Spurs Defender Micky van de Ven Expresses Shock Over Postecoglou Sacking

Tottenham Hotspur defender Micky van de Ven has revealed he "never expected" the club's decision to dismiss former manager Ange Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's spell in charge was terminated a just over two weeks after he guided Tottenham to a win in the Europa League final, securing the club's first major trophy in nearly two decades.

However, this continental triumph was not mirrored in the Premier League, with the team ending up in a lowly 17th place in Postecoglou's final season in charge.

He was replaced by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the summer, but Spurs are presently 11th in the table, with 22 points, following a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

"He is a fantastic manager. I still really like him," Van de Ven told a podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went behind the scenes. It came as a shock. It was odd how everything went after - he's the manager that brought a trophy to Tottenham," he added.

"Later, when he was dismissed, I texted to my dad and my friends and said, 'I never expected this.'"

The Rise and Fall

Postecoglou arrived at Tottenham from Scottish champions Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, taking over from Antonio Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, collecting 26 points from his first ten Premier League games.

However, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four losses in five matches, and the team's form deteriorated, eventually missing out on Champions League qualification by a mere two-point margin.

In the next campaign, they managed only 11 of their 38 Premier League fixtures.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

While he appreciated the attacking approach, Dutch international Van de Ven believes the squad was missing a "alternative strategy" and disclosed he and fellow centre-back Cristian Romero discussed adopting a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I enjoyed the attacking football at that time but I appreciate what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more solid at the back. I don't like being vulnerable every game on the break," he said.

"Initially under Postecoglou, no team was accustomed to playing against our style. We were playing unbelievable football."

"But, coaches study everything and people figured out what we were doing. Sometimes we didn't really have a backup plan and we were being caught out. We lacked answers to get out."

"At one point me and Romero walked up to the gaffer and said we should adjust tactically and play more defensive to ensure we secure victory in those games. He was like, 'I understand with you but I expect you two guys to sort this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"