Micky Van de Ven conceded Tottenham did not do enough during their defeat by Aston Villa on Sunday.
Spurs were beaten 2-1 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where they suffered an 11th loss in the space of 18 Premier League home games.
Thomas Frank’s side, who had the chance to go third in the table, made a bright start, taking the lead after just five minutes through Rodrigo Bentancur’s deflected strike.
However, despite facing an xG of just 0.37, long-range goals from Morgan Rogers and Emiliano Buendia turned the contest around, and gave Villa all three points in North London.
Van de Ven, who wore the armband after Cristian Romero was injured during the warm-up, acknowledged the hosts were made to pay for a drop in performance levels.
“A tough game, a tight game. We know they’re a really tough team to play against,” he told Sky Sports. “I don’t think we did enough. If we’d done enough, we wouldn’t have lost this game.
“I don’t think we gave too much away, they scored two goals from outside the box. But I think we can also create more for ourselves. We always give 100% to the fans and the club and everyone.”
Full-time in N17. pic.twitter.com/qNbuFBxYkk
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Spurs saw their seven-game unbeaten streak in all competitions brought to an end, while Frank’s wait for a first Premier League win over Unai Emery continues.
Yet, the Tottenham boss felt his side were unlucky to leave the contest empty-handed.
“There were two big teams on the pitch,” he said. “We started very well. Villa produced two goals out of nothing, and we had four or five moments where we couldn’t produce.
“If you told me before the game that these players will be shooting from these positions, I’d have said: ‘happy days!’
“It was exactly the game I expected it to be, with two good teams, very tight. There weren’t too many chances. I think, overall, it could’ve gone either way. I think 1-1 would’ve been a fair result.
“Villa scored two goals from outside the box in moments where you wouldn’t expect them to score. Fair play for their moments of quality. We also easily could’ve won.”
