Hello everyone, welcome back to our website. We set this thing up back when everyone had Tottenham websites and then really no one went to them anymore as they got all their club news from social media. We have kept it going though as … well… I quite like the site… also every now and then we get a shed load of people log on from San Antonio in America looking for news on their team only to be disappointed but hey we get the clicks right ha ha.
One of the main reasons we have the site is we have a blog and is the perfect place to host that and for people to read it BUT since the launch of our podcast I must admit the blog has fallen away. My fault, only so many hours in the day and all that but we are determined to bring it back and so here we go… Spurs News blog 2.0 … officially it is the 113th blog … so SN113 it is… and here we go…
My topic today is our head coach Ange Postecoglou.
How did you feel when you heard that Ange Postecoglou was going to be our new head coach? I must admit I was someone who was very skeptical when I first heard the rumours and what is funny is it showed I had not learned my lessons from the past at all.
Some years ago we appointed an Argentinian guy, I forget his name… however he did a good job for us but when he was rumoured to be the guy I had my heart set on another, more famous name and someone who had done it at another club who I knew of and respected. What happened with that guy and me is when I was ranting away on Twitter (people do not that on there you know) an account I followed and respected for football insight posted a blog all about why they thought that guy… again .. .what was his name… anyway… that bloke who Micheal Owen skinned at the 1998 World Cup… he would be perfect for Spurs.
I read that blog that day which was well researched, well presented (nothing like this you are thinking I know) and it completed changed my mind as I wanted to see this kind of football and if he would do that for us I would be over the moon and so it came to pass, for a few years we were the best team to watch in England and got so close… SO close to winning major honours.
We all know what happened next and so that brings us to the summer of 2023 and us once again looking for a new head coach to take the club forward again having stalled for years. Many names were thrown around and Julian Nagelsmann was the guy who for me was the absolute best candidate. He had name recognition like the guys who had let us down but was young, ambitious, had a point to prove and his teams typically played great football.
When it was clear he was not an option my mind did then go to Arne Slot; who seemed to be locked in to be our new head coach only for that to fall apart over, rumoured, lack of cohesion over a director of football, roles within the club etc and suddenly our summer managerial search felt all so familiar. We are heading for another Nuno misadventure I feared.
Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou suddenly became the man and yeah I fell into that same trap, there I was ranting on Twitter about the clubs lack of ambition fueled by several seasons of utter crap football and the greatest ever player to play for us twerking for the German Bundesliga … what happened next though is what prompted me to write this blog today.
I was completed bowled over by listened to the man. He was heavily rumoured to be joining us so I started reading, every interview, every piece on him, watched every video I could of him and how he wants his teams to play and within a couple of days I went from saying “bonza mate” ironically to saying it with pride that our new boss was going to be an Aussie and hes the man for the job!
My only fear after consuming all I could about the man was could he do it in England. Not that I doubted him but more players … would they buy in.. would they be all “berty big bollocks” and not respect him but what I liked from chatting to a Celtic fan was: ‘They respect him or they are gone. He will speak to and only bring in players he can work with and will build a team which is more than the sum of its parts…’
AND so that has come to pass…. every signing we made in the summer had a common theme in their interviews and that was that they spoke to Ange for a good amount of time with my favourite quote coming from James Maddison who said Ange told him: “You will see a different Tottenham next season if you join or not…” and that was the final part that made him want to sign on the dotted line as he could tell he was a man of conviction and so it has proven to be.
Our new keeper Vicario also revealed recently that his conversation with Ange was brilliant and after speaking to him he would have been willing to “walk to England to sign” if he had too.
It is a common theme told by many players who have worked under Ange throughout his managerial career. He knows how to motivate a team and how to communicate with people as people. His press conferences have proven time and time again almost compulsory viewing as he handles reporters questions with dignity even when at times its maybe not deserved.
During pre-season a German reporter pulled a stun travelling to our pre-season tour to hold up a Bayern shirt with Kane on the back; something which rattled many but not Ange who simply nailed the guy with one line about was it worth all the travelling for that joke? … and moved on. Perfect.
You can be a good man, talk a good game etc but its a results business at the end of the day and so until the season got going none of us really knew if this was a Nuno … or… the other bloke I mentioned earlier… one thing we all knew for sure was this season was going to be transitional.. Kane was gone, the team was transformed and we all knew we needed more windows to finish re-shaping the squad as to many remained who simply are not ‘Ange Ball’ players.
The games soon proved to all of us that he was in fact the right man. With a full strength team to choose from Romero and new signing Van de Ven looked solid at the back, Sonny in the central role back scoring goals and leading from the front… yes leading… club captain Sonny another stroke of genius from the new boss.
Sonny is one of the most likable guys in world football, add to that an excellent professional… he is a perfect choice as captain for the new era. Backed by Maddison and Romero as vice captains the new leadership group have started the campaign very well.
Young players like Sarr talked about how much they admire Sonny and how he makes sure everyone is feeling part of the group and valued; “he has gone out of his way even calling me when on international duty just to check in with me and talk about our upcoming games…”
With wins over Manchester Utd and Liverpool, draws away at Arsenal and Brentford it has been a good start but as with all seasons where there is much change, not only in personnel but also philosophy we all know and knew there would be blips. Pep Guardiola won nothing in his first season at Manchester City as even the great man himself has to have time to move on players who cannot play in his style, sign those who can and instill his ideas and that is what Ange needs at Tottenham, time to do just that.
Funnily enough it was the first defeat of the season which probably best summed up the change in our footballing philosophy and demonstrated that the whole squad had bought in it was captured in one image of us defending a high line despite being down to nine men!
There was actually something quite beautiful about going down swinging rather than camping on the edge of our box and going down with a whimper! As one Spurs Twitter account said: “Better to die on the half way line than live on the edge of your own box…” and I could not agree more. (That was BankruptSpurs on Twitter by the way).
Having endured constant negative crap for years seeing us fight no matter what the odds was something which connected with the crowd. Last season Chelsea scoring a 3rd goal would have sent people home and those who stayed would have been booing and calling for a certain chairman to be dragged onto the pitch… but as that 3rd goal went in and the travelling Chelsea support cheered suddenly they were drowned out by applause as Spurs fans stood and applauded the effort of the nine players on the pitch who despite the odds kept playing the now Tottenham way, the Ange way… Ange ball.
Sadly that defeat led to the next game being a defeat also as simply put we were missing to many players. Udogie, Van De Ven, Romero & Maddison to name just four who could play no part and how had been integral to the good form we had show to start the season.
So what next… we have had an international break but we know two of those names above are still out injured and one is suspended for the next two games. Bissouma will also miss the next game thanks to his yellow card count and yeah its against Aston Villa, a team who are playing very well this season and hot on our heels.
Despite all of those problems I know we will continue to play the new Tottenham way. The Ange Postecoglou way and for those who think that is naive I beg you to get on board. We played defensive rubbish for years and won nothing. We sacrificed enjoyment for silverware and it DID NOT WORK!
So get on board the Ange ball train, enjoy the fact we are no matter what going to have a crack as to be blunt, no matter what you think, as the Aussie says himself; “This is how we play mate.” and I am here for it.
-Admin SJ
