Tottenham Hotspur interim manager Cristian Stellini has implored his players to "respect the plan" in the wake of their 1-1 draw with Everton in the Premier League.
In the Lilywhites' first game back since Antonio Conte's tumultuous tenure came to an end, there was little in the way of attacking inspiration for the North London club.
Spurs took the lead after Everton were reduced to 10 men, but Sean Dyche's side looked the more threatening during the final 20 minutes of the game, despite being a man down.
The relegation-threatened hosts levelled late on to deny Tottenham all three points - much to the chagrin of supporters - although a draw was enough to lift Spurs back into fourth place in the Premier League table.
Speaking to the media after the game, Stellini admitted that his side did not "lead the game" with an extra man on the field, but he has warned supporters not to expect an immediate change in fortunes overnight.
© Reuters
"I think we didn't lead the game after the red card. We had the chance to control the game better than we did. But sometimes we were rushed, frantic," football.london quotes Stellini as saying.
"We have to improve in this aspect, we know very well. It's a long process, we don't change it in one night. We change it in a long process.
"It's ok, but also you need players ready to move and to respect the plan. The plan was clear in my idea, and with one extra player we can do it better than this, absolutely."
With the deadlock yet to have been broken at Goodison Park, Abdoulaye Doucoure struck Harry Kane in the face right in front of the dugouts, and the Everton midfielder was swiftly given his marching orders in the 58th minute.
Ten minutes later, Kane drew first blood from the spot after Cristian Romero was felled by Michael Keane, and Stellini sent on soon-to-be free agent Lucas Moura in a bid to wrap up all three points.
© Reuters
However, the move backfired horribly, as Lucas also received a red card just six minutes after coming on for a late challenge on Keane, who shook off the tackle to net a sensational long-range equaliser on the 90-minute mark.
Lucas's nightmare cameo was witnessed by Villarreal loanee Arnaut Danjuma, who was an unused substitute for the sixth Premier League game in a row at Goodison Park, and Stellini was understandably asked about the Dutchman's lack of game time following Lucas's sending-off.
Danjuma - who snubbed Everton to join Tottenham at the last minute in January - is yet to start for the Lilywhites in any competition and has played a mere 47 minutes of football since arriving, but Stellini has insisted that there are no problems with the 26-year-old, who simply needs to wait his turn.
"Danjuma is one player. We obviously have three important players up front and today we used Lucas and then when we had 10 players after the red card we couldn't change," Stellini added.
"Danjuma is a good player, his effort is fine. We are happy with him. He just needs to wait for his time because in our squad it's not easy to play in the front three. It's not easy for him. We understand him but we are happy."
Tottenham are only ahead of fifth-placed Manchester United on goal difference having played two games more, and Stellini's side return to North London to host Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday afternoon.
No Data Analysis info
