Mauricio Pochettino described Tottenham's final-day capitulation at already-relegated Newcastle as his worst day in football management as his side's promising Barclays Premier League season ended on a crushing low.
Two goals from Gini Wijnaldum and others from Aleksandar Mitrovic, Rolando Aarons and Daryl Janmaat - three coming after Mitrovic had been sent off for a raking challenge on Kyle Walker - saw the Magpies to an improbable 5-1 win.
The result, combined with Arsenal's win over Aston Villa, ensured Tottenham would fail in their bid to finish above their north London rivals for the first time since 1995, and prompted the Spaniard to issue a damning verdict.
Pochettino said: "I think today we showed that this wasn't a team that had played well through the whole season, and I think this was my worst day as a manager in England or Spain.
"I feel very bad, because the worst thing is we showed we don't care about the position.
"We have shown in the last few weeks that what we need to improve for next season is our mental state. We can see the problem was that we are not ready to compete and we don't have enough quality to play with the ball.
"The big problem is that we have to try to identify and take decisions for the future. I was very disappointed and upset because the first 45 minutes of the match was a shame."
Such was the extent of Pochettino's plight he revealed he had been extended sympathy by Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez, despite the final whistle bringing an end to the hosts' top-flight tenure.
Pochettino admitted: "It was strange - Newcastle are relegated but he felt sorry for me."