Postecoglou stands by Werner criticism: 'Needs to be better'

Ange Postecoglou urged Timo Werner to improve his "application" after slamming the Tottenham forward's dismal display in the 1-1 draw against Rangers.

Spurs manager Postecoglou was frustrated with Werner's limp performance in the Europa League at Ibrox on Thursday.

Dejan Kulusevski's 75th-minute equaliser allowed Tottenham to escape Glasgow without another damaging defeat in the midst of their wretched run.

But Postecoglou said Werner, who was hauled off at half-time, had delivered an effort that "wasn't acceptable".

Ahead of Sunday's trip to Southampton in the Premier League, Postecoglou stood by his view on the former Chelsea player.

"It wasn't criticism. It was assessment. With Timo it wasn't about whether he played well or not. It was a difficult game last night," Postecoglou told reporters on Friday.

"I'm asking 18-year-olds to do some massive jobs and you want senior players, and he's a senior player, he's an international and he's won the Champions League, there's a level of application and performance you need to rise to help the team. He didn't reach that.

"I think me taking him off at half-time was a statement enough. It needs to be better. The same way I won't be hiding behind poor team performances."

Werner has struggled at Tottenham in the same way he did across London with Chelsea.

The 28-year-old has scored just once in 19 games in all competitions this season.

Despite that woeful run, Werner is likely to be needed this weekend with nine players unavailable.

And with Tottenham languishing in 11th place, Postecoglou challenged the German and his team-mates to show their character at St Mary's.

"We're in a fight here. I need people who are up for the challenge. I'm not going to go around worrying about people's bruised egos," he said.

"We're down to the bare bones in players. If there's somebody in the dressing room who's fit, able to contribute but who feels he needs something extra in this moment, he's probably not the right type.

"We just need people to have that level of commitment and application to find our way through. As much as I am talking about Timo, I am talking about the whole group and all of us right now.

"This is not about one person, it's what we're in and the situation we're in right now. We've got a limited amount of players, we're really stretched but we've got big games that can set up our season."