Ghana midfielder Mohammed Kudus says he is proud of his Tottenham Hotspur teammates despite their late collapse against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday night at Stadio Friuli.
The Europa League champions looked set to stun the French giants after surging into a 2-0 lead, only to concede twice in the closing stages before losing in a penalty shootout.
Micky van de Ven opened the scoring in the first half, and new captain Cristian Romero doubled the advantage shortly after the break. However, PSG substitutes Lee Kang-in and Gonçalo Ramos struck in the final 10 minutes to level the match. In the shootout, misses from Van de Ven and Mathys Tel handed PSG the trophy.
“It is disappointing to lose the game in the end,” Kudus said afterwards. “This is a big lesson to stay focused for the whole 90 minutes, but I am really proud of the team for their work ethic and energy. I think we had them for most of the game; we just need to keep full concentration at the end. We take this as a lesson. We have a game at the weekend and our focus is now on that.”
Kudus, making his first competitive appearance for Spurs since joining from West Ham United in the summer, impressed on the night and came close to scoring in the first half when his glancing header clipped the post.
The 23-year-old will now prepare for his Premier League debut for Tottenham on Saturday against newly promoted Burnley.
