Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou believes the job of a manager - often dubbed 'the impossible job’ - has become "even more impossible."
Postecoglou takes his Spurs side to Old Trafford on Sunday to take on a Manchester United side managed by Erik ten Hag, who is seemingly continuously under pressure.
Ten Hag has won a trophy in each of his two seasons in charge - the Carabao Cup and then the FA Cup - but has also overseen the United's worst league campaign in Premier League history. He was rewarded with a new contract in the summer but the same turgid performances have followed into this term.
Postecoglou has pointed to Ten Hag as an example of a manager who is far more universally loved, despite a record of winning trophies, and believes continual improvement, and not trophies, is a better platform for sustained success.
The ‘impossible job’ has become even more impossible now
He told Sky Sports: "If Erik [ten Hag] hadn't won something then people will have been saying he's got to win something. It's a trap you can fall into, thinking by winning something everybody is going to love me and think I'm doing a great job. That doesn't exist.
"That's why I'm always saying I want to build a group that have the opportunity for sustainable success. You need that. Success isn't guaranteed but if you build something that gives you the opportunity on a year-on-year basis then you've got more chance of creating a period where the club can see themselves as a contender.
"It's part of your existence as a manager. To coin a phrase: the impossible job, it's become even more impossible now. It seems like success is not enough if you don't have identity. Identity is then not enough if it's not followed by the aesthetics. Aesthetics are not enough if it's not followed by legacy. There's always another layer, like no one is doing a good job unless you win the competition.
"There seems a lack of understanding about progress and the circumstances of the that people have to work under - but that's the nature of the role. That's not going to change."
