Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi claimed Tottenham “were lost” after Barcelona’s quickfire start at Wembley last night.
Trailing after just two minutes to a Philippe Coutinho goal following a Hugo Lloris error, Spurs went in at half-time 2-0 down after Ivan Rakitic’s stunning volley.
Harry Kane pulled one back before Messi restored Barca’s two-goal lead, but when Erik Lamela hit the net Tottenham were suddenly in with a chance of at least a point.
They could not find an equaliser, though, and in the final minute Messi rounded off another mesmeric performance with his side’s fourth.
It means Tottenham are already playing catch-up in Group B following their opening two matches and face a must-win double header with PSV Eindhoven to stay in contention.
And Messi, who also had a hand in Barca’s first two goals and hit a post twice in the second half, was unrelenting on his view on Spurs.
Messi told Movistar+: “It is never easy to play away from home in the Champions League, but we were extraordinary in the first half.
“We are happy because it turned out how we wanted too. The opposition were lost at the start and we were superior.”
Harry Winks meanwhile, says Tottenham will learn from their dramatic 4-2 Champions League defeat by Barca.
But the young midfielder admits it is all about results, despite a brave comeback from a patched-up Spurs side.
“We went out in the second half and gave everything we could,” Winks told Spurs TV. “We took two chances and any other day we could have come away with three points.
“When you concede so early on it’s always difficult against a team like Barcelona, but we are proud of each other, the way that we fought.
“When they scored late on it was a kick in the teeth, but it’s one we will learn from and hopefully go into the next couple of games, take that experience and win.
“Ultimately it comes down to results and to not win is tough to take. We’re proud of the way we fought and showed character, but all that gets taken away from you when you don’t win, especially at home.
“We’ve got to win both games against PSV and we’ve got to beat Inter Milan as well if we stand any chance of going through. Every game is winnable as we showed against Barcelona in the second half.”