2 hours ago
51
The under fire Spurs manager has come in for scathing criticism after the club's 5-2 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League
Beleaguered Tottenham Hotspur boss Igor Tudor has been savaged by sections of the Spanish press after his side were thrashed 5-2 by Atletico Madrid on Tuesday evening. The Croatian's decision to start Antonin Kinsky in goal was targeted by the media, with the manager's decision-making in the Champions League last-16 first-leg tie also coming in for a mauling.
Tudor deployed Kinsky in place of Guglielmo Vicario against Diego Simeone's side. The Czech goalkeeper was at fault for two of the first three goals, slipping and giving the ball away for Marcos Llorente's early strike, before scuffing a clearance into the feet of Julian Alvarez for Atleti's third.
In shocking scenes, Tudor then substituted Kinsky in the 15th minute and did not even acknowledge the young goalkeeper as he sullenly left the pitch.
FOLLOW OUR TOTTENHAM FB PAGE! Latest Spurs news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page
Spanish outlet AS tore into the former Marseille coach, criticising Spurs' general performance and even compared Kinsky to Loris Karius, the former Liverpool goalkeeper who infamously made two glaring errors against Real Madrid in the Reds' 2018 Champions League final defeat.
They said: "Tudor 's decision had hit him like a ton of bricks. 1-0. And that was just the appetiser. The main course was soon to come. Because Tottenham is a dead team. A zombie .
"A disgrace. A ghost. A tragedy. Live surrealism. A joke that just won't do. It doesn't matter who plays. Whether [Micky] Van de Ven returned to the starting eleven, whether Richarlison played up front or [Conor] Gallagher waited in the wings, or whether Kinsky took over in goal.
"Put on some circus music; there's no other way to describe what comes next. Kinsky had dressed up as Karius and refused to let go of the disguise. Turn up the volume."
The Spaniard's rough take on Tudor's management didn't stop there. SPORT was equally baffled by the Spurs' manager's decision.
They said: "Igor Tudor , who surprised everyone with his decision, substituted him in the 17th minute, bringing on Vicario in his place. This move sealed the fate of the young goalkeeper, who was making his debut in the continental competition."
Asked about his choice to play Kinsky after the defeat, Tudor said: "After you see what happened, for sure, it was the wrong decision.
"But, it was, for me, the right decision to do [before the game], thinking before because, the team, it was a change of competition. Unfortunately, what happened, happened, I've never changed a goalkeeper after 30 minutes, but, it was not easy, it happened."
When queried if he had spoken to Kinsky after the game, Tudor replied: "It's normal. We don't need to comment. It's not the moment to speak too much."
He added: "Very strange, it was unusual, so it took our confidence. Then we restarted. We had a good opportunity to make it 4-2, and then we conceded the goal and it's 5-1. We apologise to the fans and to everybody."
Tudor has lost all four games that he's been in charge of so far at Tottenham. There's no let-up either as Spurs face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday in a potential season-defining week.
A loss to the defending Premier League champions, coupled with positive results for West Ham and Nottingham Forest, could leave Spurs in the relegation zone. The Lillywhites will then host Atletico in the return leg of the Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday, March 18.
English (US) ·