Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou cheekily dismissed Gary Neville when asked about his team’s tactics
After a lose to Fulham on the opening day, Spurs have won their last two Premier League games against Manchester United and Bournemouth by two goals to none
Despite an unbeaten start, former United player Neville raised concerns about Postecoglou’s tactics on Monday Night Football
He said: “I feel like there’s a flaw in the way they’re doing it, but there’s definitely some reward there
” “What you’re getting here is two midfield flanks
The backs, [[Destiny] Udogui and [Pedro] Polo
What I didn’t like about the way Spurs used that system was that when those two centre-backs had the ball, they didn’t know what to do with that simple pass
It felt like it was out of the way
” Neville continued: “I think the advantage of this system is that it isolates the wingers one-on-one
They bought United’s wide players
“From that point of view, I think there are advantages
But from my point of view, the players are in a very uncomfortable position
” “Involving the full-backs is something that Josep Guardiola did at Manchester City
It has been a popular tactic since he did it in his first season as manager
When asked about his tactics on TNT Sports, Postecoglou said: “There’s no secret, I’m just imitating Pep, mate
” This left fans wondering if the Australian player I speculated that he might have attacked Neville over his comments on MNF
Mr Postecoglou continued: “We are working hard on it
A lot of it is based on instinct, but we try to create a system that is as fluid as possible, no matter where we are
“If there’s a space there, forget that you’re a full-back, forget that you’re a footballer, and get into that space
It’s up to us to make sure we close the remaining gaps
” He continued: “I think once players realize that they have the freedom to do this, but it’s still very structured, they won’t hesitate anymore
I know it doesn’t matter if there’s a space there, they can go for it
“Both Pedro and Destiny, when they run with the ball, it’s really hard to stop them
This is an important area and more effective
”
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