Joao Palhinha urged his Tottenham team-mates to be more calm after a “sad draw” at home to Wolves on Saturday.
Spurs could have gone second and two points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool with a sixth win in nine matches under new boss Thomas Frank, but were instead indebted to Palhinha’s curled finish in the fourth minute of stoppage time to rescue a 1-1 draw.
Bayern Munich loanee Palhinha was impressed with Tottenham’s first-half display – where Mohammed Kudus had a close-range header tipped onto the crossbar by Sam Johnstone and another effort ruled out for offside. Lucas Bergvall also fired a 12-yard volley over.
Bottom-of-the-table Wolves reacted at half-time with Vitor Pereira going back to his trusted 3-4-2-1 formation and they went ahead in the 54th minute when Santiago Bueno tapped in after Guglielmo Vicario had denied Ladislav Krejci from a corner.
Frank made multiple substitutions and tactical tweaks after the deadlock had been broken, but Tottenham struggled to fashion clear-cut opportunities until Pape Sarr teed up Palhinha to find the bottom corner from 18 yards for his third goal of the season to earn a point.
“I think it’s mandatory to win these games. I think we give everything and we fight until the last moment – everyone on the pitch. We try to score, try to get the draw but it is a sad draw in my opinion and we wish much more from this game,” Palhinha reflected.
“I think we did a really good first half and when we suffer the goal, we start to drop a lot in my opinion.
“We didn’t have the patience in the right moments when we need to find the good way to score and we need to be much more calm in these moments because it will be key for us.
“We will not start winning all the games, we know even for the future, but when we start to lose 1-0 the game, we need to be much more calm on the ball and especially try to create more chances.
“Yeah it’s a result that for me feels like a loss. I said before that these are the games that are mandatory to win, especially in our home, but now we need to focus on the Champions League.”
Spurs travel to Norway on Monday to face Bodo/Glimt a day later.
Wolves remain winless in the Premier League, but followed up the midweek Carabao Cup success over Everton with another solid display.
Pereira said: “I feel we start to work with the team two weeks ago.
“Before the Everton game, we start to work with the team because before it was not possible. Some of them came the end of the market and after they go to the national team.
“Now we are working tactically and mentally, the tactical page, to put them on the tactical page, to understand in two different systems.
“I am very happy with the players because in the last two games against Everton and today we show we can compete.”
