Spurs´ Redknapp snaps after squad slip-up

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp vented his anger and disappointment after Tottenham ended their best ever season in the English Premier League with a horror show.

The east Londoner has a deserved reputation as one of the more amiable and relaxed managers in the top flight, but the usual chirpiness was nowhere to be seen as he reflected on an underwhelming end to their impressive season.

Tottenham relinquished a two-goal lead on their way to a 4-2 defeat at Burnley on Sunday.

Though they finished fourth in the league, earning a spot in the Champions League qualifiers, they could have had a place in the group stage had they won at Turf Moor and north London rivals Arsenal lost at home to Fulham.

Redknapp was not in the mood to accept any excuses, after early goals from Wales left-back Gareth Bale and Croatia midfielder Luka Modric were eclipsed by slick finishing from the Clarets’ Wade Elliott, Jack Cork, Martin Paterson and Steven Thompson.

“We’ve had a great season, I’ve been delighted with the performances during the year, but you always want to win,” Redknapp said.

“I’m bitterly disappointed. It wasn’t even a game at 2-0 and I couldn’t see any way we wouldn’t go on and win it comfortably.

“The crowd were getting edgy with Burnley and it was almost too easy for us. Then they got a goal back and were excellent in the second half.

“Burnley played fantastic and ran all over us. We were a shadow of ourselves in the second half. There are no excuses. A lot of our defending was poor.

“I played a strong team and didn’t come here to have a jolly. Maybe I should have made a few changes because one or two looked to be running on empty.

“But give full credit to Burnley, they created a lot of chances and showed they can play if you let them play.”

For Burnley, the impressive final 45 minutes should raise hopes for their future in the Championship following relegation.

Northern Ireland forward Paterson, whose absence through injury for four months was a factor in their decline, said: “We went out and played with a lot of freedom and maybe that’s what we should have done earlier in the season.”

Burnley manager Brian Laws said: “It’s a very nice feeling to win a game, but it’s not been frequent enough this season because we’ve missed out on a few occasions when we should have won.

“We will reflect in the summer on lost opportunities, but we probably got what we deserved this season because we didn’t win enough games. But we showed the ability at this football club in this game.”

Laws intends to add to his squad during the close-season and, buoyed by their timely success, the Clarets and their supporters will look forward to next season with more enthusiasm than seemed likely before this match.

Laws came under fire from supporters during the first half, but they all stayed to applaud him and the players as they did a lap of honour at the end.

“Supporters generally let you know if you’re not winning games and they were on our back — particularly mine — when we went 2-0 down,” he said.

“The first-half performance didn’t bode well for us, but the second half showed the players are behind the management. We produced good football that was exciting and attractive. The supporters want to see more of that.”