Ange Postecoglou spoke to the media at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after our 1-0 win against Liverpool in the first leg of our Carabao Cup semi-final on Wednesday evening.
Here's what he had to say...
Ange on being proud of the performance...
"Yes, very proud. Again, we had to deal with some adversity tonight. We started the game really well I thought, then we lose Rodrigo (Bentancur, to injury), and in the way it happened, it was quite distressing to see a team-mate go down in that manner. Again, we had to compose ourselves and deal with that and re-organise. I'm super proud of the players, I have been all along. It hasn't been through the want of trying that our results haven't been as good, it's certainly not been on them, it's just that we haven't been able to get the consistency to get the results that we need. I'm just proud that they feel good tonight, that they get the rewards for their hard work. Our fans as well, we've put them through a tough time, I thought they were outstanding tonight. We haven't achieved anything, but I think that feeling of having a victory against a top opponent in a big game... I'm really pleased for everyone."
On Lucas Bergvall's performance...
"Lucas was brilliant. Like I said, I haven't lost sight of the fact that we've got two 18-year-olds, one who's playing at centre back (Archie Gray), it's not even his position. I just don't think people really understand the level of performance that these young guys are giving us at the moment. We had a goalkeeper (Antonin Kinsky) on debut. Djed (Spence) is playing left-back, unbelievably well. Lucas is just growing all the time. He's got that ability as a footballer to create space for himself. He's got the quality, but he works awfully hard for the team as well. Like I said, we've been dealing with some adversity for sure, but we've had some growth in that, I've got no doubt about that. That's been masked by poor results and poor form, for sure. I've got no doubt that when we get our players back, the foundations are really strong, with a group of players we can really grow with."
On Rodrigo Bentancur...
"I don't want to speculate because I don't really know either. All I know is he was conscious when he came off. Obviously it was some sort of head injury, but he was conscious when he was coming off the field. And he's been taken to the hospital for observation. But I'm not really clear on how it happened."
On Antonin Kinsky's debut display...
"Brilliant. Fantastic. I got the sense when I spoke to him before we signed him that he had a bit about him in terms of assuredness that probably belied his years. I threw him a mammoth task today to play against the best team arguably in the world at the moment, in a big game, a semi-final. He just handled it awfully well. Credit to Johan and his team, they were really big on him as a footballer who's going to fit our style and work really hard to make it happen now. And you can see why. He's an outstanding footballer."
On whether Lucas Bergvall should have been shown a second yellow card...
"I spoke about it after the game last time, I think my comments were mis-interpreted. I didn't criticise the referee or the decision. I didn't think the decision was right about the handball, but I said it's very hard at the moment, it's very confusing, to understand certain elements of the game. Now, we've been told consistently in the last few weeks, because I've been screaming about it from the sidelines, because a lot of teams have got away with a lot of fouls with us, without bookings, because the referee plays advantage. We've been told consistently that if we play advantage, as long as it's not a cynical foul, then the player does not get cautioned. So that's been relayed to us on a weekly basis, because we feel like that's been happening. That's one of the things I was bemoaning last weekend. There's certain players who were repeatedly fouling, we were getting advantage, but no bookings. That's what I'm talking about. I'm really surprised at how, what's the word I'm looking for, how people in this country are so easily letting the game change so much so quickly. It's changed more since VAR has come in since I've been involved than in the past 50 years. We never used to debate offsides, we never used to debate handballs, we never used to debate holding in the box, we never used to debate so many things. We've just got to be careful about constantly why do we want to change the game so much, and I know I'm going to be the old bloke in the stands that keep shouting 'boo' every time and I'll be the only one, but I just thought people would be a little bit more protective about the sanctity of the game. That's what I was talking about. I wasn't criticising referees, I wasn't. I've never criticised, I didn't think the decision was right, but it's just the way of the game, I think there's a lot of confusion at the moment. That's my belief that the game is changing on the basis of technology, and I'm saying why isn't anyone speaking up about it? Especially in this country who, for all intents and purposes, you feel, you guys think you're custodians of the game, you've got a song that says, 'it's coming home', this is your game, and yet it takes an Aussie from the other side of the world to be the one that's most conservative about changes."
On being more emotional on the touchline...
"Well, it's been an emotional time, and it's like I keep saying, I am a human being, you know, like all of us, we're in these roles of manager and we're supposed to, you know, I understand we've got positions of responsibility, but we're still human beings in the core, and we react to things. I don't like the fact that people who are working really hard for this club, on and off the field, have not had that feeling of victory. I don't feel great about our supporters not having that feeling of victory. It weighs heavily on me. It's my responsibility. I'm a little bit more emotional than I usually am, but I guess that also probably means I do care and I think that's still important."
On Archie Gray's performances...
"And in a position he's never played - an 18-year-old. Name me another Premier League team that's got two 18-year-olds and one playing out of position consistently. I'm so happy they're at our football club and you know, in two or three years' time, I just pray to God I'm the beneficiary of their talent, because if somebody else is getting it, I won't be happy."
On a change of a approach from the recent Premier League game against Liverpool...
"When people said my midfield set up was a little bit more conservative today, that's because I only had three midfielders to choose from. The others weren't available, so we certainly went about it the same way. Look, Liverpool don't allow you to dominate the game the way other teams do, and our players every three days are playing a game of football, without rest, and you saw Liverpool at the end, they put on some significant talent, some really good footballers, some top footballers. I couldn't do the same, and yet the guys who are out there are consistently doing it, so maybe we're not as dominant as we want it to be, but there's good reason, not through the lack of trying or different intent in terms of how we went about it."