Tottenham Defender Micky van de Ven Shares Shock Over Ange Postecoglou Sacking

Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Micky van de Ven has admitted he "never expected" the club's move to dismiss ex-boss Postecoglou.

The Australian's two-year tenure came to an end a just over two weeks after he led Tottenham to a win in the Europa League final, securing the club's first piece of silverware in 17 years.

However, this continental triumph was not mirrored in the domestic league, with the team ending up in a lowly 17th position in his last campaign at the helm.

He was succeeded by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the off-season, but Tottenham are presently 11th in the table, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 defeat to Forest on Sunday.

"He was a fantastic manager. I have a lot of respect for him," the Dutch defender told The Overlap podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was strange how everything went after - he is the coach that won silverware to Tottenham," he continued.

"Later, when he got sacked, I texted to my dad and my mates and said, 'I never expected this.'"

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

Postecoglou arrived at Spurs from Celtic ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, taking over from Antonio Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his opening 10 Premier League games.

However, that fine start was halted with four defeats 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 managed only 11 out of 38 league matches.

Lacking a Plan B

Although he enjoyed Postecoglou's style, Dutch international Van de Ven believes the squad lacked a "alternative strategy" and disclosed he and defensive partner Cristian Romero spoke about taking a more defensive approach with the coach.

"I enjoyed the offensive play under Postecoglou but I like what we have now with our current manager. We are more solid at the back. I dislike getting exposed every game on the break," he said.

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

"However, coaches study everything and people figured out what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a plan B and we were getting exposed. We lacked solutions to resolve it."

"On one occasion me and Romero walked up to the gaffer and suggested we need to adjust tactically and be more defensive to make sure we win those games. He was like, 'I understand with you but I want you two guys to handle this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"