Ange Postecoglou labelled Tottenham’s 4-2 defeat by Liverpool “hugely disappointing”, adding that his side "had nothing in the final third", but did insist that there was more to his side’s performance at Anfield than there had been in recent weeks.
Spurs failed to capitalise on Aston Villa slip-up at Brighton earlier in the day, continuing a run of four consecutive Premier League defeats which has severely derailed their Champions League pretensions.
Mohamed Salah nodded home from a clever Cody Gakpo ball on 16 minutes before Andy Robertson pounced instinctively on a rebound to double Liverpool’s advantage on the stroke of half time.
There was no let up for Spurs after the interval as a glanced Gakpo header and stunning Harvey Elliott strike from 25 yards sparked jubilant scenes in the Kop.
Late goals from Richarlison and Son Heung-min threatened to pique the travelling fans’ interest, but the damage had already been done and the riposte proved futile.
Spurs must now recover a seven-point deficit to Villa with just three games remaining - one of which is against Treble-winners Manchester City.
On the performance
Spurs’ trip to Anfield represented the latest hurdle in their wilting run-in, following unsuccessful meetings with Newcastle, Arsenal and Chelsea.
Only a win felt sufficient for Tottenham to harbour genuine hopes of a top-four finish heading into their final three matches, but they were no match for a Liverpool side who essentially had nothing to play for.
Postecoglou claimed to have seen more of his side’s desired identity despite the result. He said: “It’s obviously a hugely disappointing outcome for us, but at least we were more like ourselves in terms of our football. Our last two away games, against Newcastle and Chelsea, apart from the results - which weren’t great either - we just didn’t try to play our football.
“I thought today, some of our football, our pressing, was back to where it should be.”
Tottenham have not won at Anfield since 2011. Scoring first was a must for Postecoglou’s side, but just as they had done in five of their previous seven outings, they fell behind.
“At 4-0 you’ve got a mountain to climb,” the Spurs boss admitted. “But when we play like ourselves, we’ll always finish strong because we’ll put pressure on the opposition, it eventually takes its toll and we scored a couple goals, we could have got a couple more.
“At least we tried to play and we looked like a version of ourselves that gives me something to work with.”
On a ‘lack of confidence’ up front
Spurs managed fewer than half of Liverpool’s shots on and off target and Postecoglou pointed to his attackers for their lack of ruthlessness in the final third.
The Australian said: “We lacked the real cutting edge for sure, we just had nothing in the front third and that allowed Liverpool to get comfortable. The flip-side of that was when they got forward into the front third, their front guys were quite lethal in pouncing on our mistakes.”
“We’d get to the front third, nothing would happen,” he added. “There probably is a bit of a lack of confidence but that’s something that guys have to work through. You’ve got to find a way to overcome that.
“Ultimately if you don’t put pressure on the opposition in that front third after you’ve worked your way up there, they’re going to get comfortable with their position. We’ve got to find a way to snap out of that because it’s not going to happen on its own.”
Starting with Son Heung-min as a central striker, supported by Brennan Johnson and Dejan Kulusevski on either flank, Spurs’ front line only began clicking following Richarlison’s introduction on 61 minutes.
“I thought [Richarlison] was really good, with his presence,” Postecoglou said. “The other guys coming on added something for us.”
On the Romero and Emerson dispute
Sky Sports cameras picked up a heated discussion between Cristian Romero and Emerson Royal as the defenders were leaving the field of play at half time. Guglielmo Vicario appeared to pull Romero away to diffuse the situation.
In the studio, Roy Keane quipped: “I generally don’t mind that kind of behaviour because it means that you care about the game, but they should have that kind of aggression in their defending.”
Postecoglou admitted he had not seen the incident but had been informed of it. When asked for his view, he said: “They care, mate. It hurts them. They’re not just going to be happy with the current situation.
“Because they care, they want it to improve, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, as long as it’s done in a constructive way.
“Irrespective, the players - who I’ve been told were involved - they care. They want to change the situation.”