'Is there a question?': Ange fumes in awkward presser as 'toothless ...

Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou bristled in his post-match interview as he lamented a 1-0 loss away to Crystal Palace on Sunday.

Jean-Philippe Mateta scored the only goal of the game just after the half-hour mark at Selhurst Park to seal Palace’s first Premier League win of the season.

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Spurs defender Micky van de Ven was easily dispossessed deep in his own half before Daniel Munoz’s cross found Ebere Eze. He in turn set up Mateta, with the Frenchman on target with a low finish.

Defeat by one of their London rivals left Spurs eighth in the table, with Postecoglou’s men now having lost four of their nine league matches so far this term.

Postecoglou was in a no-nonsense mood after the match as his post-match interview took an awkward turn when he challenged the interviewer, who has just said “you’re not happy, obviously”.

“Why would I be happy?” Postecoglou responded. “Is there a question there?”

The interviewer didn’t back down, however, saying: “Only because I asked you if your level dropped below what you expected and you didn’t necessarily think that was the problem so...”

“No, but I identified another problem which was we didn’t battle today like they did,” Postecoglou replied. “So I think if you’re suggestion that our fans somehow weren’t happy with today then I think that’s a fair assessment. I’m not happy. The players aren’t happy.”

Inconsistency has been a perennial problem for Tottenham, last crowned champions of England in 1961, with Postecoglou accepting a Spurs side missing injured captain Son Heung-min had been outfought by Palace.

“It was one of those games with a lot of stoppages and battles and they (Palace) ended up winning a lot of them and coming out on top,” Postecoglou told the BBC. “There was a lot of disruption and it was hard to get any fluency. They did better than us.

“It turned into a game they were thriving on and we should have dealt with it better. It was a poor goal to concede, it had nothing to do with playing out from the back. That can happen.” The Australian added: “I’d be very surprised if they (Spurs supporters) were happy right now. Why would I be happy? If I’m unhappy then they’ll be unhappy.”

Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario was even more damning, telling Sky Sports: “They (Palace) fight and I think we lacked that today. We are disappointed because we have to fight. We play good football but maybe sometimes we lack the desire to fight.”

Spurs fans, rival rans and members of the English press were quick to poke fun at the disappointing day for Postecoglou and his team.

It was the sort of display that has been common place in Tottenham’s history and the term ‘Spursy’ - which is used to describe poor showings when they should win - has been thrown around.

Football writer for the UK Telegraph Nick Szczepanik was scathing in his assessment of a side that has a perfect record in the Europa League when rolling out a young side on a Thursday night, but has been up-and-down so far in the Premier League.

“If Tottenham Hotspur dislike the term “Spursy” so much, they should avoid putting in non-performances such as this,” he wrote.

“Against a winless Crystal Palace who began the game as the lowest scorers in the top five professional divisions in the country, they were careless at the back and toothless at the front. And nothing much happened in between either.

“How is it that a team on a run of seven wins in eight games in all competitions can scarcely show up for a London derby?”

Teenager Mikey Moore has been one of the shining light of their European campaign and the 17-year-old winger was rewarded for his efforts with a start against Palace.

He was compared to Neymar in a tongue-in-cheek manner by teammates James Maddison following their 1-0 win against Dutch side AZ Alkmaar on Thursday, and joined Dominic Solanke and Brennan Johnson in the front three on Sunday.

Moore’s selection came at the expense of German attacker Timo Werner - who was subbed at half time against AZ Alkmaar after missing two relatively straight forward chances - and Sky Sports pundit Jamie O’Hara believes the change was a mistake.

“I think Ange [Postecoglou] got it wrong. I think he picked the wrong team. Starting a 17-year-old away from home against Crystal Palace is a big, big ask. He [Moore] did alright but it’s a big ask to come in for that game and make something happen,” O’Hara said.

“Use him for 20 or 25 minutes, but the damning indictment of that is that Timo Werner has been so poor he [Postecouglou] has had to start Mikey Moore. But, I would have stuck with Werner and given him another game, especially away from home as he’s experienced.”

The challenges do not get more daunting for Tottenham than Manchester City in the Round of 16 of the EFL Cup on Wednesday night.

Postecoglou has discussed many times that he always wins trophies in his second year, so how they fare in the home knockout cup clash will be of great interest.

They then face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday - also at home.