🔗 Share this article

Spurs centre-back Micky van de Ven has admitted he "never expected" the club's decision to part ways with ex-boss Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian's two-year tenure was terminated a mere over two weeks after he guided Tottenham to victory in the European final, delivering the team's first piece of silverware in nearly two decades.

However, this continental triumph was not mirrored in the Premier League, with the side ending up in a disappointing 17th place in Postecoglou's final campaign at the helm.

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

"He was a fantastic manager. I have a lot of respect for him," the Dutch defender stated on 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 the club," he continued.

"Later, 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 before the 2023-24 season, replacing Conte. He made a bright start with his offensive philosophy of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his first ten league matches.

However, that unbeaten run came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five matches, and the team's form deteriorated, ultimately failing to secure a top-four finish by a narrow two-point margin.

In the next campaign, they won just 11 out of 38 league matches.

Lacking a Plan B

While he appreciated the attacking approach, Dutch international Van de Ven thinks the team lacked a "plan B" and revealed he and fellow centre-back Cristian Romero discussed adopting a more cautious style with the manager.

"I enjoyed the attacking football under Postecoglou but I appreciate what we have now with our current manager. We are more secure defensively. I dislike getting exposed every game on the break," he explained.

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

"But, coaches study everything and people knew 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 Romero and I walked up to the gaffer and suggested we need to adjust tactically and play more defensive to ensure we secure victory in those games. He was responded, 'I agree with you but I want you two guys to sort this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"