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Pochettino proud of dominant Spurs display

Cape Town - Mauricio Pochettino said it was 'important' for Tottenham to win at St. James' Park after beating Newcastle United 2-0 in their opening Premier League fixture on Sunday.

Spurs struggled against the recently-promoted side in the first half but took command of the tie after Jonjo Shelvey was dismissed for stamping on Dele Alli three minutes after the break.

It was Alli who got on the end of a Christian Eriksen ball on 61 minutes to open the scoring before Ben Davies finished off a sweeping move nine minutes later to end the tie as a competition.

Harry Kane hit the post in the dying minutes, and Pochettino told BBC Sport that 3-0 would have been a more accurate reflection of the game. 

After the match, the Argentine said: "If Harry Kane had scored to make it 3-0 at the end, that would have been a bit more fair.

"We knew how they play, so narrow and deep. It was difficult to move the ball quickly. We had control and we were helped by the red card but I think we deserved to win the game.

"It was not easy to find the space and create chances. It's important to improve. In a stadium that doesn't have good memories for us, it was important to win. It was a clear red card."

Young right-back Kyle Walker-Peters, who made his debut for Spurs, with Kieran Trippier injured, scooped the Man of the Match award - justifying to Pochettino he was right to trust the 20-year-old defender.

"For a young player, don't put pressure on him. He showed in the USA that he was ready to play," Pochettino explained.

"It’s important to keep his feet on the grass, it’s only one Premier League game."

Alli, meanwhile, told Sky Sports that he has his fiery side in check, having not overly reacted to Shelvey's stamp.

"I've had a few talks with the gaffer [Mauricio Pochettino] and a couple of people," Alli said. "I've been caught out a couple of times with my temper.

"It's something I like to keep in my game and it was a game today when we had to keep our cool. There was no need to react today."

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