Jose Mourinho hails Tottenham's 'change of mentality' after grinding out win over Burnley

Son Heung-min's late goal seals 1-0 win for Spurs at Turf Moor

Tottenham's South Korean striker Son Heung-min celebrates after scoring the winner against Burnley. AFP

Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho hailed his side's character after grinding out a 1-0 win against a stubborn Burnley on Monday.

The victory moved Spurs up to fifth in the Premier League, with prolific front pair Harry Kane and Son Heung-min combining to finally find the breakthrough.

Mourinho had suggested that the squad he inherited from Mauricio Pochettino a little under a year ago was perhaps a little too nice.

"Teams of good guys, they never win," he said in Amazon's behind the scenes documentary All or Nothing.

But the manner of their win against Sean Dyche's side suggested that Mourinho's team are now made of sterner stuff.

"This is the kind of match with all the ingredients to lose two points and sometimes three. We prepared ... well but it is the game that without character and determination you lose points here so I am very happy," he said after Son's 76th minute header settled a dour encounter.

"I said before the game this was not the game for beautiful football or the game to score many goals. Sean Dyche knows how to organise a team and to stop the better teams from playing through it.

"I want the team to go to every match to win it, home away Premier League, Europa League, you can lose or draw but go to win it. This is something special, a change of mentality, of philosophy," he added.

After giving up a three-goal lead to draw 3-3 with West Ham in their last game, Mourinho felt there was a real strength in his team's mental approach.

"I have the feeling again that after we felt the pain, got the points in a positive way that tonight it is not going to happen and we are not going to concede. If we are not going to score lots of goals we cannot concede and everyone fought for that."

__________________________

Burnley v Tottenham ratings

BURNLEY RATINGS: Nick Pope - 6, The England keeper was bailed out by Matthew Lowton when he smashed the ball to Son Heung-min. Wasn’t given the help needed for the Korean’s header though. AFP

Matthew Lowton - 7, He was so switched on defensively and put in a brilliant performance, and got forward occasionally as well. AFP

Kevin Long - 7, Stood strong throughout the game. Notably made a great block to deny Son. Was booked for a foul on the South Korean. EPA

James Tarkowski - 7, Read the game well and was another Burnley defender who performed well. AFP

Charlie Taylor - 7, Was great defensively and also managed to get the better of Matt Doherty going forward on a couple of occasions. EPA

Johann Gudmundsson - 6, Worked hard and did well in his general play but was lacking quality in his end product. AFP

Ashley Westwood - 7, Put in a real leader’s performance and pressured the Spurs midfield. Reuters

Josh Brownhill - 7, Was booked after just one minute after the kick-off, but he managed his game brilliantly after that. Reuters

Dwight McNeil - 6, Showed great quality when given the chance, but that didn’t happen too often as he had to fulfil his defensive duties. Reuters

Ashley Barnes - 6, Made an absolute nuisance of himself but was a little bit wasteful at times. Reuters

Chris Wood - 7, His hold up play is absolutely superb. He battled for scraps throughout the game and helped create a few chances for Barnes. Reuters

SUB: Jay Rodriguez (Gudmundsson 84’) – N/R, Put himself about a bit but couldn’t do enough to turn the tide of the game. Reuters

SUB Matej Vydra (Barnes 89’) – N/R, Wasn’t given enough time to make any real impact. Reuters

TOTTENHAM RATINGS: Hugo Lloris - 6, He wasn’t really tested that much so it’s hard to give him any more than this. Reuters

Matt Doherty – 5, Was sloppy in a lot of his play and gave the ball away unnecessarily at times. Was also beaten too easily at points. Reuters

Toby Alderweireld - 7, Took a big hit from Barnes early on but got over it well and looked fairly comfortable. EPA

Eric Dier - 6, Got away with a risky piece of play but was comfortable for the majority. Reuters

Ben Davies - 6, Was convincing with the majority of his play, but got away with a shocking pass that Brownhill was unable to make the most of. AFP

Moussa Sissoko - 6, Drove forward well at times and helped Spurs control possession for large periods. AFP

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg - 6, Was comfortable for the majority, but did get away with giving the ball away in what could have been a dangerous area. Reuters

Lucas Moura - 5, He tried to get himself into the game but was invisible for most of his time on the pitch. Reuters

Tanguy Ndombele - 7, Was slated after facing Burnley last season but he provided good quality in the middle this time around. EPA

Son Heung-min - 8, Scored in his fourth game in a row to help Jose Mourinho’s side overcome a very resolute Burnley outfit. AFP

Harry Kane - 8, It looked like things wouldn’t happen for him but , as ever, he made a vital contribution and his header assisted Son. Also made a great clearance off the line when it was still 0-0. AFP

SUB Erik Lamela (Moura 57’) - 7, Helped add a bit more creativity to Spurs’ play, and his corner led to Tottenham’s goal. AFP

SUB Giovani Lo Celso (Ndombele 78’) – N/R, Helped to ensure Spurs didn’t give the ball away sloppily as they saw out the game. Reuters

SUB Joe Rodon (Son 93’) – N/R, Got his Premier League debut and helped waste a couple of seconds. Didn’t really have to do anything else. Reuters

__________________________

Mourinho's approach of asking Kane to play in a deeper role, often operating just behind Son and Lucas Moura, has produced the most potent attack in the league with 16 goals in six games.

"It is great, we need everyone to be scoring and assisting at the top end of the pitch. Me and Sonny have had a nice little partnership going recently and hopefully it continues," said Kane.

"Even today it was not an amazing assist but it fell well for Sonny and 1-0 away to Burnley is a fantastic result," he added.

Kane said the win, at a venue where they failed to win in the past two seasons, was a sign of real progress for Tottenham.

"It was a massive game today, it is not an easy place to come. It is going to be a tough game, a big battle and these are the games you need three points if you are going to be up there at the end of the season. Massive fight from the lads," he said.