Mourinho: Victory Was Deserved

Jose Mourinho was naturally delighted with the outcome of Saturday's Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur but he was also pleased with the performance and the attitude shown by his players in a difficult fixture.

Here are some of the manager's key comments from his post-match interviews and press conference...

DESERVED VICTORY
"I think we got what we deserved. It was a difficult match that could have been a draw between two big teams. I think both were trying to win but both knew that they opponent was strong. So try to win but with one eye on the thief. I think the only team that had opportunities was us, apart from their Alli chance. We controlled them very well and I think we had more chances to win the match than they had. But it was a big football match, tactically difficult for both teams and tactically difficult for the players. Good referee. Just one yellow card in a match that was strong, aggressive, and every fifty-fifty was like the last challenge of their lives."

CHANGES IN ATTACK
"We kept trying by bringing fresh players on for the same [attacking] positions. Mauricio [Pochettino] did the same. He brings Sissoko and Son off for Llorente and Dembele, without changing the structure. So I think we were both trying to win, but we knew that one defensive mistake and we could lose the match, which happened to them. But I think that was a consequence of us pushing a little bit more, especially in the second half. In the beginning of the game we were really strong, but after 15-20 minutes balance came to the match. And then in the second half, we had the wind in our favour and tried to get behind them. We created more problems for them with Rashford’s movement. Then when he was tired we brought Martial who is better running with the ball. We tried and I think we deserved the victory."

MUST-WIN MATCH?
"I think we all feel [that we have to win] every match. That’s why I was so disappointed at Huddersfield, because it looked like in that match that we didn’t know the responsibility, we didn’t know the ambition, we didn’t know that every point is a precious point. Today if we drew the match, or even in the last minute we concede a goal and lose 1-0, I would never be against the players because I felt that from minute one, every ball was like the last ball of their careers. They gave absolutely everything, so I’m really happy with them and, obviously, the result."

MARTIAL'S IMPORTANT ROLE
"Sometimes he starts the match and his contribution is good but not scoring so many times as he does coming from the bench. But he’s playing well – the same as Rashford, the same as Lukaku. These players work amazingly well. Today we had two strikers playing together against three top central defenders – the best we have in Europe. They had to do the defensive job of pressing them coming out with the ball, which they do really well, because they have big routines of playing with three at the back. And on top of that they gave us solutions to get out of the pressure, to find depth, to win first balls, to press seconds. Then Martial scores with a bad shot, but a bad shot can sometimes be a beautiful one."

PLAYERS GAVE THEIR ALL
"If the result is 0-0 or 1-1, my feelings with the players would be the same. They gave everything, every ball was like the most important ball of their career. The focus and concentration was there against a quality team. We played well. To play well against a very good team feels even better."