Tottenham coach Antonio Conte was left baffled by his team's performance in Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion, as he struggled to surmise what went wrong.
Spurs came into the weekend on a run of four successive Premier League wins, a run that had seen them score 14 times and concede just twice.
Their display on Saturday was a significant contrast, as Spurs failed to get a single shot on target for the first time in 21 league games, and it dealt them a major blow in the top-four race.
They remain three points clear of fifth-placed Arsenal, with the Gunners in action against Southampton later on Saturday.
Tottenham's underwhelming expected goals (xG) haul of 0.5 reflected their lack of invention and threat in attack, while Conte focused on Spurs' ponderous nature in possession.
He told BT Sport: "We started very slowly and in this type of game you have to move the ball more quickly. Maybe the weather? I want to find an excuse, but it was not a good game for us."
Leandro Trossard got the decisive goal late on with a tidy finish, and Spurs' inability to at least hold on to a point was another source of irritation for Conte.
Speaking in his post-match news conference, Conte added: "For sure not a good result for us. A lesson that we can learn is that there are games that if you are not able to win you have to not lose.
"It was very clear that it wasn't our day. It was important to get three points before our rivals in the race for the Champions League but the game was very difficult.
"It was a tactical game for both sides and Brighton were very good at closing the space. I think that we are able to do much better than his.
"Perhaps a draw was more fair but Brighton played a good game. If you win against Arsenal and Tottenham away, you know it's a good game."
Yet Conte was also philosophical about the situation, adamant Spurs must get used to the expectation that surrounds tussles like the one they are in for Champions League qualification.
"Once you reach a good position in the table, then you have to try to keep this position. It's a good experience for us to try to cope with pressure."
Xavi commits U-turn and elects to stay at Barcelona
Barcelona head coach Xavi will continue in his role next season after an unexpected reversal of his decision to leave at the end of the 2023-24 campaign, according to widespread reports.
The former Barcelona midfielder announced in January that he would walk away from the job at the end of the current season, even though his contract was due to run until the end of the following term.
Xavi acknowledged the Barcelona role had taken its toll but reportedly changed his plans after a meeting with Blaugrana president Joan Laporta on Wednesday.
The 44-year-old was initially appointed as Barca coach in 2021 before leading the LaLiga giants to the top-flight title in the 2022-23 campaign.
Xavi's initial announcement of his intentions to depart Barcelona came after a tough period following defeats to Girona, Real Madrid and Athletic Club before revealing the news in the aftermath of a 5-3 loss to Villarreal.
The Blaugrana turned their fortunes around after that decision became public, though, going 13 games unbeaten across all competitions.
Unsurprisingly, that run encouraged Laporta, vice president Rafa Yuste and sporting director Deco to plead with Xavi to continue until the end of his agreed contract.
Though that undefeated streak ended with a 4-1 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain that dumped Barcelona out of the Champions League quarter-finals, Xavi has now agreed to stay in his role.
The league title is almost out of reach this term, however, as Real Madrid moved 11 points clear of second-placed Barca with Sunday's 3-2 Clasico victory.
Premier League title race gets Man City's blood pumping - Guardiola
Pep Guardiola relishes the decisiveness of the Premier League run-in, as Manchester City prepare for another huge game in the title race.
The Citizens breezed past Luton Town 5-1 at the Etihad Stadium in their last outing in the competition, but were not in Premier League action at the weekend.
While they booked a place in the FA Cup final with a 1-0 win against Chelsea on Saturday, Arsenal went back to the summit by recording wins over Wolves and the Blues before Liverpool also leapfrogged Guardiola’s team with a 3-1 victory at Fulham on Sunday.
City, who will be without the injured Erling Haaland, face Brighton on Thursday, in what is one of their two games in hand on the Gunners.
Asked how he feels going into the final few games of the season with so much on the line, Guardiola said: “Every game is adrenalin. Every game is important. But yes it’s decisive. Every mistake or every step back makes it more difficult. It is what it is.
“We have been here in the last years fortunately many times so that’s why we know what we are playing for.”
Guardiola was also questioned about the criticism levelled at match officials after Nottingham Forest’s strongly worded statement following their 2-0 defeat at Everton on Sunday.
"Absolutely disagree. In every league in the world, this kind of thing will happen more and more, but of course, I never had doubts about that,” said Guardiola.
"They make a mistake, they feel bad. It's normal. When they do the job, they want to do it well. The game is so difficult, it is fast and quick, decisions have to be made in one instant. It's not easy.”
Haaland out of Brighton clash, confirms Man City boss Guardiola
Manchester City will be without Erling Haaland when they take on Brighton, Pep Guardiola has confirmed.
Haaland missed Saturday's FA Cup semi-final victory over Chelsea with a muscular injury he sustained against Real Madrid last week.
And the issue will also see the striker, who has scored 20 Premier League goals this season, miss out against the Seagulls on Thursday.
"Erling is not ready for tomorrow," said Guardiola, who added that City will be able to call on Phil Foden and John Stones.
"It's not a big issue but he's not available."
Haaland has scored, on average, every 109 minutes in the league this season.
However, the Norwegian has actually underperformed his expected goals (xG) of 23.7.
He has also chipped in with five assists, giving him an overall goal contributions tally of 25. Haaland has created 28 goalscoring chances for team-mates across the campaign.
After Arsenal's 5-0 thrashing of Chelsea on Tuesday, reigning Premier League champions Manchester City sit four points off the summit in third place, albeit with two games in hand.
Second-place Liverpool will aim to move level on points with the Gunners by beating Merseyside rivals Everton on Wednesday.
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