Mourinho shares what he told Tottenham’s players in the dressing room at half-time last night

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Jose Mourinho has told Tottenham Hotspur’s official website that he was not frustrated with his side’s performance in the first half against Lokomotiv Plovdiv last night.

Spurs avoided a major upset in Bulgaria yesterday, as they were forced to come from behind to win.

Tottenham had looked sluggish until they went behind, with their attacking play once again failing to create too many clear cut chances.

But Mourinho insists that he wasn’t too disappointed from what he saw from his players at half-time, as he knew it would be a tough challenge for them.

“I knew that the game would be tricky, and, as I was saying at half-time, the first half was not bad at all,” Mourinho said. “I couldn’t complain much with the players, just asking them for a bit more intensity.

“The team was not bad at all. We created chances, we had a big penalty (appeal) that could change everything, we hit the post and we were totally dominant, but the game had this danger of a one-match knock-out, so when they scored, of course it was a risky situation.”

Tottenham actually named a very strong side against Plovdiv, with Mourinho refusing to take any chances.

Mourinho’s team selection was an indication of how seriously he intends to take the Europa League this season, as he looks to deliver the North London side some silverware.

Spurs still had to rely on late goals from Harry Kane and Tanguy Ndombele to turn things around though, and they will surely have to improve at the weekend, if they are to take the three points.

Spurs take on Southampton on Sunday, in what should be a much tougher test than last night’s game.