifying for the continent’s second competition. It was a point that Spurs struggled to earn, twice coming from behind in a match in which their hosts were often superior. At least the reception given to Pochettino on his first return to St Mary’s since defecting to Tottenham last summer was not as hostile as predicted, as some Southampton fans had vowed to make it. The Argentinian was met before kick-off by a smattering of boos rather than a torrent of abuse. Others in the home crowd had resolved to declare their affection for their current manager instead of pouring scorn on their ex, but even the so-called “Ronald Koeman Day” did not take off – there were pockets of people dressed in Dutch orange around St Mary’s, but most of them were stewards in high-visibility bibs. When play got under way, the hostility towards Pochettino did briefly rise, probably because fans felt the need to entertain themselves during an uneventful opening on the pitch. “I was focused on my job,” said Pochettino of the back-and-forth chanting by rival fans. “We will always love Southampton. I say thank you to [Spurs fans] because they showed support to me.” It was 24 minutes before anyone had a shot, Morgan Schneiderlin meeting a corner with a side-footed volley that forced Hugo Lloris into a good save. One area where Southampton have improved hugely under Koeman is in defence. Tottenham’s rearguard have not made similar progress under Pochettino and the Argentinian was visibly aghast at the bungling that allowed Southampton to take the lead in the 29th minute. Graziano Pellè poked the ball into the net from eight yards after a misplaced pass and slip by Ryan Mason and dithering by Ben Davies, who, in fairness, was also shoved by Pellè. All very sloppy, but two minutes later Southampton produced a slick move that should have resulted in a second goal. After composed play by José Fonte, Ward-Prowse swept the ball wide to Ryan Bertrand, who pinged a low cross to Steven Davis, who shanked wide from the edge of the area. Suddenly the match had fizz. In the 42nd minute Nacer Chadli jinked his way down the left and clipped a cross to Mason, whose volley was blocked by Fonte. One minute later Spurs drew level – and the home crowd found another Argentinian villain. After Eric Dier crossed from the right and Harry Kane flicked on, Érik Lamela diverted the ball into the net from seven yards with the help of an arm. The referee, Jon Moss, could be excused for not spotting the offence, which was not blatant enough to belong in the Diego Maradona category. Southampton were much better in the second half. Except for Davis, who twice shot wide from good positions. His miss in the 54th minute was particularly galling, as he blazed wide from 10 yards after a lovely move. Southampton regained the lead with a goal that reflected their improvement, even if Spurs’ defence was again deficient. Mané pounced on a poor header by Davies and fed Shane Long, who had just been sprung from the bench. The Irishman crossed and Pellè sent a powerful header into the net from 10 yards. Southampton seemed on course for victory. But in the 70th minute Dier bisected the home defence with a low pass and Chadli held off Maya Yoshida to slot into the net. Fonte headed narrowly over from a stoppage-time corner but, in the end, Koeman had to congratulate Spurs for being more clinical than his team. “Spurs were not lucky, we need to shoot more on target,” he said. |