Ange Postecoglou believes Tottenham would have beaten Newcastle had the match been “a fair and even game”.
The Spurs boss cut a defiant, if somewhat agitated, figure at full-time after the Magpies came from behind to beat Postecoglou’s side 2-1 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday.
Dominic Solanke gave the hosts the lead inside four minutes, but Anthony Gordon equalized two minutes later.
Alexander Isak then grabbed what proved to be the winner on 37 minutes as the Swede found the net in his seventh successive Premier League game.
Tottenham have won just two of their last 10 Premier League games:
✅ 2 wins
🤝 2 ties
❌ 6 lossesBad spell for Ange Postecoglou’s side 📉 pic.twitter.com/L52kOLuenT
— Soccer on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 4, 2025
Spurs then piled on the pressure after the break and had several chances in the second half but failed to convert any of them.
Postecoglou’s side have won just two of their last ten Premier League games – a run that has seen them drop into the bottom half of the table.
Despite the result, Postecoglou insisted he was proud of his team, but said that under different circumstances, the result would have been different.
“I am very proud of the players. Excellent considering the situation we are in,” the Tottenham boss told TNT Sports.
“We deserved to win this game. We would have all things equal.”
“If it was a different day and a level and fair playing field, we would have won this game” 👀
Ange Postecoglou with a fiery response to Tottenham’s 2-1 defeat by Newcastle…
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/E8NncBW0OH
— Soccer on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 4, 2025
When asked about a possible handball shout at Gordon’s goal kick, Postecoglou doubled down on his assessment of an “even pitch”.
“I don’t feel difficult, I just think that’s the way they (employees) want to do things. The last thing I want is an explanation.
“All I will say is that on any other day, on a fair and even pitch, we would have won this game. So simple.
“Don’t keep asking me about the (referee) decision. I know what I’m thinking and like I said, if this was a different day, and if it was a level and fair playing field, we would have won this game.
“It’s a game we should have won and we deserved to win. Things are not equal right now. I couldn’t be prouder of the way (the players) played. Their attitude, their ability to withstand the most extreme conditions.
“We’re disappointed because it’s a game that all things being equal we would have won, so you’re obviously disappointed. You can only do what you can control and there were things out of our control today that took the game away from us.”
Spurs are next in action when they host Liverpool in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final on Wednesday evening.
