Jermain Defoe has admitted Tottenham's players were left 'devastated' by the loss to Man City but is confident they can bounce back.
Spurs striker determined to bounce back from last-gasp loss
Jermain Defoe has admitted Tottenham's players were left 'devastated' by the loss to Manchester City but is confident they can bounce back in the big games coming up.
Spurs' Premier League title hopes were dealt a hefty blow on Sunday as they were beaten 3-2 in an eventful clash at the Etihad Stadium to fall eight points behind City.
Mario Balotelli, who had earlier escaped punishment after catching Scott Parker's head with his boot, controversially netted the winning penalty deep into stoppage time.
Defoe himself had gone close to scoring just moments earlier and he concedes the defeat was hard to stomach, even if there were plenty of positives to take from the performance.
The striker is now looking to respond as quickly as possible to keep Spurs on course for a successful campaign.
"We were so unlucky. The lads are devastated," said Defoe.
"We really thought we were going to win the game when it was 2-2.
"It was just unfortunate. We just needed that bit of luck and it wasn't there.
"But we will keep going. We have got some big games coming up - games that we can get points from, games I think we can win. We'll be fine."
Difficult
Defoe also reflected on his agonising late miss, when he could not quite stretch to turn Gareth Bale's cross into the net from close range.
The 29-year-old said on
Spurs TV Online: "Gaz's one at the end, it was difficult for him.
"He went past the player and had to play it in front instead of across, so I could pass it in.
"He had to play it in front and maybe just hit it a little too hard. I couldn't really reach it.
"As soon as I made the run I thought it was a goal.
"I had to stretch my leg and hook it around the post but I couldn't really reach it.
"Even then I thought we'd still get the point, the lads had done brilliantly.
"But they got a last-minute penalty and it was all over."
Positive
Defoe believes Tottenham demonstrated their quality by coming from behind to almost become the first team this season to avoid defeat at City in the Premier League.
Speaking about Spurs' mindset when they trailed 2-0, Defoe added: "You have still got to be positive and think if you get a goal back then you have got a chance. It is football, anything can happen.
"I thought we played well and in the second half I thought we were the better side. We created a lot of chances.
"We were 2-0 down and to come back was great, but I would definitely say we didn't deserve to lose the game.
"There are not many teams that can come here and get points or perform like we did.
"It was a tough game but we really performed, so there are a lot of positives we can take."
