Ange Postecoglou wants to lead his Tottenham Hotspur team to the Champions League.
Ange Postecoglou is backing his players to see Champions League qualifcation over the line. (Image: Getty)
Ange Postecoglou, the manager of Tottenham Hotspur, has subtly poked fun at Manchester United by implying that his team has a better chance of passing Manchester City in third place than the Red Devils have of catching Spurs. Eight points separate the north Londoners from both City and United, and Postecoglou is optimistic that they will qualify for the Champions League.
The race to qualify for the Champions League is heating up with less than two months of the campaign left. Additionally, the fifth-place Spurs have a good chance of qualifying because it’s likely that the top five teams in the division will get a spot in the competition the following year.
United is one of the teams trying to close the gap with Tottenham, but Postecoglou thinks his team can catch up with title contenders City as well if the 20-time champions are able to pass Spurs. “Can you see us challenging Manchester City?” the Australian coach asked ahead of the team’s midweek match against West Ham United. Not at all? They lead us by just eight points, though.
“You either believe we can catch Man City, who are eight points ahead of us, or you believe United can catch us if there is an eight point difference. What matters to me is that we want to close out the season strong and maintain our progress toward becoming a team that, ideally, in a year’s time, people will be talking and viewing differently.
The ability of Tottenham to win games by coming back from behind has been one of the team’s most notable features in Postecoglou’s first season. Spurs have triumphed after falling behind six times this season, most recently on Saturday against Luton Town. Postecoglou maintains that his team’s strong mental toughness is demonstrated by their approach to matches, even though it may not be a sustainable one.
“Going back right to the beginning, every single one of my teams had that signature of being able to turn around results or win games late,” he continued. The score nearly disappears when you’re playing a certain way with such dedication.
We don’t alter our strategy based on our results. As a result, it is simpler for the players to find the answers in our style of play rather than in something that is inconsistent with our strategy.
“That helps them because there’s always a feeling of a little panic or desperation, especially as the game is getting close and the fans are feeling it too because they all want to win.”
