🔗 Share this article

Spurs defender Van de Ven has revealed he "was completely surprised by" the club's decision to dismiss ex-boss Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian's spell in charge came to an end a mere over two weeks after he guided the team to victory in the European final, delivering the club's first piece of silverware in 17 years.

However, this European success was not matched in the Premier League, with the side ending up in a lowly 17th position in his last campaign in charge.

He was succeeded by ex-Brentford manager Frank during the summer, but Spurs currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points, following a 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

"He is a really good manager. I have a lot of respect for him," the Dutch defender stated on The Overlap podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went backstage. It came as a shock. It was strange how everything went afterwards - he's the manager that brought a trophy to Tottenham," he added.

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

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

Postecoglou arrived at Tottenham from Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, replacing Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his opening 10 Premier League games.

Nevertheless, that unbeaten run came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five games, and the club's form deteriorated, ultimately missing out on Champions League qualification by a mere two points.

In the next campaign, they won just 11 out of 38 Premier League fixtures.

Lacking a Plan B

Although he enjoyed Postecoglou's style, Netherlands international the defender thinks the squad lacked a "plan B" and disclosed he and fellow centre-back Romero spoke about adopting a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I enjoyed the attacking football under Postecoglou 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 break," he said.

"Initially under Postecoglou, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing unbelievable football."

"However, managers analyse everything and people figured out what we were doing. Sometimes we lacked a plan B and we were getting exposed. We lacked answers to get out."

"At one point Romero and I approached the gaffer and suggested we need to change some things and be more defensive to ensure we win those games. He was like, 'I understand with you but I want you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"