Despite an early exit from both the English League Cup and the FA Cup in the past week, and with Tottenham Hotspur languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League, Ange Postecoglou’s position as manager remains intact - but for how long?
The Australian coach, who previously enjoyed a successful two-year tenure as Celtic boss, has faced mounting criticism for his inability to adapt tactics amidst a long list of injuries affecting his squad.
On the latest Footy Accumulators No Tippy Tappy Football podcast, former EPL gaffer Sam Allardyce and ex-Liverpool centre-back Phil Thompson discussed Postecoglou’s struggles, with both men questioning his continued reliance on a single playing style.
Allardyce, who enjoyed a career that’s spanned both domestic and international positions, pointed out that other managers in similar situations have lost their jobs far quicker than Postecoglou, despite not having the same level of underachievement.
Spurs went out of the EFL Cup at a whimper despite going into the second leg against Liverpool with a goal advantage, eventually losing 4-1 on aggregate at Anfield. Then, three days later, they were beaten 2-1 by Aston Villa to exit the FA Cup, leaving a huge onus on Spurs lifting the Europa League this season.
“Managers have gone a lot quicker than Ange, and not done as bad as his results, and sadly you can only hide behind injuries for so long, irrespective of how much it’s affecting the team and how difficult it is to get through that period," Allardyce said.
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“You’ve got to find a way to get results, and I think that as the game is today, his inability to change - and to provide a way of playing to win - is much more important than the style of play, and he doesn’t seem to accept that.
“Many coaches seem to be hellbent on one style only. There comes a time when that has to be put to one side to do the right thing for the team, to win a game of football, until you can get back to what you really want to do.”
Thompson echoed his sentiments, stressing the importance of adaptability in football.
“Gérard Houllier always said to me, you have to be able to adapt, you have to adapt or die," he commented.
"It's the way it is with football, and these managers, even the ones at the very bottom of the league and they'll still play their same way and they'll come on after losing the seventh game on the trot and saying, ‘no I'll stick to my principles’ and you're going no, you've got to change.
“I respect what you're doing but your team is suffering.
“I didn’t see what Spurs were trying to do to Liverpool last week. I couldn’t see whether they were trying to sit deep and suck us in the way you would do. They stayed in the game until the 34th minute, but there were times when they were getting drawn out.
“This thing is, having his back four push right up, I get it. But there are times when if you've got so many injuries you have to adapt, and it would have been better saying to his players, ‘this is what we're going to do in a couple of days training and we all do that together, we frustrate Liverpool’. I didn't see any of that right from the first seconds.
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“I look at some of his players who seem to have lost their way. Are they not listening to Ange anymore? The biggest one is Son. What has happened to him? He was a match-winner, he was full of energy, and this season, he's looked so short of it.
“He looks as though he hasn’t got the passion, the commitment, or the ability anymore. He doesn't look as though he's got that pace and he's the one who just is what Tottenham have been all about this year.”
