Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou admitted that Everton made life “difficult” for his side as they held on for a 2-1 win at home on Saturday afternoon.
Richarlison opened the scoring for the hosts before Son Heung-min doubled their lead in the first half.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin thought he had got one back for the Toffees five minutes after the interval, but the goal was ruled out for a foul in the build-up.
Andre Gomes did find the net late on for Everton with an arrowed strike into the far corner. Arnaut Danjuma came agonisingly close to an equaliser when Guglielmo Vicario made a last ditch save with his leg.
“I think we started the game well and got ourselves in front,” the Spurs boss told Premier League Productions after the final whistle.
“We got a little wasteful with the ball and some of that was because of Everton’s pressure. They work hard and make it difficult. We had to show resilience in the second half to get a result.
“We went through that difficult spell where we got ourselves in front but didn’t end up putting the game to bed. In the context of everything we’re going through with the squad, it’s a big three points.
“We started taking too many touches on the ball and slowing the game down which played into their hands [in the second half].”
Postecoglou praised Guglielmo Vicario’s performance after the Italian goalkeeper made seven saves to ensure Spurs took all three points and move back into the top four of the Premier League table.
“He has been [strong] pretty much from the first game,” the Australian said. “Some games we haven’t needed a lot and today we did. He’s a great shot-stopper and is dealing with a different back four in lots of games. He’s got a maturity which helps the team in those moments.”
