Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has admitted that he was delighted to get 90 minutes of football under his belt against Fulham on Monday.
Hojbjerg, who has been a fixture in Tottenham’s midfielder over the past three seasons, has fallen down the pecking order this year, with Ange Postecoglou preferring a centre-midfield pairing of Yves Bissouma and Pape Sarr behind James Maddison.
With Bissouma suspended against the Cottagers after his red card against Luton Town, the Dane made his first Premier League start of the campaign against Marco Silva’s men.
The 28-year-old delivered a solid performance, putting in some excellent defensive work and handling possession impressively, with Postecolgou praising the experienced midfielder for his display (Football.London).
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Hojbjerg loved being back in the Tottenham XI
Hojbjerg stated that he enjoyed being involved but admitted that the team were a little sloppy on the ball in the second half.
He told The Independent: “Honestly it felt amazing to play. It was really nice to play. It felt really good. First half I thought we played some good football.
“I think we had to score more than the one and second half we lost a bit of intensity. We let Fulham back into it but especially first half I thought was strong.
“It is up to the coach to analyse (second half) now and to show us a bit what we needed. Personally, I felt the quality on the ball dropped a bit, but again we always know the first game back from the internationals is always a challenge.”
The Denmark international called on his Spurs teammates to ‘live with the pressure’ of being top of the table, remarking that the Lilywhites need to take it one game at a time.
He added: “I think it is game by game and it is important to try to improve. Improve every single week and try to see where we can take it. I think you have to live with the pressure, assume the pressure but again it is about improving and looking at yourself week in, week out.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Hojbjerg demonstrated against Fulham that he is more than good enough in possession to play in Postecoglou’s system and that he can be relied upon when there are any injuries.
However, I do not see him starting ahead of either Sarr or Bissouma as the Senegalese and the Malian have been exceptional this season.
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