Behind the scenes of Ange Postecoglou’s rage and what Mikey Moore did that was so exciting
Here are our Tottenham Hotspur talking points after their 2-0 defeat to Manchester City in the Premier League on Tuesday evening
Storm Postecoglou gusted its way through the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It blew along the touchline, bellowing on to the pitch, raged at one fan behind the dugout and then flew into the press conference room.
Those journalists inside that room knew something was coming. Word – or a forecast – had filtered through that the Australian had been very brief and surly in his TV and radio interviews. The BBC had only managed to get a grand total of 44 seconds out of him.
So in he swept into the large room within the bowels of the huge stadium and plonked himself down at the desk.
His first two answers were short but nothing out of the ordinary after a defeat and certainly there was no real fury as of yet, just an acknowledgement that Tottenham had played well in a tight game against the best team in the country, one looking set to make it four consecutive Premier League titles in a row, but had not taken any of the many chances they had created.
Enter Football London for question three, asking whether Postecoglou could see the foundations at least of how he wants his team to compete next season.
The Spurs boss seized on the question as the one to open the door to his aggravation.
“No, I think the last 48 hours has revealed to me that the foundations are fairly fragile mate. So…” he said, leaving that last unfinished sentence lingering in the air.
Everyone in the room did a bit of a double take as they processed his answer.
Tottenham’s performance had surprised a lot of people. For all of the pre-match talk about Arsenal and handing them the title, there was a general acceptance among the media that City, on a 40-plus match unbeaten streak, were going to make light work anyway of a Spurs team that had only just stopped a four-game losing streak.
That was far from the case though. Inside a slightly subdued atmosphere, the hosts had really taken the game to Manchester City for long periods, having the better of the possession with far more passes, and 10 shots to City’s eight, with the two visiting goalkeepers having to make six saves between them to Guglilmo vicario’s three.
Yet here was Postecoglou, with the menacing features of a bull that was about to charge.
“How do you mean?” he was asked in response. “That’s just what I think,” came the terse reply.
When pushed whether it was the atmosphere inside the stadium that had bothered him, he added: “I just think the last 48 hours have revealed a fair bit to me. That’s alright. It just means I’ve got to go back to the drawing board with some things.”
So was it the Spurs fans who had irked him, some singing ‘Are you watching Arsenal?’ after Erling Haaland had touched home a breakaway goal in the second half? A few could even be spotted doing the Poznan dance with their backs to the play, the City fans’ celebration, after the goal.
“I’m not interested mate. I just don’t care,” said the 58-year-old of that.
Football.Londonhad to keep pushing. It’s our job after all along with the other reporters to get the answers for the fans. So we asked whether that fragility Postecoglou had spotted was inside the club or outside it?
“Outside, inside, everywhere. It’s been an interesting exercise,” he replied.
So was it instead to do with the players who had fared better than most expected? Had they not been as devastated afterwards as Postecoglou had wanted, having lost the chance of Champions League football next season with the defeat?
Cristian Romero and James Maddison, both having played well on the whole during the game, could be seen hugging and laughing with Pep Guardiola at the final whistle, the City boss playfully pushing around the Argentinean World Cup winner. Postecoglou would likely not have seen that though as he stormed down the tunnel not long after the referee had put the whistle to his lips.
Postecoglou would not be drawn on the exact reasons behind his fury.
It’s just my observations mate. I’m not going to tell you, because it’s for me. I’m the one who’s got to do it,” he said. “You can make your own assessments of what’s happened. I understand. I probably misread the situation as to what I think is important in your endeavour to become a winning team, but that’s ok. That’s why I’m here.”
He added that it would not affect his summer plans for plenty of change, which were already set.
So was it tied up with the Arsenal-baiting around the game from the supporters when Postecoglou had maintained that he did not expect that from those who actually attended the match at the stadium, feeling that was more a social media construct?
Perhaps that sinking feeling of misreading that the fanbase was exemplified by his first clash with a Spurs supporter since his arrival as someone sat behind the dugout really riled him up with whatever they shouted at him.
Caught on camera by another supporter in that west stand, whatever was said by the fan, the Australian bellowed back what sounded like: “What did you say? What did you say before that? Just so I know who you are. Don’t worry mate I gotcha, I know who you are alright.”
So the Arsenal-baiting must surely be the reason for his ire? Well, maybe not.
“I’m just not interested mate. Maybe I’m out of step, but I just don’t care, I just want to win,” he said. “I want to be successful at this football club, it’s why I was brought in. So what other people, how they want to feel, and what their priorities are, are of zero interest to me. I know what’s important to build a winning team, that’s what I need to concentrate on.”
He did at least admit that the subdued nature of the stadium, the fans only really cheering when Spurs pressed forward, rather than roaring them on to do so, had an effect on the players in his mind.
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