Peter Crouch pinpoints Tottenham factor that will lead to Ange Postecoglou 'struggle' at Nottingham Forest
Ange Postecoglou has only just begun life as Nottingham Forest manager, but could be set for a bumpy ride.
Postecoglou's arrival at Forest was met with discontent by supporters, who are clearly concerned by what unravelled in North London.
Furthermore, Stuart Pearce questioned Evangelos Marinakis' decision to hire him because of the Australian's philosophy.
Now, former Tottenham player Peter Crouch has highlighted why he could find life hard with the Tricky Trees.
Peter Crouch makes Micky Van de Ven point for Ange Postecoglou
Forest supporters are quickly learning all about Postecoglou and how he will utilise his new team.
During his time at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the 60-year-old played a high line, which became a contentious decision.
In the early days of Postecoglou's tenure, that tactic worked well, but his method was brutally exposed in an emphatic home loss to Chelsea.
- Spurs were defeated 4-1 by the Blues
- Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie were sent off
- Postecoglou still played a high line with nine men
When he had all of his players fit, Romero and Van de Ven were tasked with implementing this plan, but the latter possessed something that Postecoglou does not have at the City Ground.
"At Tottenham, obviously, with Van de Ven's pace, he kind of could play like that," Crouch said on TNT Sports Ultimate on 13 September, ahead of Forest's clash with Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.
"I think they're going to struggle if they are going to play a high line like that. I think, you know, [Mikel] Arteta kind of said it in his interview there, that he is expecting to play like that, but I think they might struggle with the centre-halves' lack of pace."
Tottenham not overreliant on Micky Van de Ven this season
The Netherlands international is certainly a key piece in Thomas Frank's jigsaw, but he is now surrounded by more talent.
Alongside Romero, the Spurs duo can build their formidable partnership, and they must be regarded as one of the best centre-back pairings in the Premier League.
Ahead of him, the Lilywhites now have a superb shield in Joao Palhinha, and he should take some of the load off his defenders.
Of course, a key ingredient to any success will be keeping these players fit, but if they can do that, then it promises to be a progressive season under Frank.
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