Roy Keane blasts Tottenham's 'criminal' defending on Champions League return

Spurs were playing at Wembley while White Hart Lane is being renovated

Christian Eriksen and Mousa Dembele after the defeat to Monaco (Getty Images)

Roy Keane has described Tottenham’s defending as ‘criminal’ during their 2-1 Champions League defeat to Monaco on Wednesday.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side were playing the tie at Wembley in front of a sold-out crowd while improvements take place at White Hart Lane, but they were unable to produce a performance to match the occasion.

The hosts found themselves 2-0 behind after only 30 minutes through Bernardo Silva and Thomas Lemar goals, with Toby Alderweireld providing the sole reply.

Spurs have a torrid record at Wembley, with defeat to Monaco making it six defeats and a draw in their last seven appearances under the famous arch, but Keane was expecting an improvement after their convincing 4-0 win over Stoke on the weekend.

"I think it was a tough night for Tottenham,” Keane said during his ITV analysis.

"That's one of the problems with Spurs, you never know what you're going to get. Brilliant at the weekend and then tonight, when it was set up with a huge crowd, the two goals they gave away in the first half an hour, it's criminal, it really is.

"The manager will be fuming with the defensive side of the team tonight. To give those goals away at that level, there's no coming back."

Spurs only signed Moussa Sissoko, Vincent Janssen and Victor Wanyama during the summer, none of whom started on Wednesday night, and Keane believes that while they will qualify from their group, they need to add some grit to their side if they are to win trophies.

"There's been a great improvement from Spurs in the last two, two-and-a-half years, but they're still missing something, a bit of steel, a bit of intensity,” Keane added.

“That's why they're still short in terms of winning trophies.

"I think they'll get out of this group though. They have enough in their locker. There's a lot of talent in the team and in the squad to get out of the group."