Following his team’s 2-0 defeat to Manchester City on Tuesday night, Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou was quick to criticize the north London club’s “fragile foundations”.
The pre-match discourse was dictated by the title showdown: Spurs fans knew that if they drew or beat City, their bitter rivals Arsenal would likely end their 20-year wait to lift the Premier League.
Postecoglou insisted that “100 per cent of the fans” wanted to beat City but, in reality, a large section of the fans came to the game hoping their team would lose, which upset the Australian.
The Spurs boss was even seen in a heated exchange with a supporter sitting behind the dugout, as tensions began to boil over between the manager and fans.
Here, Mail Sport offers the perspective of two Tottenham fans following the Australian’s outburst.
Ange Postecoglou criticized Tottenham’s ‘fragile foundations’ after losing to Manchester City
James Cohen
Personally, I think it’s understandable that a section of Spurs fans wanted to lose the game, given Arsenal’s quest for their first league title in two decades.
However, if you don’t want to win a football match because of external circumstances, no matter how strange, you are not Ange Postecoglou’s type of person.
But that’s exactly the kind of man the Spurs need at the helm.
We must not forget that Postecoglou is used to winning. From Brisbane Roar to Yokohama F. Marinos and later Celtic, success has followed him everywhere.
Tottenham’s continued pursuit of titles, which they have been since their League Cup triumph in 2008, was also the main reason they signed the Australian.
Therefore, the notion that Spurs fans should want their team to lose any game, even to spite their bitter rivals, is foreign to Postecoglou.
During the 2-0 defeat, he was seen arguing with a home fan who had allegedly been shouting at Spurs to lose the match.
The Spurs manager was involved in a heated exchange with a supporter during the match.
Postecoglou rightly should not tolerate fans cheering on the opposition, as some home fans have been seen doing Poznan after Manchester City scored on Tuesday.
If it had been Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola on the Spurs bench, one can imagine they would be equally baffled. Because that is the mentality of a winner.
Neither the Liverpool nor the City coach, at any time in their respective projects, would accept that the local fans cheered on the rival. Like Postecoglou he will not.
For example, think back to March 2018. We were brutally knocked out of the Champions League round of 16 after a Juventus comeback.
Defender Giorgio Chiellini later uttered his infamous jibe: “It’s the story of Tottenham.” We believe in history.’
The Italians knew we would fall apart. They knew they could return. And, most importantly, they knew that we did not have a winning mentality.
Even players like José Mourinho and Antonio Conte ended up failing to redefine expectations at the club. It has proven to be a nearly impossible task.
But, taking all this into account, Postecoglou’s outburst seems much more justified. There simply must be a change in mentality, both inside and outside the club.
And is there really any doubt about whether the Australian has the ability to do it? Just look at how his life began in North London.
He won the Coach of the Month award three times in a row after a tremendous start, before his team’s form was derailed by injuries and suspensions.
Postecoglou is right to seek a change of mentality both inside and outside the club
However, perceptions about what was possible changed. Spurs went from being lost – after the sale of Harry Kane – to potential title contenders in a matter of months.
After a bleak few months in the summer, in which fans protested over the club’s ownership, Postecoglou resolved the discord at the club in the blink of an eye.
And, although many of us may feel discouraged again, there is every reason to believe that Postecoglou can turn the situation around.
His attitude since arriving in north London should tell Spurs fans all we need to know about how he sees our project and it is certainly one we should embrace.
jose hugues
Ange Postecoglou had every right to be furious after his team’s 2-0 defeat to Manchester City. It was Tottenham’s fifth defeat in their last six games, an almost certain condemnation of Thursday night football and a tenth consecutive game in which Tottenham have conceded.
Perhaps more worrying than the results has been the decline in Spurs’ performance. “I feel like we’ve lost a bit of faith and conviction in our football and that’s up to me to change,” the Australian told Sky Sports after the loss to Chelsea on May 2, a far cry from his attitude after the loss. . team’s 4-1 loss to the Blues in November.
I was one of the thousands who applauded the team that day, full of admiration for our crazy, fast-paced style of play and our desire to “prove it” against one of our fiercest nine-man rivals.
Postecoglou was like an enigma during his first months at Spurs: what he said was gospel. Ask any Tottenham fan and they will admit that he never expected the form to last.
Even in moments of joy, there has always been an air of cynicism among our fan base – a sense of “we’ve been here before” – and the skepticism has only gotten stronger as the performances have gotten weaker.
Tottenham fans accepted Postecoglou’s methods and applauded the team for believing in their style of play despite a 4-1 loss to London rivals Chelsea in November.
The decline in performance is worrying amid a streak of five defeats in six games.
Maybe there is a lack of trust among the players, maybe this is also true for some sectors of the fans, but we were told that this was a project and that it will take time to bear fruit.
Before the game against Manchester City, finishing in the top four was still mathematically possible, but for many (we had already blown the opportunity) hope had vanished at St James’ Park. Even with a slim chance, a win against the champions would have left Spurs dependent on Aston Villa to lose at Crystal Palace.
If Tottenham’s failure to qualify for the Champions League is a consequence of Arsenal missing out on the title, then like many fans, we are more than happy to get it. As one Arsenal fan pointed out to me: “it’s not like you have a choice, it’s Manchester City”, and he was right.
It’s not entirely clear who specifically Ange was digging up in her post-match press conference, but it certainly seemed like a cheap shot to fans. Maybe expecting to fail is part of the problem, but that won’t change overnight.
Since Spurs last won a trophy (in 2008), we have lost three Carabao Cup finals, four FA Cup semi-finals and one Champions League final. Tottenham president Daniel Levy appointed Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte as “win now” coaches and failed to provide them with “win now” players, with Mauricio Pochettino going 500 days without signing.
Spurs fans have every reason to be sceptical, but their desire to see success at this football club is the last thing that should be questioned, which is why Ange crossed the line.
The unfortunate state of form of their team put us in this situation (wanting to lose the game).
Instead of finding ourselves trailing 3-0 at half-time on soft, avoidable goals against Arsenal, the team should have approached the game like they did against Pep Guardiola’s side: with heart, passion and intensity.
Postecoglou was wrong to question the fans’ desire to see success at the club.
The rivalry with Arsenal is important to the fans, so the desire to stop the Gunners was understandable.
Our first-chance exits in the Carabao Cup and FA Cup meant another trophy-less season and the fact that Postecoglou couldn’t remember the last time we won a trophy in his pre-match press conference was telling.
I’ve seen other teams climb the hallowed steps of Wembley, I was in Madrid for the Champions League final. Those memories stay with you.
There has always been a feeling that Spurs never quite get going, but with Ange Postecoglou there is still plenty of confidence among fans and fifth place would be an admirable place to start, even if the team is slowly inching over the line.
Most recognize this and are proud of the team’s efforts this season, proud to be back in Europe again, having sold and failed to replace the best striker in the world, Harry Kane.
Ange Postecoglou is at Tottenham to get results and there is something to admire in her unwavering values, her confidence in her ability to transform this club and take it to the promised land.
He has done it everywhere he has been, raising the same doubts and questions at every moment. He thrives in this environment, but Tottenham is unlike any club he has managed before, and for fans the rivalry with Arsenal DOES matter.
Surely deep down he understands it.