The XG was 0.05 today – does that sum up your attacking threat?
Thomas: “I would say that, of course, hurts massively. I’ve never been in charge of a team that created that little in one game, never. So that, of course, I will look into what we can do to make it better. But I think that’s one thing. I think everything is a little bit linked. And today, yeah, we didn’t hit the level.”
What happened with Lucas Bergvall?
Thomas: “That was a concussion. So he was told he couldn’t stay on and I think the medical team did a good job in that aspect. Even if he wanted to stay on, it’s the right decision that he stays off.”
How much did that disrupt your game plan?
Thomas: “We would have loved to have him continue. That’s why we picked him in the starting XI. Unfortunately, that couldn’t happen. So others will step in. Xavi knew the game plan.”
Are you worried about Xavi Simons’ confidence?
“No, I think it’s part of it. There’s a reason why we didn’t start him, of course. I think he’s played two starts, short turn around. Also, that energy and freshness I talked about, played 90 minutes on Wednesday night. That’s why we decided that, and then he played 70 minutes here. That was nothing. It’s just because it looks different when you come on after three minutes and get subbed off.”
How can a Tottenham team that’s losing to Chelsea not have a shot at all in the second half? How can that happen in a game of this magnitude?
Thomas: “Good question. There’s probably not one answer to that. One thing for sure, we need to do that better.”
Can you see the team evolving attacking-wise?
Thomas: “I think the thing is that all games are a little bit different. I think there was signs of it against Everton away, against Villa home, against Newcastle away. Today there’s not too much signs of it.”
Xavi Simons has had a few careless passes in the games he’s played so far. It feels like something that should be relatively easy to correct in a player’s technical ability. How frustrating is that?
Thomas: “I think when players make mistakes on the pitch, if they lose a ball or they miss a pass, of course I can get irritated. In general, I’m not talking about a specific situation. That’s part of football. How many times have you seen a player miss a pass or do something? That happens. And that can be flow, that can be confidence, that can be everything, whatever it is. Mistakes are part of football.”
What can you say to fans to give them confidence that the team can be more creative?
Thomas: “A couple of things. Today of course everyone will be frustrated. I’d say we have 24 hours and then we need to look forward again. Today was one snapshot that didn’t look good. I think there have definitely been other spells that have been better. There’s no doubt, and I keep saying it, that we have a front four that is new that we need to build together with short turn arounds in games. We’ll do that. I’m not in doubt that will happen. I think every team I’ve coached has scored a lot of goals. It will happen again in the future here.”