Jose Mourinho praised the efforts of his players in the second half of Tottenham’s draw at Burnley.
However, the Spurs boss insisted that he “needed more” from some of his players in the first half.
The Spurs were 1-0 at Turf Moor when Chris Wood concealed a reverse shot by Hugo Lloris, but Dele Alli’s second-half penalty saved one point for them.
Speaking to Nigel Adderley of talkSPORT after the game, Mourinho said of the performance in the second half: “Very good. Very well. Burnley is good, Burnley is strong but in the second half we were very strong.
“We probably deserved more. We tried everything until the last second and I am very happy with the attitude of the players.
“We had no control over our midfield [in the first half]. We need more from certain players, more responsibility, more attitude, more intensity, and we got it in the second half with the changes I made. “
Mourinho made five changes to the Spurs who were beaten by Norwich in the FA Cup Wednesday night.
However, Eric Dier kept his place on the side despite his antics after the match which saw him climb in the stands and face a fan who would have insulted his brother.
But the Portuguese praised Dier, who played both in midfield and in defense against the Clarets.
Mourinho added, “I didn’t see him play as well as he did in the midfield today. And again, in the center back, he was playing very well.
“I think it’s about self-esteem and self-confidence.
“To play as well as a central defender, to increase confidence levels, he goes to the midfield and was very, very good. Very very good.
“When people asked about his state of mind, I don’t think I need to ask him again because I think he was very, very good.”
It was not a good weekend for Spurs as Arsenal and Sheffield United, who are both rivals to finish in the Champions League spots, both won.
And if Chelsea beat Everton on Sunday, the Spurs will be seven points behind the fourth. However, the fifth will be the last qualifying place provided that the European ban on Manchester City is maintained.
The Spurs are still in the Champions League this season, but must make up a goal deficit at German club RB Leipzig to reach the quarterfinals.
Mourinho admits that his team has “limits” but promised that the players “would leave everything” on the field in the return match.
He said, “Tuesday we go and we win or we lose and we absolutely leave everything there. Not a piece of energy and heart and soul.
“People are tired, some people are injured, we have limits… we know we have limits. It is not an easy season.
“The spirit is fantastic, the boys have shown it at every difficult moment. They showed it today. “