Tottenham’s interim manager Igor Tudor didn’t attend the post-match press conference following defeat to Nottingham Forest on Sunday as he was informed of a family bereavement.
Spurs were beaten 3-0 by Forest in north London, with goals from Igor Jesus, Morgan Gibbs-White and Taiwo Awoniyi.
The result sees Nottingham Forest climb above Tottenham, leaving Spurs in seventeenth, only one point and one place above West Ham, who lost at Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon.
While it was a disappointing result, football will seem insignificant for the Tottenham boss after the sad news he received about a direct member of the family.
Posting on X shortly after the sport, football.london’s Alasdair Gold wrote: ‘Igor Tudor is not going to be undertaking post-match media duties as he has just been informed of a direct family bereavement.’
Bruno Saltor, Spurs’ assistant coach, handled media duties in Tudor’s absence, explaining: ‘It’s a private family issue and clearly it’s a difficult moment for him and we’re just attempting to support the easiest way we are able to.’
Asked when Tudor learned of the situation, he said: ‘I’m going to depart it there. As I said, it’s a private matter.’
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On the competition and crushing defeat, Saltor told the BBC: ‘If we deal with the result today, it’s a tricky one to take. It’s a very difficult one.
‘For those who deal with the last two games and the performance in the primary half today, we were significantly better. But small details are going against us straight away. The secret’s how we may be consistent with our performances throughout the 90 minutes.
‘The players care and so they get affected. We must be stronger than that. We must be focussed on what we wish to do. We want to maintain improving and improving.
‘We’re in a relegation battle. Everyone knows. We’re conscious of it. The players, they know. An important thing is to be together. The fans showed they were next to us. From the beginning to the finish, they were outstanding. We felt the support. For us, we must be stay connected.
‘We want to get even closer when there are problems like a family. That’s the message.
‘Still 21 points to play for. We’ve got shown we are able to compete against any team. We want to maintain improving and improving to get those points.’
After an enormous three points for his side, Forest boss Vitor Pereira told the BBC: ‘We began with a great level. But after 15-20 minutes, we began to lose quite a lot of possession, second balls and duels. We conceded quite a lot of set-pieces. We suffered until half-time.
‘Within the second half, I asked them to be themselves and play at our level. I asked them to play the identical way we began the sport and told them something will occur. And I’m completely satisfied that they played with personality and organisation. It was a vital win.
‘I actually have a team which have the standard to play with the ball. Nevertheless it’s difficult to play in our way in the event you lose the ball often. Tottenham were very aggressive within the duels. It was not our intention to defend but they pushed us.’
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