William Gallas fears the repercussions of Emmanuel Adebayor’s dismissal against Arsenal could extend beyond Saturday’s derby defeat as the forward begins a three-match suspension in the Premier League.

Referee Howard Webb showed Adebayor a straight red card for violent conduct at the Emirates following a dangerous studs-up tackle on Santi Cazorla.

The Togo international will now miss Spurs’ top-flight fixtures against West Ham, Liverpool and Fulham – and Gallas is concerned that his absence will cost the Lilywhites even more points over the next fortnight.

“I think it will be a big loss for us because Adebayor has a lot of quality,” said Gallas. “He can keep the ball, he can score and we can play long or short.

“From the pitch it [the red card] was difficult for the players to accept. We spoke with the referee. We said to him ‘it’s not fair’, but some people on the TV said he deserved the red card.

“I think he [Adebayor] was sorry, even if he didn’t say anything. He was really sorry, we could see that on his face. Now we have to forget that game because it was painful.”

A former Arsenal man himself, Gallas is fully aware of the effect that such a heated atmosphere can have on a player.

“You have to keep everything inside, you have to be strong,” he said. “I know it’s not easy, especially when you come back to the Emirates. The fans boo you but you have to be strong.

“It is very difficult to accept [the result]. At the beginning of the game we played very well and we scored the first goal. I thought we controlled the game but after the sending-off of Adebayor it was really difficult for us.

“We were unlucky because we were down to 10 men and that’s hard, especially when you play away and when you play against a team like Arsenal, who play really good football.

“It’s really difficult to keep that score so I think we were unlucky. In the Man City game, and against Chelsea, I think we missed something but we have to work again and try to come back.”

Spurs have the ideal opportunity to put their defeat against Arsenal behind them as they look ahead to another London derby against West Ham on Sunday, but Gallas feels the biggest challenge this week will be a mental one.

“The season is still long. We have to work hard and we know how hard it is to qualify for the Champions League,” he said.

“I know it’s not easy sometimes but we have to come back to training, work again and try to have confidence because it’s true that confidence can be low. We lost 5-2 so the confidence can be low, but we will be okay.

“Every game is very good because it means you can forget about the game you have played before.

“West Ham will be one more difficult game but we have to carry on. We have a target, we have to keep working in training and it will come.

“We have had some injured players as well like Assou-Ekotto, Kaboul and Dembele, who are very important for us.

“The squad is still good, it’s really strong but we are a little bit unlucky because we don’t have all the players. When you have the squad you don’t have to try to play without them.”

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