Ange Postecoglou says he is not concerned about "bruised egos" after criticising Timo Werner's performance in Tottenham's draw with Rangers.
Werner was replaced at half-time of the Europa League tie at Ibrox that finished 1-1, and Postecoglou described his display as "unacceptable" and not "anywhere near the level" required.
When asked on Friday how the 28-year-old had or might respond to the comments, Postecoglou said: "I've got no time for that sort of stuff anymore. We're in a fight here, collectively we're in a fight. I'm not going to go around worrying about people's bruised egos.
"We want to achieve things, we want to be successful. We're down to the bare bones in players, if there's somebody in that dressing room who's fit, able to contribute and feels like they need something extra in this moment, he's probably not the right type.
"We had some last night that understand the situation that we're in. We've got 15 fit players, in some positions we've only got two players. I'm not going to go around trying to get extra out of people if they don't give extra right now. That gives me an indication of where they're at."
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Ange Postecoglou heavily criticisef Timo Werner's performance for Tottenham in their Europa League game against Rangers
Postecoglou was then asked if that tied into the wider issue of Spurs' struggle to win a trophy.
Cristian Romero appeared to direct criticism towards the club for a perceived lack of investment after their defeat to Chelsea last weekend, but Postecoglou said: "I'm sick of that. That's an excuse for me. That's why, even with Cristian Romero's comments, I just think that's an excuse.
"At the moment, I'm here, I take responsibility, these players, we're here. If we think some mythical thing exists in this club that prevents success then change it. What's the point otherwise? Don't come here. I just don't buy into that.
"At the moment, we're in a difficult situation because of where we are squad-wise and you either embrace this challenge. If you want excuses, there's a million of them to why we can't be successful. If that's what your clutch is, particularly in tough moments, what's the point? Move on then. Go somewhere else."
In response to whether he regretted his comments about Werner, Postecoglou said: "No, it wasn't criticism, it was assessment. If we've played poorly, we've played poorly. With Timo, it wasn't about whether he'd played well or not, we had a really difficult game.
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Sky Sports' Michael Bridge and Gordon Duncan analyse Tottenham's draw with Rangers in the Europa League
"I'm asking 18-year-olds to do massive jobs and you've got senior players - he's a senior player, he's an international, won the Champions League - that there's a level of application and performance you need to rise to, to help the team. He didn't reach that.
"Me taking him off at half-time was a statement enough. The same way I won't hide behind team performances, it's not different to players or anyone else."