Mauricio Pochettino thinks Tottenham deserved more from 'painful' Manchester United defeat

Mauricio Pochettino admitted Tottenham's defeat at Manchester United was "painful" and refused to blame Harry Kane's absence.

Martial scored a late winner as United beat Spurs, who endured another disappointing visit to Old Trafford, where they have now lost 21 of 26 Premier League matches.

A game of few chances looked to be heading for a stalemate until Martial took advantage of a defensive lapse to latch onto Romelu Lukaku's flick-on and finish in the 81st minute.

"I'm very disappointed," he said. "It is very painful for our players, for everyone.

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"I think it was an even match. We lose in an action that should have been fixed before. I think it's very painful but that is football and I feel very proud.

"The effort was fantastic. The performance can always be better, but I think we compete and we fight a lot.

"Yes, disappointed but now keep going, move on."

Leading man Kane's absence was certainly felt at Old Trafford, with Spurs hoping to have the striker back from a hamstring injury to face Real Madrid in the Champions League.

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"I said before the game to everyone that always you are going to miss your main striker - and Harry Kane is one of best strikers in the world, of course," Pochettino said.

"But it is not an excuse today. We didn't lose the game because Kane wasn't here.

"It is a collective sport and always you must adapt when some player is not fit to play.

"I am happy with the performance from everyone and I think we deserve more than zero points."

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