Spurs ended pre-season on a high with a 1-0 victory over arch-rivals Arsenal, thanks to a 79th minute winner from Heung-Min Son after some exceptional hustle from Japhet Tanganga to win the ball high up the pitch and set up the Korean to slot past Bernd Leno.
Despite how comfortable Nuno’s team looked throughout the game, the Portuguese manager still knows there is plenty of work to do if the club are to reach their goals and live up to the ‘to dare is to do’ motto which he says he now lives by.
The assist. π₯΅
The goal. π€©— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 9, 2021
βIt wasnβt an outstanding performance, I wouldnβt say that,β said Nuno after the game. βWe are in the process of trying to improve. Each day, we get better.
“Honestly, itβs not yet what we expect and what we have the ambition to be – a good team, a compact team, solid.”
A ππ’ππ’π¦π¦ππ performance yesterday. π pic.twitter.com/gwlFmFKSRm
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 9, 2021
While a victory and a clean sheet over Arsenal is always something to be celebrated, the game could have easily finished with Spurs four or five up, with Son missing one big chance and Dele squandering his three opportunities.
βThere were good movements and offensive chances, but they have to be finished well,” explained Nuno. “But, very good things, we also played a very good team, our local rivals, and it was a good game, so lots of aspects to take on board.
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— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 8, 2021
βIn most games, weβve finished the game pretty well. That tells us how well the players are preparing themselves. We want to be faster, we want to be stronger, and they are working towards that. Itβs a good sign that we finished the matches on top. Credit to the players.β
So now itβs all about City next Sunday. βNow is the moment to start thinking about that,β added Nuno. βWe have to recover well and have a good week of training sessions to prepare for the match.β
https://t.co/exhHXZ4CwH pic.twitter.com/XqkdIivAVP
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 9, 2021
Spurs’ opening Premier League game of the season sees them host Manchester City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and while Harry Kane will be absent against the Premier League champions who are chasing his signature, the visitors themselves will be missing key players in the shape of Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden.