Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola reflects on hard-fought 2-2 draw at Tottenham Hotspurs
09/03/2025
Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium, London, UK
09/03/2025
Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium, London, UK
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00:00Does that feel more like the two points lost in one game?
00:04Yes, I think we are disappointed.
00:06I think before coming here probably it's not the worst result, a point here.
00:10Difficult opposition, difficult stadium to play.
00:13But considering how the game has gone, our performance,
00:17definitely the feeling of losing two points, yes.
00:21Obviously the equaliser comes from the penalty spot.
00:25What did he make of that?
00:30I think Son is very smart.
00:32I think Son does very well.
00:34I think he forgot about scoring, about everything.
00:36He just tries to buy time to Kepa to force a contact and he manages.
00:41Kepa gives him the chance to find the contact somehow.
00:45And even if it's a slight touch or whatever,
00:48I was waiting for the refereeing decision because normally VAR doesn't overturn
00:52if there is a small contact.
00:54It's whatever the referee decides in the moment.
00:56He decided a penalty and it has cost us, yes.
01:01It was a pretty good performance up to that point.
01:04Lots of energy and quite a chaotic game and an outstanding first goal.
01:08What did you make of the Cherries' goal today?
01:12I think overall we've played really well.
01:15I think without the ball we've created a lot of offensive situations
01:20starting from very good presses, recovering the ball very high.
01:23Even in the first five minutes I think we go two times against the keeper.
01:26We don't score.
01:28We should have capitalised more.
01:30Even in the second half I think on the ball, attacking the spaces really well.
01:35The transitions I think there were being, like expected,
01:38not transitions for both teams.
01:40I think ours were being more clear.
01:44But at the end it's one point for each team
01:47and we have to look at ourselves and we need to be more efficient.
01:52Because big teams and teams that achieve big things,
01:58they find ways to win.
02:00Even in the games that haven't played well.
02:02In our case I think it's been the opposite.
02:05We are playing very well.
02:07You see the performance today away
02:10and you get one point from these two games.
02:13This is a part of, OK, they are smart, they are fortunate,
02:17they scored the first goal with a little bit of luck.
02:21But there is a part where you have to take the value
02:30from the things that you are doing well
02:32and today we couldn't.
02:34Do you think that's perhaps a symptom of a slightly more inexperienced side?
02:38A team that isn't used to playing in this position?
02:42We are a young team, it's true.
02:44But if you want to achieve things, you cannot use the excuses of
02:50we are young, so it's normal.
02:52No, we need to increase our demands.
02:55You have to be demanding with ourselves.
02:57After we don't arrive, we don't arrive.
02:59But I think it's a shame because the players are doing so many things so well
03:05that really not to get the points that I think we deserve
03:09is a shame, yes.
03:14We are nearly ten days from the international break
03:17and Alistair Kepa has been performing so well this season.
03:23Dim, we've seen today the performance, he has done amazing again.
03:27Do you think they are ready to be with the Spain national team
03:30in the next international break?
03:33It's not my job, I don't know.
03:35Luis de la Fuente is my friend.
03:38He will take the best decision.
03:40I think the only thing I can say is that they are playing very well.
03:43Very well at a very high level, both.
03:46I don't know if Dim is going to go with the U21s, straight away with the first team.
03:51It's a decision that I don't have to make.
03:53I think we are very happy with Kepa.
03:56He's been very, very solid during all the season.
04:00But it's true that Spain has England, these kind of national teams.
04:04You deserve it because you are playing very well.
04:07I think they have so many options, different options.
04:11Whatever the decision is, it probably would be the right one.
04:25We are very happy with Dango.
04:27He has evolved a lot since last season.
04:30Dango has some spectacular physical qualities.
04:33But now I think he is taking advantage of those qualities.
04:37He is playing in many different positions.
04:41He adapts.
04:43And for me, as a coach, that is very valuable.
04:46He is scoring more goals, more assists.
04:49He is close to scoring a goal.
04:51And I trust he will stay in this line until the end of the season.
04:58You've beaten Arsenal, you've beaten Man City.
05:01You've come here and outplayed Tottenham for long periods.
05:04You're into the FA Cup quarter-finals.
05:06You've played so well in so many games this season.
05:09Should we enjoy watching this team play together now?
05:13Because you're going to have a lot of big clubs interested in a lot of your players this summer, aren't you?
05:18These are problems that we don't need to solve today.
05:22I don't know what's going to happen.
05:25For me, my biggest concern is that the good things that we are doing, that I agree.
05:30I think we are playing very well, we are performing really well.
05:33To make them matter at the end.
05:35Because I think the players deserve to take something from this season.
05:39And we need to, I don't know why I say it, be more efficient, more experienced.
05:47We need this gap with the teams that are, I don't know, because they are bigger or because they have more experience.
05:56They find ways to take points.
05:59I think we need to improve this game management, call it like you want.
06:05But I will try to fight until the end to get something from this season, definitely.
06:12Andoni, can I just ask you about the first goal of Milos?
06:15Yes.
06:16Especially, I mean, the way he entered to the ball and then runs 30 yards.
06:19I could see you instructing him as well.
06:21It was one of the goals of the season perhaps.
06:23Can you just talk about the way he stepped up this season?
06:26What were you shouting at him on the touchline?
06:28Now, Milos has improved a lot from past season and he has done a great job.
06:33I think defensively, I think he's a player that because of his physical condition arrives so many times to the last third.
06:41With the ball under control, to put good crosses.
06:45The number of assists, of good balls he was having was quite low past season.
06:54Because he arrives a lot and he has this good offensive power.
06:59But this season I think he's decided much better.
07:01He's adding quality to his deliveries.
07:03He's more calm when he arrives.
07:05And today was a lovely ball.
07:07And I think he spends a lot of time crossing and at the end of training we have to fight with him to put him inside.
07:14And I think it's good that at least it's worth it.
07:18And today he had a really good delivery, yes.
07:22And Dani, you've had a lot of increases this season.
07:25I believe you had a brilliant year.
07:26You were great from the table.
07:27Do you have the belief in the squad that they can kind of make the last push in the last months?
07:34I don't know.
07:35I wish I would know, but I don't know if we are able to get the reward at the end of the season.
07:41I think it's not that we've had a lot of injuries.
07:44I think we've had not a big number of injuries, but bad injuries.
07:50Players that the number has been quite low, but injuries of surgery, three months, four months.
07:55The foot, obviously the ACL, the worst for Menes.
07:59But Alexis Scott's surgery, Marcos, Nessie, Julen, Araujo.
08:03Not a lot of injuries, but bad injuries.
08:05And it has taken a lot of games from each player.
08:10But I think we are doing well.
08:13We are performing well.
08:14I see reasons to believe because I see our performances and we go to difficult places and we play well.
08:22But it's true that you see other teams that are around us on the table.
08:26They find ways to make their performances matter.
08:31You see, I don't know, Villa yesterday.
08:34They find a way to win it.
08:36Brighton even over the time, one penalty.
08:40We miss a little bit of this.
08:43We are still on the fight and I hope we can continue there until the end.
08:51Just on Ryan Christie, obviously there was a bit of doubt coming into it.
08:55How is he doing?
08:57Obviously he was fit enough to start, but how is he doing when he got off?
09:00Yes, with Ryan we have to be smart with his management.
09:03I think we are being quite selective training.
09:06Feeling going day by day.
09:08Sometimes we don't know why he's feeling better.
09:10Sometimes he's more with the pain.
09:12I think especially first half he was really good.
09:14He played very well.
09:15Probably in this kind of injuries that are more chronic, after the half time it's difficult to get the same.
09:24I don't know, because you stop and then it costs us a little bit more to start again.
09:30But he's very experienced.
09:32He's very honest, so we have to listen to him.
09:36Whenever he thinks he's ready to go, for us it's perfect.
09:43If not, also we have other options.