Is Angeball working at Tottenham? The Postecoglou question dividing Spurs fans

For the 3rd clip this season, Ange Postecoglou spent the planetary interruption stewing connected a rotten result.

Back successful September, Postecoglou had a fortnight to beryllium connected Tottenham’s archetypal decision of the run - Newcastle’s smash-and-grab astatine St James’ Park.

The adjacent month, the caput manager had nary clip to formal down his departing internationals aft Spurs’ illness from 2-0 up to suffer 3-2 astatine Brighton.

And during the past fortnight, helium has been mulling implicit the limp show against Ipswich, Spurs’ 2nd decision to a previously-winless nine aft the 1-0 nonaccomplishment astatine Crystal Palace.

In amongst these atrocious results, though, person been bully ones. Spurs won 3-0 astatine Manchester United and scored 4 times astatine location against Everton, West Ham and Aston Villa.

They dumped Manchester City retired of the Carabao Cup and person won 3 of their 4 matches successful the Europa League.

It has been a wildly inconsistent commencement to Postecoglou’s 2nd season, his broadside lurching betwixt outstanding and atrocious.

After 11 matches, Spurs beryllium mid-table successful the Premier League, with 5 wins and 5 defeats.

The optimists spot a processing team, devastating successful bursts. The pessimists spot a fundamentally flawed team, prone to losing adjacent erstwhile playing well.

As Postecoglou prepares for his 50th League crippled successful complaint against City, it is hard to get a grip connected the prospects of Angeball.

Are Spurs progressing towards challenging for the biggest trophies, arsenic the caput manager believes? Or are they destined to stay entertaining but unserious, improbable to propulsion for honours nether Postecoglou and their existent ownership?

Postecoglou splits opinion, though helium is plainly backed by a vocal bulk of match-going Spurs fans.

He is puritanical astir his playing style, convinced that his high-octane shot is the champion way to success.

Naturally, determination are doubters and each mediocre Spurs effect has prompted a referendum connected the merits of Angeball, asking whether Postecoglou is simply excessively unbending to replicate his occurrence successful Australia, Japan and Scotland successful the Premier League.

“Is it clip to amusement much pragmatism? Teams that triumph trophies person coagulated defences arsenic good arsenic attacks,” Postecoglou was asked astatine the club’s Fan Forum successful September.

“You’re spot on, mate, but it won’t beryllium us,” helium replied.

Postecoglou has heard these doubts earlier astatine erstwhile clubs and believes Spurs’ inconsistency, their fallibility astatine set-pieces, their clunky finishing and their immaturity are each portion of his players adapting to - and mastering - his football.

He has been dilatory to usage his seat astatine times, portion immoderate selections person been puzzling. Postecoglou has, though, tweaked his tactics subtly: Dejan Kulusevski has moved to midfield and been Spurs’ champion player; full-backs Destiny Udogie and Pedro Porro are staying wider; and Spurs person been much nonstop with Dominic Solanke up top.

Postecoglou volition ever clasp his non-negotiables - pressing from the front, a precocious antiaircraft enactment and dominating possession - but helium is not beyond adapting.

This week marked 5 years since Mauricio Pochettino was sacked and his shadiness inactive looms ample implicit the club.

If each Tottenham instrumentality had their representation of the decennary earlier Postecoglou wiped clean, it is casual to ideate determination would beryllium adjacent much optimism astir the present.

Supporters would lone spot an ambitious coach, playing entertaining shot and assembling an exciting, young squad. As it is, sections of the fanbase uncertainty

Daniel Levy, the chairman, knows what it volition instrumentality to win. Hugo Lloris, the club’s erstwhile captain, fuelled this cognition of Levy successful his caller autobiography, claiming the chairman’s behaviour up of the 2019 Champions League Final near himself, Pochettino and Harry Kane wondering: “Does the nine truly privation to win?”

For each the singular strides Spurs person made nether Levy - including that last successful Madrid and the determination to their magnificent stadium - they person won conscionable 1 trophy successful 23 years nether ENIC’s ownership, the 2008 League Cup, and fans person grown impatient for commercialized successes to construe to the pitch.

The occupation for Postecoglou is that they person been done this gathering process earlier and consciousness burned by the mode Pochettino’s tenure ended - and the club’s disastrous pivot to win-now managers successful Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte - which eradicated truthful overmuch goodwill.

Many supporters saw this summer’s transportation window, erstwhile Spurs signed Solanke for £55million but different added lone 3 teenagers to the squad, arsenic an illustration of the nine being unwilling to bargain the readymade players needed to vie astatine the highest level.

This contented astir evidently manifests successful an emerging disconnect betwixt fans and the nine implicit the home cups.

Postecoglou volition not prioritise a quick-fix by going each retired to extremity Spurs’ trophy drought and, instead, is aiming to physique a broadside that tin vie year-on-year.

Last month, helium said that advancement implicit a 38-game play is “a amended indicator” that Spurs are heading successful the close absorption than winning a trophy this term.

It is astir apt just to accidental that astir Spurs supporters, by contrast, would motion up for a mid-table decorativeness present if it meant winning immoderate 1 of the cups, and are concerned, rightly oregon wrongly, that Levy would alternatively decorativeness successful the top-four and unafraid Champions League shot than assistance a trophy.

For each Postecoglou’s fervent content successful his approach, his rhetoric has appeared to subtly displacement of late, suggesting helium has realised his task whitethorn beryllium a slower-burn than helium initially expected.

In April, Postecoglou said helium expected Spurs to beryllium successful a rubric contention this year, and helium made headlines successful September by insisting that helium “always” wins a trophy successful his 2nd play astatine a club.

After the decision to Palace, however, helium sounded much similar a manager calling for patience and compared Spurs to Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool and Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.

These comparisons are valid; aft 50 games, Klopp had won 92 points and Arteta had 72, with Postecoglou sandwiched betwixt the two, with 82 points from 1 lucifer fewer.

But Arteta had already won the FA Cup and Klopp had reached 2 finals, portion some clubs kicked on; successful games 51 to 100, Arteta won 99 points and Klopp 98.

For these comparisons to proceed to ringing true, Postecoglou’s Spurs indispensable commencement to beryllium much accordant and, ideally, scope a cupful last oregon two.

Beat City connected Saturday and Spurs volition determination to wrong 4 points of the champions and the temper volition displacement backmost to optimism.

Spurs whitethorn person made a stuttering commencement but determination are opportunities successful this congested top-flight, successful which lone Liverpool person recovered consistency, portion they are among the favourites for the Europa League.

Postecoglou was close erstwhile helium said helium ever wins thing successful his 2nd play astatine a nine - a grounds which should not beryllium discounted. The bottommost line, however, is that his task feels similar a medium-term venture.

Two much teenagers volition articulation Postecoglou’s squad successful 2025, and for each the manager’s insistence that Spurs are gathering a squad to vie present arsenic good arsenic successful the future, that feels similar the club’s effort to person their barroom and devour it.

Levy, meanwhile, is publically seeking a number capitalist to inject superior into the nine - a determination which mightiness adhd to Spurs’ transportation muscle.

In the meantime, Postecoglou volition stay steadfastly committed to his way, doubters beryllium damned, and enactment to find much consistency and present a trophy to fulfill a somewhat restless fanbase.