‘I thought many times’: Mourinho says he came so close to playing Tottenham man last night

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Jose Mourinho has told Sky Sports, during their live Monday Night Football coverage, that he almost subbed both Sergio Reguilon and Giovani Lo Celso on for Tottenham Hotspur last night.

Spurs won 1-0 against Burnley at Turf Moor, with Mourinho having to think carefully about which subs he wanted to use.

Mourinho was determined to change the game with his Tottenham side struggling, but he also was very aware of the threat that Burnley posed.

And as a result Reguilon was never brought on to the pitch, while Lo Celso was only added very late on.

“The second half gave me some question marks and doubts that I was discussing with Joao and Ledley because this is the kind of match where if you take too many risks you can lose it,” he said.

“I thought on many occasions of bringing Reguilon to the game because he is very fast.

“I thought many times of bringing Lo Celso and playing him with Ndombele, but that would mean we lose Ben Davies and Moussa Sissoko and if you lose aerial power against Burnley you can lose the game rather than win it.”

In the end Mourinho’s changes, or lack thereof, paid off.

His first sub was to bring Erik Lamela on, and the Argentine provided the corner, which Heung-Min Son scored the winner from.

Tottenham struggled to show their attacking quality last night, but their defensive display was hugely impressive, as they stood up to Burnley’s physicality.

Tottenham are now in fifth place in the Premier League table, and only two points off the top.