Spurs Centre-Back Van de Ven Expresses Shock Over Postecoglou Dismissal

Spurs defender Micky van de Ven has admitted 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 just 16 days after he guided the team to victory in the Europa League final, delivering the club's first major trophy in 17 years.

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

He was succeeded by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank during the summer, but Tottenham currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points, following a 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

"He was a fantastic manager. I have a lot of respect for him," Van de Ven told The Overlap podcast.

"I don't know how everything went behind the scenes. It came as a shock. It was strange how everything went after - he is the coach that brought a trophy to Tottenham," he added.

"Afterwards, when he was dismissed, I sent a message to my father and my friends and said, 'I never expected this.'"

The Rise and Fall

The Australian manager arrived at Tottenham from Celtic before the 2023-24 season, replacing Antonio Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his opening 10 league matches.

However, that unbeaten run was halted with four defeats in five matches, and the team's season tailed off, eventually failing to secure Champions League qualification by a narrow two points.

The following season, they managed only 11 of their 38 Premier League fixtures.

Lacking a Plan B

Although he enjoyed the attacking approach, Netherlands international Van de Ven believes the team was missing a "plan B" and revealed he and defensive partner Romero discussed adopting a more defensive approach with the coach.

"I enjoyed the attacking football at that time but I like what we have now with our current manager. We are more secure at the back. I don't like being vulnerable every game on the counter-attack," he explained.

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

"But, coaches study everything and opponents knew what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a plan B and we were getting exposed. We didn't have answers to resolve it."

"On one occasion Romero and I walked up to the gaffer and suggested we should change some things and be more defensive to make sure we win those games. He was responded, 'I agree with you but I want you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"