Ange Postecoglou’s change in tone hints at longer-term Tottenham plan

Ange Postecoglou’s property league to preview Wednesday's Carabao Cup necktie against Manchester City was a mostly regular affair, but the juncture did look to people a flimsy displacement successful rhetoric from the Tottenham caput coach.

Postecoglou has antecedently been bullish astir the club's short-term prospects, saying backmost successful April, for example, that helium expected Spurs to beryllium challenging for the rubric this season, and past period reminding a newsman that helium has "always" won a trophy successful his 2nd play astatine a nine (which is existent but nevertheless felt punchy).

"If anyone tin amusement maine wherever things tin crook astir successful 15 months oregon successful 2 years, [at] immoderate club, isolated from possibly City wherever it took Pep [Guardiola] a year, which is similar an eternity to beryllium just for Pep. It doesn't exist," helium said.

Postecoglou has ever been wide that transforming Tottenham's benignant of play, civilization and the make-up of his squad would instrumentality time, but arsenic helium has seldom made specified an overt telephone for patience.

Perhaps much than ever before, the Australian sounded similar a manager who is engaged successful a task and overmuch much similar his astir palmy caller predecessor Mauricio Pochettino, who regularly preached astir the request for patience and clip successful his archetypal 2 seasons astatine the club.

"That does not mean, though, that this is going to instrumentality 5 years," Postecoglou added. "I'm not saying that. But you can't fast-track experience.

"You can't fast-track maturity. All these things request clip and you've conscionable got to enactment true."

Postecoglou's alteration successful code raised the question of whether Spurs' up-down commencement to his 2nd play - they person won 4 and mislaid 4 of their archetypal 9 Premier League games - has led the caput manager to rethink the timescale of the job.

Postecoglou pointed to the examples of Arsenal and Liverpool arsenic comparable clubs who person "stuck to a process" and yet been rewarded.

Arsenal finished 8th, 8th and 5th nether Mikel Arteta earlier yet emerging arsenic a title-challenging squad successful 2022-23, portion it took Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool 3 seasons to propulsion City adjacent and a 4th to yet triumph the League.

If Postecoglou's Spurs advancement astatine a akin rate, this play is apt to beryllium different twelvemonth of building, alternatively than the rubric propulsion helium hoped for successful spring.

A longer-term presumption of occurrence surely aligns with Spurs' attack successful the transportation market.

In the summer, they signed 3 teenagers successful Lucas Bergvall, Archie Gray and Wilson Odobert, portion 2 much -- Luka Vuskovic and Yang Min-hyeok -- volition get adjacent year. With the objection of skipper Heung-min Son and defender Ben Davies, Spurs bash not person a azygous outfield subordinate implicit 28.

Spurs look to beryllium gathering a squad to situation for the League successful a twelvemonth oregon two, possibly successful a much favourable top-flight scenery erstwhile Guardiola has yet near City.

Many supporters, though, person heard this messaging earlier and lived done the Pochettino epoch without a trophy to amusement for it, truthful speech of different gathering task volition beryllium met with irritation successful immoderate quarters, peculiarly erstwhile the nine appears to person each the tools neccesary to footwear on.

Winning a trophy would beryllium an tremendous assistance -- Arteta was arguably afforded truthful overmuch patience by Arsenal fans due to the fact that helium won the FA Cup successful his archetypal play successful complaint -- which adds to the magnitude of Wednesday’s crippled against what is expected to beryllium a much-changed City.

Postecoglou knows however overmuch a trophy would mean to fans but is wary of pursuing a short-term hole and reiterated that his purpose is to get the nine "to a abstraction wherever we’re consistently challenging" for honours year-on-year.

"If we’re determination successful that space, wherever large clubs are, and wherever we should be, the remainder volition instrumentality attraction of itself," helium added.

If Odobert is sidelined long-term, Mikey Moore, 17, could get much opportunities to impress, but on-loan Timo Werner and Richarlison tin besides play from the left.