Spurs Centre-Back Van de Ven Shares Surprise At Postecoglou Sacking

Spurs defender Van de Ven has admitted he "never expected" the club's move to part ways with former manager Ange Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's spell in charge came to an end a just over two weeks after he led the team to victory in the Europa League final, delivering the club's first major trophy in nearly two decades.

However, this European success was not matched in the domestic league, with the team ending up in a lowly 17th position in his last season at the helm.

He was replaced by ex-Brentford manager Frank during the off-season, but Tottenham currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

"He is a really good manager. I still really like him," the Dutch defender told The Overlap podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went behind the scenes. It came as a shock. It was strange how everything went afterwards - he's the manager that won silverware to the club," he continued.

"Later, when he got sacked, I sent a message to my dad and my friends and said, 'I never expected this.'"

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

Postecoglou arrived at Tottenham from Celtic before the 2023/24 campaign, taking over from Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, amassing 26 points from his first ten league matches.

Nevertheless, that unbeaten run was halted with four losses in five matches, and the club's form deteriorated, eventually failing to secure Champions League qualification by a mere two points.

The following season, they managed only 11 of their 38 Premier League fixtures.

Lacking a Plan B

While he appreciated Postecoglou's style, Dutch international the defender thinks the squad was missing a "alternative strategy" and disclosed he and defensive partner Romero discussed taking a more cautious style with the coach.

"I enjoyed the attacking football under Postecoglou but I like what we have now with our current manager. We are more secure defensively. I don't like getting exposed every game on the break," he said.

"At the beginning with that system, no team was used to playing against our system. We were playing exceptional football."

"However, managers study everything and people knew what we were doing. At times we lacked a backup plan and we were being caught out. We lacked solutions to get out."

"At one point me and Romero walked up to the manager and said we should adjust tactically and be more defensive to make sure we win those games. He was like, 'I agree with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"