Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou has defended Brennan Johnson and condemned the social media abuse of the Spurs forward following Sunday’s north London derby.
Johnson, 23, deactivated his Instagram account after the 1-0 home defeat by Arsenal in the Premier League and his manager has said that he hates how abuse on social media has become so commonplace for young players.
The Wales international has endured a rather inconsistent start to his Tottenham career following a £45million move from Nottingham Forest last summer, scoring five goals and registering 10 assists in 38 total appearances across all competitions.
"I hate how we’ve just normalised all that stuff," Postecoglou said ahead of Tottenham’s Carabao Cup third-round trip to Coventry on Wednesday night. "You’re talking about a young guy who is probably lacking a bit of confidence at the moment. Things haven’t gone his way.
“But he comes here every day, he’s working his backside off, he’s asking for feedback, he’s doing everything right, he’s trying so hard to become the player he wants to be, it’s hurting him a lot.
“It’s not like he’s out on the town and he doesn’t care and he rolls up late. So what’s his crime? His crime is he isn’t performing at the level that people expect of him.
“As a professional footballer you’ve got to expect that you’re going get criticism about that, that’s part of your growth. He’s still a young player and I think there is so much more of Brennan that we’re going bring out in him.
“It’s sad for me that we’ve kind of normalised that stuff. That getting abuse, and it is abuse and a lot of it personal, is oh well, that’s part of the territory. I don’t see that. I mean what kind of person writes abusive things to an individual?
“Criticism is one thing, exasperation at a game, you accept that. To sit down and write something abusive anonymously… say it in front of me, you’ll get a punch on the nose, you won’t do it again, mate.
“But they won’t do that. They’ll hide behind this…unfortunately that’s the world we live in. When I look at Brennan and I see a young man who is trying his hardest to be the best he can be.
“It doesn’t always guarantee success and it’s part of his journey how he deals with all this. But he’s a great kid, a great footballer and I’m very optimistic about what he’s going to do for us."
