"Of course, it is all about keeping a cool head. The players gave everything out there, losing a tight game, the season is not going perfect and I think Ollie is very provoking in the way he's going down to celebrate in front of the Villa fans. He is just walking into João and he could just easily walk around. Everyone who has a been of a competitive nature, it is difficult, that can trigger things."
"Several players were engaged in angry exchanges following Wednesday's defeat at Bournemouth while Cristian Romero was serving an extra one-match ban against Villa from the Football Association for "acting improperly by failing to leave the field of play promptly" after his red card last month against Liverpool."
""It is the referee's work," he said. "I respect the referees and the competition. We were only angry because Boubacar Kamara was getting injured in in one action with Palhinha. The referee today, he did a fantastic job. Some moments happen with some players, we can understand in the circumstances.""
Tottenham exited the FA Cup after a 2-1 third-round defeat to Aston Villa. Emiliano Buendía and Donyell Malen put Villa 2-0 up at the break, and Wilson Odobert reduced the deficit on 54 minutes as Spurs rallied but failed to equalise. Ollie Watkins celebrated near Villa fans at full-time and approached João Palhinha, triggering a melee involving players and staff and leaving Palhinha squared up to Ezri Konsa as players left the field. Spurs have had recent end-of-match incidents, including angry exchanges after Bournemouth and an additional FA ban for Cristian Romero. Palhinha's early tackle that injured Boubacar Kamara drew frustration, and the referee was praised for his performance.
Read at ESPN.com
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