Source: mail_online
Andre Villas-Boas urges Tottenham fans to be patient
Andre Villas-Boas has called on Tottenham fans to be patient after his wait for a first win in charge continued with a 1-1 draw against Norwich on Saturday.Villas-Boas had failed to excite the majority of Spurs fans during his first two games in charge and today's offering hardly set the collective pulse of the home crowd at White Hart Lane racing.Tottenham lacked confidence and looked tense throughout a disappointing first hour which could have seen the home side go 3-0 down had it not been for some excellent goalkeeping from Brad Friedel.
Be calm: Andre Villas-Boas hopes the fans give him time
Mousa Dembele opened the scoring on his debut with 22 minutes left, but Spurs crumbled under pressure for the third week running and conceded another late goal - this time through Robert Snodgrass - to leave with just a point.The home fans made their feelings known by booing their team off the pitch.Villas-Boas understands the fans' frustration, but insists he is doing everything he can to put things right.'You have to accept their disappointment. It has not been the ideal start to the season, but it doesn't mean that we haven't been working hard to get the wins that our fans want,' Villas-Boas said.'They have to understand that we are doing everything in our power to get that win.'Obviously this is not the start we wanted and the start we deserve.'We had two good games, Newcastle and West Brom, that we didn't win.'Everybody wants to build more confidence but getting those first three points.'Today it was disappointing for us to suffer again in the dying moments of the game and we have to work on our sharpness and concentration to make sure it doesn't happen again.'Friedel's position in the first team has come under question after Villas-Boas signed Hugo Lloris from Lyon for a fee that could rise up to ?12million.And on today's evidence, the Frenchman will have a tough task on his hands to wrest the number one jersey off the American's back.
Bedding in: Mousa Dembele scored on his debut
Friedel, 41, denied Snodgrass twice and also saved brilliantly from Anthony Pilkington to suggest that his run of 307 consecutive Premier League starts may not come to an end when Spurs take on Reading after the international break.'Brad deserves to keep his place at the moment,' Villas-Boas said. 'In the first half he was outstanding.'Brad deserves full credit for what he has been doing in pre-season and throughout his time in the Premier League.'You also have to look into the future and we have done a good transfer in bringing Lloris in.'Villas-Boas expressed his delight at both the performance of second-half substitute Dembele and the deadline-day capture of Clint Dempsey.The Portuguese revealed a deal was also desperately close to conclusion for Porto playmaker Joao Moutinho.'We agreed player terms late but there were situations regarding the contract that were not right so we didn't complete the transfer,' Villas-Boas said.
We deserved it: Chris Hughton says his side might have picked up three points
'We have enough cover without him. Moutinho's transfer not happening should not overshadow the fact we have pulled off one of the biggest coups of the transfer market with Clint Dempsey, who is a player who can really help us to go one step further.'Villas-Boas' opposite number Chris Hughton has seen his team bounce back from their opening-day drubbing at Fulham with two consecutive draws.The former Tottenham coach praised the performance of Snodgrass, who fired through a crowded penalty area five minutes from time to seal the draw following a sustained period of pressure which saw an experienced home defence buckle under pressure.'Arguably we deserved to win,' Hughton said. 'This is a tough place to come but we created a lot of chances.'The thing I was most pleased with was the response. We are playing quite well at the moment, but to go one behind here, not let our heads drop, force the equaliser and then have a chance to win at the end, speaks volumes for the team.'Villas-Boas, meanwhile, looks set to appeal the red card that was issued to Tom Huddlestone for a foul on Jonny Howson.'It was extremely harsh,' Villas-Boas said. 'We will probably look to appeal it.'
