Van de Ven ‘Never Expected’ Postecoglou Sacking at Spurs

Van de Ven: “Never Expected Postecoglou to Be Sacked”

Tottenham defender Micky van de Ven has admitted he was left stunned by the club’s decision to sack former manager Ange Postecoglou, just two weeks after winning the Europa League.

Postecoglou guided Spurs to their first major trophy in 17 years, but a disastrous domestic campaign saw them finish 17th in the Premier League, prompting the club to part ways with the Australian coach.

“I don’t know what happened behind the scenes. I didn’t expect it. It was strange,” said Van de Ven on The Overlap podcast. “He was the manager who won silverware for Tottenham.”

Postecoglou Out, Frank In

The former Celtic boss was replaced in the summer by Thomas Frank, who joined from Brentford. While Spurs’ performances have stabilized slightly, they remain inconsistent, sitting 11th in the table with 22 points from 16 games after a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest.

Van de Ven expressed mixed emotions about the managerial change:

“He [Postecoglou] was a really good manager. I still really like him.”

“We Didn’t Have a Plan B”

Despite praising Postecoglou’s attacking style, the Netherlands international highlighted tactical limitations as results deteriorated.

“At first, no team was used to our system. We were playing unbelievable football,” Van de Ven recalled. “But teams learned how to counter us. We didn’t have a plan B, and we were getting exposed.”

He revealed that he and centre-back partner Cristian Romero approached Postecoglou about the need to play more defensively:

“We said we need to change things to win games. He agreed but said, ‘I expect you two to sort this on the pitch.’”

Enjoying Stability Under Frank

Van de Ven admitted he is enjoying the more structured setup under current boss Thomas Frank, despite Spurs still struggling for consistency.

“We are more secure at the back now. I don’t like getting exposed every game on the counter.”