Boss Mauricio Pochettino has acknowledged that his Tottenham Hotspur produced a below-par performance against Cardiff City.

A goal from Eric Dier earned a 1-0 victory for the North London outfit, who have moved into third place in the Premier League table ahead of Sunday's fixtures.

However, Spurs were thankful to several saves from goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, and Pochettino has called for improvements after the international break.

The Argentine is quoted by BBC Sport as saying: "We are one point off the top of the Premier League but we need to improve a lot. Now we have two weeks before the next game - but it is a very tough schedule when we return."

"After Barcelona on Wednesday, the most important thing was to win. We created a lot of chances but we didn't kill the game. I'm happy to finish with 18 points going into the international break. We only conceded a few chances and we finished the game on top."

Spurs are next in action when they face West Ham United at the London Stadium on October 20.