🔗 Share this article

Tottenham Hotspur defender Van de Ven has revealed he "was completely surprised by" the club's decision to dismiss ex-boss Ange Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's two-year tenure came to an end a mere over two weeks after he guided Tottenham to victory in the European final, delivering the team's first major trophy in nearly two decades.

However, this European success was not mirrored in the Premier League, with the side ending up in a disappointing 17th position in his last season in charge.

He was succeeded by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the summer, but Spurs currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points, following a 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

"He was a fantastic manager. I still really like him," Van de Ven stated on a podcast.

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

"Afterwards, when he got sacked, I texted to my father and my mates and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

The Rise and Fall

Postecoglou joined Spurs from Scottish champions Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, replacing Antonio Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, amassing 26 points from his opening 10 league matches.

Nevertheless, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four losses in five games, and the team's form deteriorated, ultimately failing to secure Champions League qualification by a mere two points.

The following season, they won just 11 out of 38 league matches.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

Although he enjoyed the attacking approach, Netherlands international the defender believes the squad was missing a "alternative strategy" and disclosed he and defensive partner Cristian Romero discussed taking a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I enjoyed the offensive play at that time but I like what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more secure at the back. I don't like getting exposed every game on the counter-attack," he explained.

"Initially with that system, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing unbelievable football."

"But, managers study everything and people knew what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a plan B and we were being caught out. We didn't have answers to get out."

"On one occasion me and Romero approached the gaffer and said we should change some things and be more defensive to make sure we secure victory in those games. He was responded, 'I understand with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"