Dejan Kulusevski insists Tottenham must “change for the better” following their heavy defeat to Premier League leaders Liverpool on Sunday.
Spurs were beaten 6-3 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Arne Slot’s Reds ran riot in north London, courtesy of goals from Luis Diaz, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai and Mohamed Salah.
Kulusevski was among the goals for Spurs, alongside James Maddison and Dominic Solanke, but it was a largely miserable evening for Ange Postecoglou’s side.
The Australian, who kept the same team following Thursday’s 4-3 win over Manchester United, was without several key defensive players, including Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie, as well as goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.
Get in 💪🔴 #TOTLIV pic.twitter.com/abECvx8l3V
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 22, 2024
The injury list is proving costly: Postecoglou’s team have now conceded 10 goals in their last two home league games, and now find themselves in the bottom half of the table despite being the division’s top scorers.
And Kulusevski believes Spurs must learn from the defeat.
“You have to improve, you have to find ways,” said the Sweden international.
“Maybe we should maybe let them [Liverpool] have the ball more, but you know, that’s not how we play. So we went out, we gave everything. It didn’t work, maybe we [will] learn for the next time.
“You have to think about how are we physically? Who’s playing? How many games have we played in the last week? Who are we playing? Have they rested for one week or something?
“You have to put everything in because it is like life. It’s not just black and white. It’s a lot of factors going into it.
“We have to learn because we conceded six goals. I can’t sit here and say that we’re doing something perfectly, we’re not. We have to change a little bit for the better, always try to change for the better.”
Son Heung-min goes level with Harry Kane today 🤝
Only Hugo Lloris (361) has more Premier League appearances for Spurs.#TOTLIV pic.twitter.com/wHiVRnpoC7
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) December 22, 2024
Postecoglou, meanwhile, could not hide his frustration when asked by a BBC reporter if anything other than Tottenham’s injury woes were behind his side’s recent struggles.
“I’m just going to stop answering these questions,” Postecoglou said. “If people can’t see the obvious I‘m not going to point it out.
“Make of it what you want, yes we’re conceding goals. If you want to discount the fact we’re missing a goalkeeper, two centre-backs and a left-back and that hasn’t coincided with what we’re doing.
“I don’t know what to say anymore. I think people make up their mind in their own way. They either think what I’m doing is good or bad, and that’s fine.”
Next up for Spurs is a meeting with their former manager Nuno Espirito Santo when they make the trip to Nottingham Forest on Boxing Day.
