• The Fighting Cock is a forum for fans of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. Here you can discuss Spurs latest matches, our squad, tactics and any transfer news surrounding the club. Registration gives you access to all our forums (including 'Off Topic' discussion) and removes most of the adverts (you can remove them all via an account upgrade). You're here now, you might as well...

    Get involved!

Manager Ange Postecoglou

Latest Spurs videos from Sky Sports

Was sacking Ange a good idea?

  • Yes, I think it was a good idea.

    Votes: 73 64.6%
  • No, I think it was a bad idea.

    Votes: 40 35.4%

  • Total voters
    113

Why are Spurs getting so many injuries?​

"At Celtic after six months Postecoglou could rotate the front five at 65 or 65 minutes to keep the freshness for the 60-game season," reflected McElhone.

"At Tottenham he's probably found that a lot more difficult because I don't think the strength in depth is the same as other Premier League clubs like Manchester City and Chelsea.

"Look at the evolution at Celtic under
Postecoglou, we had a three-month period of sustaining injuries every week, mostly hamstring injuries.”

"As the players adapted to the demands of the system, the game fluctuation changed rather than that constant 'basketball' up and down the pitch, the team was able to control one half of the pitch more. So that stopped the centre-backs having to run in behind as often.
"As the game model and philosophy settled, that reduced injuries.

"At the moment, that is the problem at Tottenham. He has not got the squad.

Comparing Celtic to Spurs is ridiculous. Even the elite teams in the PL have to fight most weeks for a win no matter who they play.
Celtic could probably start 10 men every week and still win the league
 
He still a spurs player then? :ange-facepalm2:
Yeah....but..... he's got POTENTIAL
Awesome Marvel Studios GIF by Disney+
 
Context? The bad form didnt start in December. It started last February/March. 12 months ago almost to the day we lost at home to Wolves 2-1 and despite winning the next 2 its been dreadful ever since.

We had a fully fit squad for around 25 of our last 38 league games and yet we've lost 20 of them, getting a mighty 46 pts in the process. Thats worse than pretty much any Tottenham manager in living memory. Its clear the more time he has had the worse we have got.
Yep. We were average to poor for nearly all of 2024.

I was ambivalent about sacking Ange but it's getting to the stage where he might seriously harm some of our young player's careers. He's actually a bit of a danger.
 
Most of you have made your mind up on Ange and don't think he's good enough and that's a totally reasonable opinion. He has made countless mistakes this season!

My question to all of you is. Whats the best outcome from sacking him right now during the season? We can't get Iraola/Frank/Silva so what manager do you want to come in now? Or are you happy to let Mason finish out the season? I understand the frustration with Ange but why are you so desperate to sack him now instead of May when we can atleast get Frank/Iraola and give them the Summer pre season to implement their ideas? Throwing in a new manager now feels like a Hail Mary where we are giving them a horrendous start - taking over a fatigued injury ravaged side with just 3 months left in the season and little to play for bar Europe! Surely the best long term decision is to get the right man in the Summer?
 
I think he'll be replaced in the Summer as he's not getting enough out of the squad and our game management is poor hence why we are constantly picking up injuries. My issue is that I don't see any value in sacking him mid season and I'm quite confident that our form will pick up once we get most of our injured players back so I'm not worried about relegation or things getting worse. In fact I think they will almost certainly improve once players are back.

But realistically, if we finish mid table and don't win the Europa league then this season was a complete failure and a new manager will takeover in the Summer. I just think Iraola/Frank are the obvious choices and neither will be available until the Summer and I'm happy to allow Ange to ride out this wave rather then letting Mason finish out the season.

I'm not trying to defend Ange. He has disappointed me with his squad management and his in-game substitutions all season. But I do think some of the abuse he gets on here is a bit OTT given how bad the injury situation is. I don't think a new manager improves us dramatically overnight. I think once our players are back then we'll see a dramatic improvement regardless of who the manager is.
Lots of us think Ange is in part responsible for the excess level of injuries. And to be fair we have had almost two seasons with an excess level of injuries now under him (last season fewest games of all PL teams, yet still lots of injuries). And consistent with experience to date, many of us don't believe there will be a "got our players back" nirvana.

So the injuries excuse is true in that it does impact results (though not by as much as some Ange-inners pretend), but is unconvincing in part because it appears to a function of his methods.
 
Most of you have made your mind up on Ange and don't think he's good enough and that's a totally reasonable opinion. He has made countless mistakes this season!

My question to all of you is. Whats the best outcome from sacking him right now during the season? We can't get Iraola/Frank/Silva so what manager do you want to come in now? Or are you happy to let Mason finish out the season? I understand the frustration with Ange but why are you so desperate to sack him now instead of May when we can atleast get Frank/Iraola and give them the Summer pre season to implement their ideas? Throwing in a new manager now feels like a Hail Mary where we are giving them a horrendous start - taking over a fatigued injury ravaged side with just 3 months left in the season and little to play for bar Europe! Surely the best long term decision is to get the right man in the Summer?
That is Levy's job. But I think Benitez or some such would be hugely preferable to Ange for 4 months. Hugely. Actually think we have a decent chance of winning the Europa if we got someone like him in.

Some on this board underestimate how much money and challenge talks. Benitez would earn about £2m-£3m for this gig, perhaps with a £2m EL bonus?
 
Last edited:
Calm down.

we were 3 points off 3rd after city - they are the facts.

Doesnt matter who we lost too. At that stage of the season 2nd, 3rd, 4th 5th all had the lowest points accumulated at that tie in premier league history.

Ange has fucked us - we lost games early on we shouldn't have - doesnt change that things got markedly worse after than city game.
It does matter because you lose to the worst teams at home, you now need to beat the best teams away from home to get back on track which we can't do and is why we are 14th.

Being 3 points off of 3rd after City when you have already dropped easy points and still have to play Chelsea, Liverpool and the inform teams like Forest, Bournemouth and Fulham at the time means nothing and proved to be the case.
 
Tottenham ramp up manager hunt amid Ange Postecoglou sack talk; two Prem bosses among targets

TEAMtalk understands that there are options on the table should Tottenham be forced into making a managerial change. Sources point towards their home game against Manchester United on Sunday as being crucial for Postecoglou’s future.

An elite European manager who reached the Champions League final last season is on Tottenham’s shortlist, along with two current Premier League bosses.

Tottenham keeping close tabs on three managers – sources

As we reported in January, former Borussia Dortmund manager Edin Terzic is on Tottenham’s radar. The fact that he is currently out-of-contract and available is attractive to the club.

The 42-year-old left Dortmund last summer after guiding them to the Champions League final, and now he’s ready for a new challenge. Terzic would be very interested in joining a Premier League club for his next job.

TEAMtalk sources state that Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola is ‘liked a lot’ by Tottenham and he would be considered should Spurs choose to sack Postecoglou. However, luring Iraola away from Bournemouth would be very difficult mid-season and we understand he is fully focused on helping the Cherries finish as high as possible this term.

Sources close to the situation have also confirmed that Brentford boss Thomas Frank would be a top managerial target should Tottenham part ways with Postecoglou.
The London side looked at Frank before they appointed Postecoglou in 2023 and he is highly regarded by club chiefs.

Sources suggest that Frank could leave Brentford at the end of the season and he is set to be a big target for a number of top sides should they change manager.

The suggestion from sources is that Frank is ready to take the next big step in his career and take charge of one of the Premier League’s biggest clubs.


How low can they go? Tottenham when they sacked recent managers

By TEAMtalk’s Samuel Bannister.

Postecoglou currently has Tottenham sitting 14th in the Premier League table, which is significantly lower than they would expect to be. But how far down the table have they been when sacking other managers in their recent history?

Antonio Conte: 4th

Despite some early optimism, Conte never seemed the right fit for Tottenham when they were hoping for a progressive future. A mutual agreement was reached in March 2023 for the Italian tactician to step down after what had been an emotional season on and off the field for him.

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy said the club had “a fight on [their] hands” to qualify for the Champions League, but they were actually in fourth place at the time of Conte’s exit.

Chaos was to come, though, with Spurs next sacking their acting head coach Cristian Stellini and placing Ryan Mason back in caretaker charge as they sank to an eighth-placed finish.

Nuno Espirito Santo: 9th

The search for a new permanent manager ahead of the 2021-22 season was a nightmarish one for Tottenham, who were turned down by several of their preferred candidates before deciding to go for ex-Wolves boss Nuno – someone they had originally ruled out of the running.

Nuno won the Premier League Manager of the Month award in August 2021, but Spurs’ form spiralled and he lasted only until the start of November before he was ousted for Conte.

Tottenham were ninth at the time of the switch, but Conte steered them back up to fourth by the end of the season.

To add insult to injury, Nuno is now working wonders back in the Premier League with Nottingham Forest – a club who weren’t even in the top flight in the season when he was in charge of Spurs.

I have no idea of Teamtalk have actual sources or they just read twitter. But let's hope there are actually moves being made at board level to sort this clusterfuck out.
 
Most of you have made your mind up on Ange and don't think he's good enough and that's a totally reasonable opinion. He has made countless mistakes this season!

My question to all of you is. Whats the best outcome from sacking him right now during the season? We can't get Iraola/Frank/Silva so what manager do you want to come in now? Or are you happy to let Mason finish out the season? I understand the frustration with Ange but why are you so desperate to sack him now instead of May when we can atleast get Frank/Iraola and give them the Summer pre season to implement their ideas? Throwing in a new manager now feels like a Hail Mary where we are giving them a horrendous start - taking over a fatigued injury ravaged side with just 3 months left in the season and little to play for bar Europe! Surely the best long term decision is to get the right man in the Summer?

As HampshireSpur HampshireSpur says above because i think he is doing damage. To the players fitness, confidence and tactically clearly scrambling their minds. How many more injuries before 1 of them becomes career threatning? How many more times will Gray or Kinsky be left exposed before it starts to really affect them?

Thats before you get into the reputational damage, the surly way he conducts himself, the rudeness, the confronting fans, the passive aggressive attitude and excuse making. Its making the club look totally amateur.

So Mason/Wells/Benitez or whoever for 3 months is fine. They cant do any worse and might restore a modicum of dignity even if results dont improve that much. Then appoint a proper manager in the summer.
 
I understand the frustration with Ange but why are you so desperate to sack him now instead of May
Because Ange makes team selections that lead to injuries,selects players to play in positions they are not familiar with, leaves out players who should be in the team, makes excuses for players who let their team mates and the supporters down, makes excuses for the chairman's inability to provide the manager with what he needs, his tactics give away shit goals, fails to get back to back wins or convincing performances, for 90 minutes, in any game and looks more and more as though he is completely and utterly out of his depth.

Ange is a dog that needs to be put down.

He is symptomatic of a culture of failure at THFC and the man who has employed Ange is now failing the club and the supporters by allowing this farce to continue.

It is negligence on an unprecedented scale. Even by the miser's standards.

Levy is avoiding paying the vet bill.

How the fuck has it come to this where supporters believe it is impossible for THFC to go and get the manager of Fulham or Bournemouth?

Instead we are content to write off the remaining 13 league games and Europa campaign because we don't want Ryan Mason?

To dare is to do or to dare is too dear?

Levy and ENIC have truly infected the mindset of the supporters.

Levy will cheap it out if we allow it.

How difficult is it to see that?
 
Last edited:
It does matter because you lose to the worst teams at home, you now need to beat the best teams away from home to get back on track which we can't do and is why we are 14th.

Being 3 points off of 3rd after City when you have already dropped easy points and still have to play Chelsea, Liverpool and the inform teams like Forest, Bournemouth and Fulham at the time means nothing and proved to be the case.

It also matters that we were less than a third of the way into the season.
Some were saying we were only 3 points behind City. But another way to look at it was we took 3 points less than them over 12 games. Or 0.25ppg less.
0.25pph x 3.166 taking 12 games to 38 is 0.8ppg less than City over a season, or a total difference of 30 points behind over a season.
Since game 12 where we were "only 3 points behind" we have fallen 14 points behind. And that is despite City having their worst run of form and results since they were first formed in 2008.
 
My question to all of you is. Whats the best outcome from sacking him right now during the season?


Get a caretaker in. Shouldve happened in the Autumn. Potter was available but he's not good enough for us? Funnily enough Spam have improved so much they've overtaken us in the league. Look a completely different team.

Another caretaker name - Benitez. I don't like him but we're past that shit now. He actully did the same at Chavs - they hated him too - and he won them a cup.

If Benitez came in tomorrow we'd have a very good chance of winning the EL. And as that gets you CL then our season transforms from complete disaster to complete success.

As for next season there are probably 2 dozen proven managers who could take over and get us back challenging in the league. It would immediately help not having brain fart tactics.



It was obvious to anyone with eyes that we were very unlikely to get past LFC over 2 legs with the current clown. Nor Villa, depsite recent history.

The EL is shit or bust. With Ange? I'd happily bet the house on us not winning that one. With a caretaker? We'd be one of the favourites.

But no. Let's sack the season off good and proper. Losing at home to relegation certs like Ipswich and Leicester? It's what you're happy to see? Really?
 
Last edited:
Knowing our luck Mason would go on a run of some sort based on sheer regression to the mean, and would get the gig permanently on the back of that.

On principle I'm against the notion of leaving an interim in charge for months at a time, due to the message it sends to fans and players alike that season is a write off. That's why, for a long time, I had been fine with Ange finishing the season despite not rating him one bit. We've already reached that point though, so from now on the comparison is between Ange the interim and Mason the interim.

If Ange has been playing an active role in this injury crisis like many here presume, if young players' growth have been stunted by his chaotic disorganized mess of a football, if their confidence is shot due to all that losing, then solely on these grounds alone even Mason might be an improvement. Which is a sad indicator of how far Ange has fallen.
 
Knowing our luck Mason would go on a run of some sort based on sheer regression to the mean, and would get the gig permanently on the back of that.

On principle I'm against the notion of leaving an interim in charge for months at a time, due to the message it sends to fans and players alike that season is a write off. That's why, for a long time, I had been fine with Ange finishing the season despite not rating him one bit. We've already reached that point though, so from now on the comparison is between Ange the interim and Mason the interim.

If Ange has been playing an active role in this injury crisis like many here presume, if young players' growth have been stunted by his chaotic disorganized mess of a football, if their confidence is shot due to all that losing, then solely on these grounds alone even Mason might be an improvement. Which is a sad indicator of how far Ange has fallen.
With respect your post is daft as it assumes there is no alternative to Ange but Mason on an interim basis. Principally because:

a) we have EL to play for (and we really DO have a good chance with a decent interim), and
b) we aren't yet safe in the league

We need an interim better than Mason. And we can get one. We have the money. Money really does talk.

If it was to be Mason then it's still better than Ange, but is a daft choice by Levy.
 
The EL is obviously a "could win" trophy, but how, given our performances over the past couple of months in the FA Cup, the Carabao Cup, and the League, could you possibly think Ange is the best available guy to maximise our chances of winning the EL?

No sane person could come to that conclusion.

The same is true re maximising our chances of staying up. I think we will stay up (even with Ange), but our chances would be improved with a better interim.
 
Most of you have made your mind up on Ange and don't think he's good enough and that's a totally reasonable opinion. He has made countless mistakes this season!

My question to all of you is. Whats the best outcome from sacking him right now during the season? We can't get Iraola/Frank/Silva so what manager do you want to come in now? Or are you happy to let Mason finish out the season? I understand the frustration with Ange but why are you so desperate to sack him now instead of May when we can atleast get Frank/Iraola and give them the Summer pre season to implement their ideas? Throwing in a new manager now feels like a Hail Mary where we are giving them a horrendous start - taking over a fatigued injury ravaged side with just 3 months left in the season and little to play for bar Europe! Surely the best long term decision is to get the right man in the Summer?
It's not true that we can't get them, won't get them probably more accurate, but that's because we wouldn't choose to go to the lengths required.
 
Back
Top