James Milner scored on his home debut for Aston Villa but there was still a look of pain engraved on his youthful features. You do not smile when a draw feels like a defeat.
"We're disappointed," he said. "We should have beaten Tottenham."
The 1-1 scoreline was an improvement on the 4-0 defeat away to West Ham United the previous Monday but that was of little consolation. Milner played his part as Villa created chances in the first half but found Paul Robinson, the Tottenham goalkeeper, in fine form.
"Robinson is a world-class goalkeeper and he has made the saves that maybe other goalkeepers wouldn't have made," Milner said. "We can take a lot of positives.
"Tottenham are a good team with some great players and they are going to do well this season so a point might not be a bad result. Obviously, we are disappointed not to get three but, hopefully, we can take the positives from the game and move on."
Milner's goal, a shot from just outside the penalty area, was impressive, as was his performance. His debut against West Ham was one best forgotten.
"We had to improve," he said. "There were no excuses the other night. West Ham played better than us but we have to forget about that.
"It is nice to get off the mark. It is a big club and is great to be playing. It is a good set of fans, as well.
"It is great to have a fresh start. Obviously, I wasn't playing too much at Newcastle and it is great to get the chance to come out on loan, not just to any club but a big club like Villa and get the chance to play my football.
"It helps that I knew a few of the lads from England or from Newcastle or Leeds and that has helped me to settle in and just concentrate on the football."
