Mauricio Pochettino felt Tottenham deserved more than a point from Sunday's 1-1 draw with Everton at Goodison Park, but could not fault his team's performance.
Spurs dominated a one-sided first half, striking the woodwork twice through Harry Kane and Ben Davies, but were level at the break, after Dele Alli's acrobatic volley cancelled out Aaron Lennon's brilliant strike against the club where he spent a decade.
The hosts came back into the match in a breathless second half but Pochettino felt his side were in control for 75 minutes.
"We need to feel very proud. The players showed a fantastic performance. The first half was amazing, the team played very well. We started the second half the same way and only in the last 15 minutes that Everton matched us. We deserved more but football is football," Pochettino told Sky Sports.
Spurs finished the festive period top of the Premier League form table after three wins and a draw, but Pochettino admitted the away changing room was disappointed after the match.
"The changing room is a little bit down, a little bit sad, because our expectation was to try to win the game. it was impossible but we need to congratulate the players," he added.
Pochettino's team were so disappointed, in fact, that they abandoned their post-match routine of playing music after the final whistle.
Said the Argentine: "Always at the end of the game we play some music but today we are very disappointed [so we didn't]. Our feeling is that we drop two points. This is a very good sign. We are the youngest squad in the Premier League but we show our winning mentality."
Spurs have been talked about as possible title contenders this week and Pochettino believes the club can achieve its objectives if the players continue to perform as they did on Merseyside.
"You never know. In football, anything can happen. The way we played today, we can achieve what we want."
Aside from a wonderful 30-yard strike that hit the post, lone striker Kane was quiet and the England forward looked jaded in the final half an hour.
Pochettino was coy on Spurs' chances of entering the transfer market for reinforcements this month, but refused to rule out the possibility of adding to his squad.
"I think we have a very strong squad but you can always improve in football. We are happy but if you find the right player, the right profile, then why not."