well if the club has anyone back there who half as an idea then they would be.
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Manager Ange Postecoglou
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He is a perfect fit, after all he's a cock !!
If Ange Postecoglou deserves criticism, what about Tottenham Hotspur’s recruitment?
Postecoglou's principles are perpetually debated - but what if Spurs simply haven't signed the right players for him to be a success?
www.nytimes.com
If Ange Postecoglou deserves criticism, what about Tottenham Hotspur’s recruitment?
Tim SpiersIn the era of managerial principles, you would be hard pressed to find someone whose philosophies have been scrutinised harder than Ange Postecoglou.
Should he sacrifice his belief system to prioritise results over performances? Should he tone down the all-encompassing, uber-proactive attacking approach and do a bit of defending with a deeper defensive line? He loves being asked about all this stuff, too.
Let’s be honest, it’s not even a debate as to whether he will tone down or double down. If that wasn’t already abundantly clear, then when he suggested after the catastrophic 3-2 defeat at Brighton that he didn’t want to be “falsely rewarded”by making substitutions to try to see out the game, well, there’s your answer.
The principles won’t change but how about the players? Can they adapt to what Postecoglou wants? And if not, why don’t Spurs just buy better ones?
Tottenham’s latest defeat to Nottingham Forest, which left them in the bottom half of the table and a remarkable 11 points behind Nuno Espirito Santo’s third-placed team, showcased contrasting styles between the two teams and two managers, both of which could have been forecast before kick-off.
Forest were incredibly physical, almost to the point of intimidation. They defended deep and in big numbers, they pounced gleefully on loose balls, countered at pace, and were generally vile to play against. These were traits Nuno also perfected in his time at Wolves (and never had time to at Spurs).
Spurs were the complete opposite defensively, leaving gaps for Forest to exploit. At the other end, they attempted to pick locks, having to forge and twist and scythe to create any opening through the red wall with combinations and brisk movement, via 70 per cent possession. With Dejan Kulusevski doubled-up on, it rarely worked. Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson just didn’t have it in them.
This all made the first goal so important… and in turn made the manner in which their soft centre melted to allow Morgan Gibbs-White space and time to venture forward and pick the pass that teed up Anthony Elanga’s winning goal all the more unforgivable. Kulusevski could only dream of such luxuries.
Forest are a team and a club having the time of their lives right now, with a buoyancy you can touch and feel (like the one Postecoglou generated at Spurs 15 months ago). It was no disgrace to lose here, especially given Spurs’ current absentee list, but watching them attempt to pry their way though Forest’s midfield, let alone their defence, you couldn’t help but ask: ‘Is this the best Spurs have got?’
This wasn’t a defeat centred on principles or even tactics. After falling behind, Spurs had 60 minutes to try to score a goal in an attack-vs-defence training drill and they didn’t really generate a great chance, let alone equalise. Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels was not unduly stretched in the second half.
With so many attacking players on the pitch, was that down to the instructions Postecoglou had given them or were the players just not up to it?
Son and Johnson were unable to create much of note, Kulusevski was crowded out and full-backs Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence weren’t too impactful in the final third. The bench couldn’t lift them either, with James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall not making much of a difference to a one-paced midfield, and Timo Werner thrown on in the closing minutes because he was the only attacker to choose from.
Spurs may at some point decide their manager isn’t for them and that they need to go through another cycle of purgatory, but if, as a club, they are short of players good enough to take them to the top end of the table — and short of the squad depth required to cope with the style and amount of football they are playing — then the cycle will only repeat itself.
Pragmatism, idealism, defence-first, attack-first; whatever the approach, the results haven’t consistently improved for some time now. And the only consistency in that time comes from above.
“I think the most important department in the club is the scouting department,” Pep Guardiola said in 2019. “Much more than managers and players. When they choose well, 80 per cent of the job is done.
“When we don’t choose well or they don’t choose the players we need for the way we want to play or the quality they have, you spend a lot of time and energy and sometimes you don’t have enough time, with the number of fixtures, to improve.”
Spending time and energy trying to improve and sometimes you don’t have enough time? Sounds pretty familiar.
Tottenham are paying for mistakes they made in the summer: mistakes like signing just one senior player in Dominic Solanke and spending more than half the budget on three youngsters.
Archie Gray may have showed yet again here why Spurs were so keen to spend big on him as one for the future with an accomplished display out of position at centre-back, but there is no doubt that Spurs needed a back-up goalkeeper, some back-up senior defenders, and another ready-made forward player or two with end product. None of those happened, despite the horrendous injury problems they suffered last season and despite having more fixtures to contend with this season.
“We’re asking a lot of this group of players,” Postecoglou said. “A lot of these guys are playing every three days. It’s only logical they are not going to be at their sharpest but they are trying and that’s all I can ask if them.”
They are trying. And they are playing for Postecoglou but the squad isn’t big enough, and the problems they are having were foreseeable.
With Spence now missing Tottenham’s game against Wolves on Sunday after being booked twice against Forest and Radu Dragusin potentially facing time out having suffered an ankle injury, their problems will be compounded even further.
Spurs have won two league games from eight since early November: both against two of the league’s out-of-form teams in Manchester City and Southampton. They are miles off the top four and hope is dwindling of having a decent season.
In the circle of blame, there is a sizeable portion that can be attributed to Postecoglou but recruitment, at the root of any team’s success, deserves the biggest scrutiny of all.
Should he sacrifice his belief system to prioritise results over performances? Should he tone down the all-encompassing, uber-proactive attacking approach and do a bit of defending with a deeper defensive line? He loves being asked about all this stuff, too.
Let’s be honest, it’s not even a debate as to whether he will tone down or double down. If that wasn’t already abundantly clear, then when he suggested after the catastrophic 3-2 defeat at Brighton that he didn’t want to be “falsely rewarded”by making substitutions to try to see out the game, well, there’s your answer.
The principles won’t change but how about the players? Can they adapt to what Postecoglou wants? And if not, why don’t Spurs just buy better ones?
Tottenham’s latest defeat to Nottingham Forest, which left them in the bottom half of the table and a remarkable 11 points behind Nuno Espirito Santo’s third-placed team, showcased contrasting styles between the two teams and two managers, both of which could have been forecast before kick-off.
Forest were incredibly physical, almost to the point of intimidation. They defended deep and in big numbers, they pounced gleefully on loose balls, countered at pace, and were generally vile to play against. These were traits Nuno also perfected in his time at Wolves (and never had time to at Spurs).
Spurs were the complete opposite defensively, leaving gaps for Forest to exploit. At the other end, they attempted to pick locks, having to forge and twist and scythe to create any opening through the red wall with combinations and brisk movement, via 70 per cent possession. With Dejan Kulusevski doubled-up on, it rarely worked. Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson just didn’t have it in them.
This all made the first goal so important… and in turn made the manner in which their soft centre melted to allow Morgan Gibbs-White space and time to venture forward and pick the pass that teed up Anthony Elanga’s winning goal all the more unforgivable. Kulusevski could only dream of such luxuries.
Forest are a team and a club having the time of their lives right now, with a buoyancy you can touch and feel (like the one Postecoglou generated at Spurs 15 months ago). It was no disgrace to lose here, especially given Spurs’ current absentee list, but watching them attempt to pry their way though Forest’s midfield, let alone their defence, you couldn’t help but ask: ‘Is this the best Spurs have got?’
This wasn’t a defeat centred on principles or even tactics. After falling behind, Spurs had 60 minutes to try to score a goal in an attack-vs-defence training drill and they didn’t really generate a great chance, let alone equalise. Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels was not unduly stretched in the second half.
With so many attacking players on the pitch, was that down to the instructions Postecoglou had given them or were the players just not up to it?
Son and Johnson were unable to create much of note, Kulusevski was crowded out and full-backs Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence weren’t too impactful in the final third. The bench couldn’t lift them either, with James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall not making much of a difference to a one-paced midfield, and Timo Werner thrown on in the closing minutes because he was the only attacker to choose from.
Spurs may at some point decide their manager isn’t for them and that they need to go through another cycle of purgatory, but if, as a club, they are short of players good enough to take them to the top end of the table — and short of the squad depth required to cope with the style and amount of football they are playing — then the cycle will only repeat itself.
Pragmatism, idealism, defence-first, attack-first; whatever the approach, the results haven’t consistently improved for some time now. And the only consistency in that time comes from above.
“I think the most important department in the club is the scouting department,” Pep Guardiola said in 2019. “Much more than managers and players. When they choose well, 80 per cent of the job is done.
“When we don’t choose well or they don’t choose the players we need for the way we want to play or the quality they have, you spend a lot of time and energy and sometimes you don’t have enough time, with the number of fixtures, to improve.”
Spending time and energy trying to improve and sometimes you don’t have enough time? Sounds pretty familiar.
Tottenham are paying for mistakes they made in the summer: mistakes like signing just one senior player in Dominic Solanke and spending more than half the budget on three youngsters.
Archie Gray may have showed yet again here why Spurs were so keen to spend big on him as one for the future with an accomplished display out of position at centre-back, but there is no doubt that Spurs needed a back-up goalkeeper, some back-up senior defenders, and another ready-made forward player or two with end product. None of those happened, despite the horrendous injury problems they suffered last season and despite having more fixtures to contend with this season.
“We’re asking a lot of this group of players,” Postecoglou said. “A lot of these guys are playing every three days. It’s only logical they are not going to be at their sharpest but they are trying and that’s all I can ask if them.”
They are trying. And they are playing for Postecoglou but the squad isn’t big enough, and the problems they are having were foreseeable.
With Spence now missing Tottenham’s game against Wolves on Sunday after being booked twice against Forest and Radu Dragusin potentially facing time out having suffered an ankle injury, their problems will be compounded even further.
Spurs have won two league games from eight since early November: both against two of the league’s out-of-form teams in Manchester City and Southampton. They are miles off the top four and hope is dwindling of having a decent season.
In the circle of blame, there is a sizeable portion that can be attributed to Postecoglou but recruitment, at the root of any team’s success, deserves the biggest scrutiny of all.
If Ange Postecoglou deserves criticism, what about Tottenham Hotspur’s recruitment?
Postecoglou's principles are perpetually debated - but what if Spurs simply haven't signed the right players for him to be a success?
If Ange Postecoglou deserves criticism, what about Tottenham Hotspur’s recruitment?
Tim Spiers
In the era of managerial principles, you would be hard pressed to find someone whose philosophies have been scrutinised harder than Ange Postecoglou.
Should he sacrifice his belief system to prioritise results over performances? Should he tone down the all-encompassing, uber-proactive attacking approach and do a bit of defending with a deeper defensive line? He loves being asked about all this stuff, too.
Let’s be honest, it’s not even a debate as to whether he will tone down or double down. If that wasn’t already abundantly clear, then when he suggested after the catastrophic 3-2 defeat at Brighton that he didn’t want to be “falsely rewarded”by making substitutions to try to see out the game, well, there’s your answer.
The principles won’t change but how about the players? Can they adapt to what Postecoglou wants? And if not, why don’t Spurs just buy better ones?
Tottenham’s latest defeat to Nottingham Forest, which left them in the bottom half of the table and a remarkable 11 points behind Nuno Espirito Santo’s third-placed team, showcased contrasting styles between the two teams and two managers, both of which could have been forecast before kick-off.
Forest were incredibly physical, almost to the point of intimidation. They defended deep and in big numbers, they pounced gleefully on loose balls, countered at pace, and were generally vile to play against. These were traits Nuno also perfected in his time at Wolves (and never had time to at Spurs).
Spurs were the complete opposite defensively, leaving gaps for Forest to exploit. At the other end, they attempted to pick locks, having to forge and twist and scythe to create any opening through the red wall with combinations and brisk movement, via 70 per cent possession. With Dejan Kulusevski doubled-up on, it rarely worked. Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson just didn’t have it in them.
This all made the first goal so important… and in turn made the manner in which their soft centre melted to allow Morgan Gibbs-White space and time to venture forward and pick the pass that teed up Anthony Elanga’s winning goal all the more unforgivable. Kulusevski could only dream of such luxuries.
Forest are a team and a club having the time of their lives right now, with a buoyancy you can touch and feel (like the one Postecoglou generated at Spurs 15 months ago). It was no disgrace to lose here, especially given Spurs’ current absentee list, but watching them attempt to pry their way though Forest’s midfield, let alone their defence, you couldn’t help but ask: ‘Is this the best Spurs have got?’
This wasn’t a defeat centred on principles or even tactics. After falling behind, Spurs had 60 minutes to try to score a goal in an attack-vs-defence training drill and they didn’t really generate a great chance, let alone equalise. Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels was not unduly stretched in the second half.
With so many attacking players on the pitch, was that down to the instructions Postecoglou had given them or were the players just not up to it?
Son and Johnson were unable to create much of note, Kulusevski was crowded out and full-backs Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence weren’t too impactful in the final third. The bench couldn’t lift them either, with James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall not making much of a difference to a one-paced midfield, and Timo Werner thrown on in the closing minutes because he was the only attacker to choose from.
Spurs may at some point decide their manager isn’t for them and that they need to go through another cycle of purgatory, but if, as a club, they are short of players good enough to take them to the top end of the table — and short of the squad depth required to cope with the style and amount of football they are playing — then the cycle will only repeat itself.
Pragmatism, idealism, defence-first, attack-first; whatever the approach, the results haven’t consistently improved for some time now. And the only consistency in that time comes from above.
“I think the most important department in the club is the scouting department,” Pep Guardiola said in 2019. “Much more than managers and players. When they choose well, 80 per cent of the job is done.
“When we don’t choose well or they don’t choose the players we need for the way we want to play or the quality they have, you spend a lot of time and energy and sometimes you don’t have enough time, with the number of fixtures, to improve.”
Spending time and energy trying to improve and sometimes you don’t have enough time? Sounds pretty familiar.
Tottenham are paying for mistakes they made in the summer: mistakes like signing just one senior player in Dominic Solanke and spending more than half the budget on three youngsters.
Archie Gray may have showed yet again here why Spurs were so keen to spend big on him as one for the future with an accomplished display out of position at centre-back, but there is no doubt that Spurs needed a back-up goalkeeper, some back-up senior defenders, and another ready-made forward player or two with end product. None of those happened, despite the horrendous injury problems they suffered last season and despite having more fixtures to contend with this season.
“We’re asking a lot of this group of players,” Postecoglou said. “A lot of these guys are playing every three days. It’s only logical they are not going to be at their sharpest but they are trying and that’s all I can ask if them.”
They are trying. And they are playing for Postecoglou but the squad isn’t big enough, and the problems they are having were foreseeable.
With Spence now missing Tottenham’s game against Wolves on Sunday after being booked twice against Forest and Radu Dragusin potentially facing time out having suffered an ankle injury, their problems will be compounded even further.
Spurs have won two league games from eight since early November: both against two of the league’s out-of-form teams in Manchester City and Southampton. They are miles off the top four and hope is dwindling of having a decent season.
In the circle of blame, there is a sizeable portion that can be attributed to Postecoglou but recruitment, at the root of any team’s success, deserves the biggest scrutiny of all.
Tim Piers is the most nothing journalist we've had covering Tottenham for a while, seems gutted to have been moved on from covering Wolves & his articles are like a copy and paste with no editing from a shit AI
If Ange Postecoglou deserves criticism, what about Tottenham Hotspur’s recruitment?
Postecoglou's principles are perpetually debated - but what if Spurs simply haven't signed the right players for him to be a success?
If Ange Postecoglou deserves criticism, what about Tottenham Hotspur’s recruitment?
Tim Spiers
In the era of managerial principles, you would be hard pressed to find someone whose philosophies have been scrutinised harder than Ange Postecoglou.
Should he sacrifice his belief system to prioritise results over performances? Should he tone down the all-encompassing, uber-proactive attacking approach and do a bit of defending with a deeper defensive line? He loves being asked about all this stuff, too.
Let’s be honest, it’s not even a debate as to whether he will tone down or double down. If that wasn’t already abundantly clear, then when he suggested after the catastrophic 3-2 defeat at Brighton that he didn’t want to be “falsely rewarded”by making substitutions to try to see out the game, well, there’s your answer.
The principles won’t change but how about the players? Can they adapt to what Postecoglou wants? And if not, why don’t Spurs just buy better ones?
Tottenham’s latest defeat to Nottingham Forest, which left them in the bottom half of the table and a remarkable 11 points behind Nuno Espirito Santo’s third-placed team, showcased contrasting styles between the two teams and two managers, both of which could have been forecast before kick-off.
Forest were incredibly physical, almost to the point of intimidation. They defended deep and in big numbers, they pounced gleefully on loose balls, countered at pace, and were generally vile to play against. These were traits Nuno also perfected in his time at Wolves (and never had time to at Spurs).
Spurs were the complete opposite defensively, leaving gaps for Forest to exploit. At the other end, they attempted to pick locks, having to forge and twist and scythe to create any opening through the red wall with combinations and brisk movement, via 70 per cent possession. With Dejan Kulusevski doubled-up on, it rarely worked. Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson just didn’t have it in them.
This all made the first goal so important… and in turn made the manner in which their soft centre melted to allow Morgan Gibbs-White space and time to venture forward and pick the pass that teed up Anthony Elanga’s winning goal all the more unforgivable. Kulusevski could only dream of such luxuries.
Forest are a team and a club having the time of their lives right now, with a buoyancy you can touch and feel (like the one Postecoglou generated at Spurs 15 months ago). It was no disgrace to lose here, especially given Spurs’ current absentee list, but watching them attempt to pry their way though Forest’s midfield, let alone their defence, you couldn’t help but ask: ‘Is this the best Spurs have got?’
This wasn’t a defeat centred on principles or even tactics. After falling behind, Spurs had 60 minutes to try to score a goal in an attack-vs-defence training drill and they didn’t really generate a great chance, let alone equalise. Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels was not unduly stretched in the second half.
With so many attacking players on the pitch, was that down to the instructions Postecoglou had given them or were the players just not up to it?
Son and Johnson were unable to create much of note, Kulusevski was crowded out and full-backs Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence weren’t too impactful in the final third. The bench couldn’t lift them either, with James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall not making much of a difference to a one-paced midfield, and Timo Werner thrown on in the closing minutes because he was the only attacker to choose from.
Spurs may at some point decide their manager isn’t for them and that they need to go through another cycle of purgatory, but if, as a club, they are short of players good enough to take them to the top end of the table — and short of the squad depth required to cope with the style and amount of football they are playing — then the cycle will only repeat itself.
Pragmatism, idealism, defence-first, attack-first; whatever the approach, the results haven’t consistently improved for some time now. And the only consistency in that time comes from above.
“I think the most important department in the club is the scouting department,” Pep Guardiola said in 2019. “Much more than managers and players. When they choose well, 80 per cent of the job is done.
“When we don’t choose well or they don’t choose the players we need for the way we want to play or the quality they have, you spend a lot of time and energy and sometimes you don’t have enough time, with the number of fixtures, to improve.”
Spending time and energy trying to improve and sometimes you don’t have enough time? Sounds pretty familiar.
Tottenham are paying for mistakes they made in the summer: mistakes like signing just one senior player in Dominic Solanke and spending more than half the budget on three youngsters.
Archie Gray may have showed yet again here why Spurs were so keen to spend big on him as one for the future with an accomplished display out of position at centre-back, but there is no doubt that Spurs needed a back-up goalkeeper, some back-up senior defenders, and another ready-made forward player or two with end product. None of those happened, despite the horrendous injury problems they suffered last season and despite having more fixtures to contend with this season.
“We’re asking a lot of this group of players,” Postecoglou said. “A lot of these guys are playing every three days. It’s only logical they are not going to be at their sharpest but they are trying and that’s all I can ask if them.”
They are trying. And they are playing for Postecoglou but the squad isn’t big enough, and the problems they are having were foreseeable.
With Spence now missing Tottenham’s game against Wolves on Sunday after being booked twice against Forest and Radu Dragusin potentially facing time out having suffered an ankle injury, their problems will be compounded even further.
Spurs have won two league games from eight since early November: both against two of the league’s out-of-form teams in Manchester City and Southampton. They are miles off the top four and hope is dwindling of having a decent season.
In the circle of blame, there is a sizeable portion that can be attributed to Postecoglou but recruitment, at the root of any team’s success, deserves the biggest scrutiny of all.
Some quotes from Ange:
Source: https://www.echo-news.co.uk/sport/n...ails-positive-window-tottenham-rule-signings/
Expecting anyone to "turn things around" with their keeper and all CB's missing - on top of the other squad issues - is asking for nothing short of a miracle.
Either they support him until he gets his team back or they acknowledge that results PRIOR to the injury crisis were not good enough anyway and sack him accordingly.
Now... I'm one of the vanishingly few posters on this board who are "deluded" enough to believe he should be backed until he gets his team back BUT 3 games under these circumstances is quite frankly ridiculous dithering and those who are Ange Out (and have been for some time) have every right to be irritated by it.
You reckon Australia would accept an American coaching their cricket team?
Complete fish out of water
Complete fish out of water
Antonio Conte happy with Tottenham signings but plays down title chances
Antonio Conte has insisted his side need time to gel and ‘reduce the gap’ to Manchester City and Liverpool
amp.theguardian.com
Have we been without 2 CBs and a GK for 13 months straight?
Give it up, Ange is shit. He's out of his depth and never should have gotten a job at West Ham, much less Tottenham. I wouldn't hire him at Millwall or QPR, FFS.
Antonio Conte happy with Tottenham signings but plays down title chances
Antonio Conte has insisted his side need time to gel and ‘reduce the gap’ to Manchester City and Liverpool
He only said that the squad had gone in the right direction. Hardly the glowing review that Ange expressed.
I can post a whole lot more by a cavalcade of previous mangers, buddy.
But the fact I can find that by Conte - the most volatile of managers - should be enough to indicate to you that trying to beat Postecoglou with this particular stick is the height of foolishness.
We know he wanted Gallagher, Neto and Eze as first teamers into this squad. He didn't get them. Like all our previous managers didn't get the players they wished for. And like all previous managers he talked up what he DID get.
Seriously of all the things to have a pop about? This is the lamest one of all. Steer clear
It's probably a moot point. As time goes by I'm more convinced he'll get to stay at least through next season and maybe the one beyond that. Unless things completely fall apart and stay that way I don't think Levy or Munn really wants the aggravation of another change and the villagers would be out with pitchforks and torches if he tried to fire their favorite manager. My guess is he'll win enough to stay but not enough to make the people (like myself) happy who want to see Spurs take a big leap forward.
Maybe Ange should take a leaf out of Chairman Mao's little red book.
Even so it's just nonsense to say that this squad isn't good enough for the top 10 after almost half the season. This is more or less the same squad that finished 2 points behind the top 4 last season. Yes, injuries have an effect but Newcastle have injury problems aswell (Pope, Botman, Wilson, Livramento etc) but are 5th now.
Yep. Surely at this point they’d be relieved?
He won’t though. Players will have had enough soon I would think. They won’t like being beaten before they even get out there because the tactics are a mess.
I suspect dragusin’s agent will be first to break ranks and say something. Especially as his client is injured and getting criticism in the press.
It’s not even him. Every ex footballer says the same thing and it’s another one here, the team has to change tactics each game. I can’t believe the players are enjoying this nonsense. The English ones will be saying stuff to these guys in the media I bet.
You adapt to the opposition whilst trying to exert your philosophy. Because that’s what they are doing.
Even Troy Deeney is saying it. Lol.
Football is a results business first and foremost. This manager doesn’t even see the value of a point if it wasn’t earned the way he wanted.
Here is the Times article. So now it’s basically about him proving everyone else wrong.
Ange Postecoglou: I’ll go from joke to genius if I get it right at Spurs
Under-fire Tottenham head coach defends his refusal to compromise on his attacking style while key players are missing and insists squad is still behind him
Postecoglou could be without a fit centre back for Sunday’s home match against Wolves
Ange Postecoglou has suggested he could enjoy the last laugh as a “genius” if he sticks to his guns in the face of critics ridiculing his adventurous playing style at Tottenham Hotspur.
The head coach believes that the steps he is taking with his players will eventually pay off as they learn through their experiences, giving him a full-strength squad that can be easily rotated between matches.
However, in another blow for Postecoglou, Tottenham could be without a fit centre back for Sunday’s home match against Wolverhampton Wanderers and have been investigating why their players have suffered recurrences of muscular issues. The immediate concern is a run of four defeats and 19 goals conceded in nine matches across competitions since a 4-0 win over Manchester City in November, prompting criticism of Postecoglou’s failure to compromise on his methodology while key players are missing.
“There’s always people in life [who are] looked at a bit curiously because they do things a bit differently and they’re a bit of a joke until they get it right, then all of a sudden they’re a genius,” Postecoglou said. “That’s probably relevant to us right now.”
Postecoglou has the support of the club’s hierarchy, which is not looking to change head coach, but there is an understanding that results must improve. He has asked the club to strengthen when the transfer window opens next week and is confident his players still back him and his style.
“The first thing you look at as a manager is, are the players still responding to this, are they looking to an alternative out there? I haven’t sensed that at all,” Postecoglou said. “It’s very easy to, because it’s human nature to think we need to do something different or we’re obviously undermanned, let’s change something.
“The players still want to tackle this the way that we are tackling it,” Postecoglou says
“The players still want to tackle this the way that we are tackling it. But it’s up to me to guide them through that and show them all these things are temporary. If we do get through in a positive way, the bonus and the benefit for us is that it makes you stronger. Because you know whatever you face in the future, you’ve been through worse and overcome it.”
After Wolves, Spurs meet Newcastle United and Woolwich in the Premier League, Liverpool in their Carabao Cup semi-final and Tamworth in the FA Cup third round . They have work to do to finish in the top eight of the Europa League group stage, thereby avoiding a play-off tie.
“My body language and how I speak are really important at this time because other people take a lead off that and rightly so,” Postecoglou said. “I’ve often said in the past, we’re in a tough spot and there is a big fight at hand. But I love that. I love that I’m right in the middle of it and my job is to try to get us out of it.”
He could have to field another makeshift back line on Sunday after Ben Davies had a setback in training and Radu Dragusin suffered an ankle problem in the 1-0 defeat by Nottingham Forest on Thursday.
Micky van de Ven has a hamstring issue and Cristian Romero now has a quad injury. “It’s happened too often where guys have come back and they’re the ones who are missing,” Postecoglou said. “Just about all of them are recurrences of an injury, apart from Guglielmo Vicario [the goalkeeper, who has a broken ankle]. It’s something we’re looking at and why they’re happening
Ange Postecoglou: I’ll go from joke to genius if I get it right at Spurs
Under-fire Tottenham head coach defends his refusal to compromise on his attacking style while key players are missing and insists squad is still behind him
Postecoglou could be without a fit centre back for Sunday’s home match against Wolves
Ange Postecoglou has suggested he could enjoy the last laugh as a “genius” if he sticks to his guns in the face of critics ridiculing his adventurous playing style at Tottenham Hotspur.
The head coach believes that the steps he is taking with his players will eventually pay off as they learn through their experiences, giving him a full-strength squad that can be easily rotated between matches.
However, in another blow for Postecoglou, Tottenham could be without a fit centre back for Sunday’s home match against Wolverhampton Wanderers and have been investigating why their players have suffered recurrences of muscular issues. The immediate concern is a run of four defeats and 19 goals conceded in nine matches across competitions since a 4-0 win over Manchester City in November, prompting criticism of Postecoglou’s failure to compromise on his methodology while key players are missing.
“There’s always people in life [who are] looked at a bit curiously because they do things a bit differently and they’re a bit of a joke until they get it right, then all of a sudden they’re a genius,” Postecoglou said. “That’s probably relevant to us right now.”
Postecoglou has the support of the club’s hierarchy, which is not looking to change head coach, but there is an understanding that results must improve. He has asked the club to strengthen when the transfer window opens next week and is confident his players still back him and his style.
“The first thing you look at as a manager is, are the players still responding to this, are they looking to an alternative out there? I haven’t sensed that at all,” Postecoglou said. “It’s very easy to, because it’s human nature to think we need to do something different or we’re obviously undermanned, let’s change something.
“The players still want to tackle this the way that we are tackling it,” Postecoglou says
“The players still want to tackle this the way that we are tackling it. But it’s up to me to guide them through that and show them all these things are temporary. If we do get through in a positive way, the bonus and the benefit for us is that it makes you stronger. Because you know whatever you face in the future, you’ve been through worse and overcome it.”
After Wolves, Spurs meet Newcastle United and Woolwich in the Premier League, Liverpool in their Carabao Cup semi-final and Tamworth in the FA Cup third round . They have work to do to finish in the top eight of the Europa League group stage, thereby avoiding a play-off tie.
“My body language and how I speak are really important at this time because other people take a lead off that and rightly so,” Postecoglou said. “I’ve often said in the past, we’re in a tough spot and there is a big fight at hand. But I love that. I love that I’m right in the middle of it and my job is to try to get us out of it.”
He could have to field another makeshift back line on Sunday after Ben Davies had a setback in training and Radu Dragusin suffered an ankle problem in the 1-0 defeat by Nottingham Forest on Thursday.
Micky van de Ven has a hamstring issue and Cristian Romero now has a quad injury. “It’s happened too often where guys have come back and they’re the ones who are missing,” Postecoglou said. “Just about all of them are recurrences of an injury, apart from Guglielmo Vicario [the goalkeeper, who has a broken ankle]. It’s something we’re looking at and why they’re happening