Postecoglou to regret Tottenham comment, could lead to sack – Graeme Souness
Graeme Souness believes Ange Postecoglou could be set for the sack at Tottenham, not helped by comments he made.
Spurs are pinning their hopes on the Europa League after a dismal run of form domestically which has seen them eliminated from both cups and sitting 13th in the Premier League.
European success is Postecoglou’s only chance of ending the Lilywhites’ 17-year trophy drought and maybe his job status in North London.
Postecoglou comments may lead to Tottenham sack
Postecoglou famously declared that he always wins a trophy in his second season after the 1-0 North London derby defeat to Arsenal in September.
However, Souness believes that those comments could come back to haunt him if Spurs fail to win the Europa League.
In a column for Daily Mail (14 March), he said: “Winning the Europa League trophy may be the only way Ange Postecoglou remains in a job.
“Indeed he must rue the day he declared that he always wins something in the second season.
“Standing 13th in the Premier League that was never going to be in Daniel Levy’s plan when they built that stadium and training ground.
“They envisaged being in the Champions League and competing to win something every year. I know they have had a lot of injuries but that is not unique to Spurs and others have coped better than they have.
“Winning the Europa League may be the only way Ange Postecoglou can save his job.”
Tottenham should sack Postecoglou if they fail in Europa League pursuit
Sacking the former Celtic man may be the only option if Tottenham do not win the Europa League after an utterly miserable campaign.
Their Premier League position is a shambles for a club of the Lilywhites’ stature and would surely have seen him sacked already if they were not in European competition.
| Competitions | Tottenham |
| Premier League | 13th |
| Europa League | Quarter-finals |
| FA Cup | Eliminated (fourth-round v Aston Villa) |
| Carabao Cup | Eliminated (semi-finals v Liverpool) |
The injury crisis has not helped his cause with the likes of Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero and Dominic Solanke missing serious time but as Souness states, every club has injuries and Postecoglou has arguably contributed to it, with his intense training methods and playing style only serving to make the situation worse.
Tottenham are the best side left in the tournament on paper and they should go on to secure the trophy. If they do not, Daniel Levy has to pull the trigger as they will miss another year in the Champions League if they fail.
They need to be in Europe’s premier competition, the fans demand it, the new stadium demands it, Levy demands it, Postecoglou must deliver by whatever means that he can.
Spurs got a lucky escape against AZ Alkmaar, they must now take advantage and ensure that the fightback at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium does not count for nothing.