Speaking during Tottenham Hotspur’s parade of the Europa League trophy, Ange Postecoglou issued another defiant call.
Earlier in the season, there was the suggestion that he always won something in his second season. Well, that box has been emphatically ticked.
Now, he’s hinted that season two is always better than season three. Steady on, Ange, your job isn’t even safe, mate.
Despite winning a first major trophy in 17 years, the craggy-faced Australian could still be given his marching orders by Daniel Levy and Co.
Considering they finished 17th on 38 points, that’s hardly a surprise.
The latest on Ange Postecoglou's future at Spurs
What a wacky old season that was. Postecoglou referenced in his final post-match press conference a week ago that it had been an “outstanding season”.
Outstandingly bizarre, certainly. That Europa League crown is there but their league form was a mess and the Spurs boss could pay the price.
That’s according to The Telegraph, who report this weekend that the former Celtic manager’s future in north London is set to be decided this week, with his position ‘under extreme risk’.
Over the last few days, Levy has not been in the UK while Postecoglou is also away on holiday. As a result, a decision regarding the Aussie’s future is still undecided.
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Should they give him the boot, then Spurs seemingly have a shortlist of four candidates that includes Andoni Iraola, Marco Silva, Thomas Frank and Oliver Glasner.
The report notes that Iraola is set to stay at Bournemouth while after his FA Cup success, prising Glasner away from Crystal Palace will also be difficult.
Thus, the two frontrunners for the job are Silva and Frank, with the Brentford manager specifically said to be ‘in the frame’.
How Frank could replicate Pochettino at Spurs
While Ange may have been the one to end Spurs’ trophy drought, it’s Mauricio Pochettino who is the most legendary figure in these parts of north London.
After all, it was Pochettino who engineered that remarkable run to the Champions League final, only beaten by Liverpool in Madrid.
How did that occur? Well, as far as English football is concerned, it started with Southampton for the Argentine and it went rather similarly to Frank’s experience of top-flight football.
Indeed, the Dane has become a legend himself with the Bees finishing 13th in his first Premier League season before steering them to a top-half ninth-placed finish, an unparalleled campaign for Brentford.
He did so by playing entertaining counter-attacking football, while also developing players into some of the finest in the Premier League. Take the duo of Bryan Mbeumo (20 goals) and Yoanne Wissa (19 goals) as examples.
This certainly echoes Pochettino, who after finishing 14th having taken over mid-season in 2012/13, then guided the Saints to their best-ever Premier League finish of eighth in 2013/14. Like Frank, he turned his side from relegation candidates to a top-half club.
Also like Frank, he developed young players brilliantly with the likes of Luke Shaw and Adam Lallana really becoming household names at St Mary’s. It was then under Poch that Dele Alli enjoyed the finest years of his career.
1. Christian Eriksen
255
58
2. Hugo Lloris
229
0
3. Harry Kane
242
169
4. Jan Vertonghen
212
4
5. Eric Dier
216
11
Similarly to Frank, he also deployed a high and strong press with Southampton. In 2013/14, the Argentine’s side had the best pressing metrics in the Premier League.
Brentford are similar in that regard, with their head coach admitting when they got promoted: “We knew it was a big target for us going into the Premier League for us to defend well. I said that we try to do as much as possible to play our style in the Premier League, which is the high pressing going forward.”
Well, it’s safe to say that’s certainly worked with the west Londoners now a firmly established top-flight side.
Perhaps this could just be the appointment to get Spurs back on the right track domestically. He’s been described as “one of the best managers in the world” for a reason.
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