Speaking ahead of Tottenham’s trip to face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday, Ange Postecoglou piled on the praise for his managerial counterpart – and hinted at the early ambitions for his Spurs side next season.
Tottenham have suffered two hefty defeats over the course of the past week, with a North London Derby loss swiftly followed by a trip to Stamford Bridge that saw them trek back across the capital empty-handed.
Speaking on his players’ mentality after a testing week, Postecoglou assessed: ‘I’m sure they’re hurt but it’s also part of the process. It’s not going to change – you’re not going to have less derbies next year. The big games will always be big games, and you need to feel the pain but understand that that sort of intensity will always be there when you’re representing this football club.’
Embed from Getty Images‘I don’t think it’s through a lack of effort in any way as for me, I go on and measure that with the way we’re training and the way we’re sort of playing in games. Last night [against Chelsea] was disappointing from a defensive pressing aspect because that has been pretty consistent all year, so that was the one area I was really disappointed with but in general the lads were still trying to play and embed our principles.’
Postecoglou insisted that this dip in form isn’t necessarily something to be concerned about, instead suggesting that ‘if someone can show me a team that hasn’t been through a tough spell when they’re building something, I would be very surprised because it’s a necessary part of the process.’
‘You need to go through that. You need to understand how you will deal with that. Who deals with it well? Who doesn’t deal with it well from a football perspective, or a club perspective or a staff perspective? All those kind of things reveal themselves and it is part of the process.’
The teething process is something that Jürgen Klopp is all too familiar with, having inherited a disjointed squad when he first arrived on Merseyside almost a decade ago. With the German set to depart the club this summer, Postecoglou praised the ‘massive impact’ that he’s had on Liverpool as a club.
‘I’ve said before that I’ve always been drawn to managers who are a little bit different, who play the game a bit differently and have a really clear vision and identity, and he certainly has that. It’s not easy going into a big club that has traditionally had a lot of success and has then gone through a really tough spell in terms of that, and then come in and transform a club the way he did.’
Embed from Getty Images‘It’s a credit to him, he’s an outstanding manager. I’m sure we’ll see him back managing at the top level again because he’s one of the top managers in the world. Credit to him that at such a big club he was able to imprint his style and vision and bring success.’
Liverpool have reaped the rewards under Klopp’s management, and Postecoglou is optimistic that Tottenham could replicate their success in the coming seasons. While he admitted that the Lilywhites are currently ‘a long way off,’ the Australian insisted that ‘it doesn’t mean we can’t challenge next year.’
‘I don’t know which other way to put it. I think in terms of the team I want us to be we’re a fair way off, but I am not dismissing the fact that we have to be competitive and challenge for success every year I am here.’
