Ryan Mason kicked off his temporary spell as manager at Spurs with a win at home to Southampton, putting the team in the right direction ahead of the League Cup Final at the weekend.
👔 Ryan Mason becomes the youngest manager in #PL history 🙌#TOTSOU pic.twitter.com/fohrwlwUy2
— Premier League (@premierleague) April 21, 2021
That one meant a lot.
🤍 @RyanMason #THFC ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/VFYLxCkoba
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) April 21, 2021
Danny Ings’ opener was cancelled out by a fantastic curling effort from Gareth Bale a quarter of an hour into the second half, before Heung-min Son won the game late on from the penalty spot after having an earlier goal chalked off by VAR for Lucas Moura’s involvement while offside.
Around 100 supporters protested against ENIC and Daniel Levy before the game, and Mason admitted he had no idea that was happening right outside the stadium.
“First of all I can’t have an opinion because I wasn’t aware of that, we didn’t see it from the coach so I can’t comment on that,” Mason said.
“But the most important thing is to create a good energy around the place. Obviously when you are winning matches that does help, but more importantly the performance in the second half is where we want it to be.
Having come through the academy together I know how much it will mean to @RyanMason to take charge of the team for the rest of the season. We'll give him everything we've got for these next 7 games. pic.twitter.com/zApulzZMT8
— Harry Kane (@HKane) April 21, 2021
“Thankfully we have got the win and we can look forward to tomorrow now.”
The European Super League was also something that Mason was not particularly interested in giving or even having an opinion on, which was completely fair given the crazy few days he has experienced.
"I can't tell you how proud I am."
Love this, @RyanMason 🤍#THFC ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/fl0uX5VRZO
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) April 21, 2021
The 29-year-old, who was forced to retire early due to a severe head injury suffered against Chelsea whilst playing for Hull City, also spoke of how proud he was as Spurs ignored all the stuff off the pitch and took care of business on it.
“First of all the feeling is a massive relief,” he said. “It’s been a whirlwind the last two or three days but thankfully we got the win and most importantly I felt second half we were outstanding.
125 players older than Ryan Mason have played in the Premier League this season.
He's just won his first game as Tottenham manager 😳👏 pic.twitter.com/k7vnpxtXMc
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) April 21, 2021
“The performance, the commitment, the energy was brilliant because I thought in the first half, we found it very difficult.
“It was quite tough to get out and they were very good. They created some chances. Hugo (Lloris) pulled off two world-class saves for us but I thought as the game wore on, we gained control of it and I thought there was only one team that was going to win the match.”
The League Cup Final against Manchester City at Wembley kicks off at 4:30pm on Sunday and is live on Sky Sports.