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Hugo Lloris says Spurs 'got smashed' in north London derby as Nuno Espirito Santo accepts blame

Spurs suffered a first-half horror show - GETTY IMAGES
Spurs suffered a first-half horror show - GETTY IMAGES

Nuno Espirito Santo admitted he got it wrong and made “bad decisions” as Tottenham Hotspur were “smashed” by their North London rivals Arsenal.

Tottenham suffered a first-half horror show in which goals from Emile Smith Rowe, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Bukayo Saka effectively ended the game as a contest.

Head coach Nuno made a half-time reshuffle by sending on Oliver Skipp and Emerson Royal at half-time and Spurs improved, with Heung-Min Son pulling a goal back.

But it was far too late and Harry Kane again failed to find the net in the Premier League, missing a great second-half chance, as Spurs slipped to their third successive League defeat.

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Given Tottenham approached a number of managers before Nuno, including German national team coach Hansi Flick, who was in the Emirates stands, the Portuguese already faces a battle to convince fed up fans he was the right man to succeed Jose Mourinho.

Nuno took off Dele Alli at half-time and said: “The performance was not good. The game plan was not good. The decisions were not good. It was not a good day for us. Definitely not a good day. I decided bad.

“I won't name individuals who didn't play the game plan right, but the game plan was not right according to the players who were on the pitch. I refuse to go much further here, but I will say it to the players.

“We prepared the game, had a good meeting, but we were not able to do it. We were not strong enough. It is not easy to tell this. The decisions were not according to the game plan. If you want to be strong in the midfield, they were maybe not right the decisions I made.”

Asked if he had a message for Tottenham’s worried fans, many of whom left the Emirates early, Nuno added: “We didn’t achieve the standards the fans deserve. I promise we will try to fix it, but these are only words after that it’s work.”

Tottenham captain Hugo Lloris said: “We lost complete control in the first half. We got smashed and then had a good reaction.

“It's frustrating and very disappointing. It's the moment to stick together and carry on. The players were ready, but we lost a bit of control. We lost our balance in the middle of the pitch.

“When you concede three goals in each of the last three league games you cannot hide the problems. But we are professional. There is a long way to go. We need to stay calm."

Arsenal’s victory was watched by Spotify billionaire Daniel Ek, who remains interested in buying or investing in the club having had at least one bid turned down, and club legend Thierry Henry.

The win was Arsenal’s third in succession in the league and head coach Mikel Arteta said: “This win is for the fans. They were there when we needed their support. We started really strongly and were determined. In the second half we had to do what we had to do."

Arsenal lost their first three league games of the season and Arteta added: “When you are trying to rebuild and trying to do the right things you have to stay by your values. Now we are creating the connection with our supporters.”