Palace could have won 'with any luck whatsoever' - Hodgson
Crystal Palace had the better of the chances against Tottenham, and Roy Hodgson was downcast after it fell to a 1-0 Wembley defeat.
Published : Nov 05, 2017 21:24 IST
Roy Hodgson lamented Crystal Palace's total lack of luck as it failed to capitalise on being the better team against Tottenham, falling to a 1-0 defeat at Wembley .
Rock-bottom Palace created by far the better chances, but found surprise Spurs debutant Paulo Gazzaniga in inspired form.
The Argentinian saved brilliantly from Scott Dann, Andros Townsend and Luka Milivojevic before Son Heung-min picked out the corner in the 64th minute.
Wilfried Zaha scuffed wide after taking the ball around Gazzaniga - Palace's best chance - but Hodgson refused to single out the previous week's last-minute goal hero.
"It was a really painful blow because we weren't being bombarded," Hodgson told BT Sport after losing a competitive match at Wembley for the first time.
"We knew the quality they have and that they would dominate possession especially in the latter half of the middle.
"But we restricted them, they had one or two crosses but not many shots we had to worry about.
"We had a few moments of our own so it's a bitter blow to lose 1-0. With any luck whatsoever, we would have come away with points.
"There were a few moments. Just like they whizzed a few balls across, we did the same.
"That was a chance, the Wilf one, but we had other chances. When you don't score, you run the risk that the opposition will score. It was a good strike and that ended our hopes.
"It's not a great reward or great satisfaction but I'm pleased with way the team played. I'm pleased with how we went about our business.
"I can't ask more than they were giving to me, when you're playing Tottenham you need a bit of luck as well."
Palace is four points adrift of the nearest teams at the foot of the table, but Hodgson believes Sunday's dogged display shows it retains the fight for a survival scrap.
"The goal came when we were doing OK and we weren't under enormous pressure. If there was no belief, we would have collapsed," he said.
"In the final 10 minutes, it was more activity in the Spurs half, they were restricted to counters.
"It shows they still care, they still believe. Football's about two penalty areas - it's what you do in the opponent's penalty area and how well you defend your penalty area. They beat us in that respect."