Ange Postecoglou insists he is unaffected by criticism from Tottenham fans.
The manager has come under increasing pressure during a disappointing season for Spurs.
And there was another low point on Thursday night when they were beaten 1-0 by Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
“I am fine. I don’t get affected by that. I will continue fighting my whole career,” Postecoglou said at a news conference on Friday morning.
“People want me to say something that will change the mood of the fans but I have never done that. My job is the performance of the team.
“I get that they are frustrated and angry. But at the same time, I understand the criticism towards me, but if anyone looked at the players and said they aren’t trying – then I am sorry they are not watching the right game.”
The relationship between Postecoglou and the fans took a nasty turn when he looked at them at the Bridge and cupped his ear after Pape Sarr appeared to equalise.
Fans had barracked the Australian when he opted to bring on Pape Sarr and Brennan Johnson for Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert.
His decision appeared to be vindicated when Sarr found the net – but the goal was disallowed and Postecoglou has been left with some explaining to do.
He insisted after the game that he was not goading the fans, he simply wanted them to celebrate.
He stood by that on Friday, saying: “I made a mistake last night in that I celebrated a goal.
“I just felt we needed something. Cracking goal from Pape I heard the fans weren’t happy and I felt the need to celebrate and it could be a real momentum shift to finish strong.
“My mistake was celebrating a goal. VAR defeated me.”