‘Not going to be smooth’ – Postecoglou fires warning for Tottenham fans

Ange Postecoglou has warned Spurs fans that things are not going to be smooth during his first few months at the club as the team gets used to his way of playing.

Postecoglou’s imprints on the side were already quite evident in the club’s opening game of the campaign against Brentford, with the Lilywhites enjoying almost 70 per cent possession and having 18 shots on goal (Sky Sports), which is a far cry from what Spurs fans were used in recent seasons.

The Australian is confident that the players will completely buy into his style, simply because they will soon realise that he has an unwavering commitment to attacking football.

Postecolgou told The Men in Blazers Podcast (as transcribed by Football.London): “The core component is they have to believe in me.

“Like anything in life, you can have all the knowledge in the world and all the greatest intent in the world but if people don’t believe in you as a person they’re unlikely to jump on board whatever journey you want to take them on.

“I think the one thing that has been consistent with me is that in the early days when people are not sceptical but questioning the methodology I have and the football I play, there is real clarity in that they understand I’m not going to change.

“This is who I am, this is what I believe in. We’re going to hit some rocky times, there will be plenty of questions thrown at us but we’re not going to change.

“I think once people see that I don’t just want them to play this football because it’s something that is a fad or a trend, it’s because of what I believe, then there’s a security there that allows them then to say ‘we’re all in on this’.

“That’s a key part of everything I do at the beginning. It’s not just the players, it’s the staff and everyone I work with at the football club, even the supporters. They gather some sort of belief in me as a person.”

Postecoglou is open to adapting to English game

Some have questioned whether Postecoglou’s high-risk style will work at the Premier League level.

The Tottenham head coach has now acknowledged that while his core principles will never change, he might have to tweak the system based to adapt to the specific characteristics of the English top flight.

When asked about making slight alterations to the system, he said: “I think a lot of that will happen organically. I’ll find out along the way if I have to tweak things.

“The beginnings are always the same. It’s about playing a certain way, having certain values and the way we approach things, training a certain way which is different to what a lot of the players here have been used to.

“All those kind of things are the major pillars at the moment. Any adjustments I’ve made in my career in all the leagues I’ve been to it’s happened organically, I’ve allowed it to grow itself and if we find any impediments along the way we’ll make adjustments but I’m not going into it with any preconceived ideas about what we need to change.

“What won’t change are the basic underlying principles that I want my team to play football that scares the life out of every opposition. That’s the end game.”

However, Postecoglou did warn the Tottenham supporters that it is not always smooth sailing during his first few months at the club and that it will take time for things to click into gear.

When asked if he has a message to Spurs fans, the 57-year-old responded: “Buckle up. It’s not going to be smooth. It never is in my first years.

“That’s not to say you can’t be successful but there will be some turbulence there. I’ve said already that the fans are going to be my biggest barometer as to how we’re going.

“Fans are usually the best judges because they’re the most invested. Experts and people from the outside can have opinions but the ones around it the most are the ones you know are going to be there long after I’m gone and have been here long before I came.

“They’ll let me know how I’m going and hopefully they’ll see a team that gives them belief and hope, a team that resonates with what they want to see in their football sides and that’s what I’m going to try to bring, along with that some success. What that looks like, tangible-wise, we’ll see.”

Spurs Web Opinion

The one thing that seemed to cripple the Tottenham players under Mourinho and Conte is the fear of failure, with both managers relying on simply keeping things tight and making fewer errors than the opposition.

Postecoglou is almost the polar opposite as he encourages his players to be brave even if there is an increased risk of mistakes. That should hopefully help individuals grow in confidence and showcase their best, which many struggled to do under the last few regimes.

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