Igor Tudor insisted that the “boat is going in the direction I want to go” despite a shambolic 3-1 defeat to Crystal Palace, deepening Tottenham’s relegation fears.
Although the atmosphere was toxic on another grim night at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Tudor is confident that he can steer his new side to safety. Tottenham have lost each of their three games under their interim manager and are a point above the bottom three after Micky van de Ven’s red card kickstarted an implosion against Palace.
“Unfortunately this is the moment that we pay everything,” Tudor said. “One red card changes everything. I will tell you now, maybe it will sound strange, but I believe more after this game than I believed before. I saw something.
“I need to choose the right guys because the boat is going in the direction that I want to go, and needs to go, and who is in the boat can stay. Otherwise they can leave the boat. When players come back I’m sure we will have a good team and the victories will come. It’s not easy to accept the moment where we are now, but it is how it is.”
Tudor has made no impact since replacing Thomas Frank last month but the Croatian refused to discuss his future. “I don’t want to speak about the club,” he said. “I want to be positive. I cannot tell the guys nothing after this game. They gave everything. Unfortunately, we pay every detail. If we can say that red card is a detail, there is always something to say. We need to stay together now.
“It’s very difficult. We need to keep working. Try to help these guys, because I see them every day, they care. Do not make mistakes. This is the key in the end. Still nine games to play.”
Tottenham led through a goal from Dominic Solanke before losing Van de Ven, who will miss next weekend’s trip to Liverpool after his red card. Palace moved 10 points clear of the bottom three thanks to a double from Ismaïla Sarr and a clever finish from Jørgen Strand Larsen.
