football.london

football.london writers deliver Ange Postecoglou sack verdict

Tottenham Hotspur face Chelsea on Sunday in a huge London derby. Spurs have already lost at home to Arsenal this season and defeat to Chelsea would be unthinkable for the supporters.

Head coach Ange Postecoglou is under huge pressure and that was no more apparent than after the loss to Bournemouth on Thursday night when he went over to applaud the supporters and was given a barrage of abuse.

It was an insipid display from Spurs and followed a similarly disappointing performance in the 1-1 draw with Fulham at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.

Spurs could find themselves as low as 13th in the Premier League table by the time they kick-off against the Blues on Sunday afternoon. It has been an extremely disappointing start to the season all told.

Can Postecoglou turn it around? Is he the man to turn things around? We asked our football.london writers to give their verdict on the Australian's future at the club.

Lee Wilmot

It was a fresh, exciting brand of football that Tottenham desperately needed after the managers that came before him. And a fifth-placed finish in the Premier League was a fine start.

But things have gone sour for Ange Postecoglou this season. How many times have Spurs been genuinely good from start to finish this season? Very few.

I thought the Manchester City win would kickstart the season and get Spurs firing on all cylinders. It has not happened. We've followed that up with a draw against Fulham - and let's face it the Whties deserved to win - and a 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth.

Spurs have been desperately poor on too many occasions this season - Crystal Palace, Ipswich Town and these latest two results. That's 12 points down the drain you could reasonably expect a free-flowing, firing on all cylinders Tottenham team under Postecoglou to pick up.

There are injuries, injuries galore and that is a rather large extenuating circumstance of course, but Spurs were supposed to have built a squad of young players who could offer more strength in depth than we had last season. It has not turned out to be the case.

We can't defend set-pieces and we don't look like scoring from them either. We're too open - which is fine when you're banging goals in, less so when you're not - and for all the possession in matches the build-up is often slow and laboured.

It has become quite tedious to watch Tottenham again and that's the real issue here. The entertaining football has gone and if you're not doing that and you're not winning matches, there's a big problem.

Can Postecoglou turn it around? I hope so, but defeat to Chelsea on Sunday and that could be that.

Rob Guest

It certainly doesn't get any easier for Ange Postecoglou and Tottenham when you look at the upcoming fixtures. While you would expect Spurs to get results against Rangers and Southampton, the Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool games look rather daunting given the team's current form and list of absent players.

Lose against in-form Chelsea on Sunday and the pressure on Postecoglou's shoulders is only going to increase to new levels. Injuries and suspensions are killing Spurs right now and any team in the Premier League would be impacted if they were missing their first-choice goalkeeper, first-choice centre-back pairing, a midfielder of Rodrigo Bentancur's quality and a couple of attacking options.

Regardless of those missing players, there have been a number of occasions this term when Spurs have looked so open at the back, lacked energy on the pitch and not played the attacking, free-flowing football that Postecoglou is known for. Thursday's defeat against Bournemouth was a prime example as they were incredibly lucky to leave having lost by only the one goal.

Tottenham really should be higher in the table after dropping points against Leicester City, Newcastle United, Brighton & Hove Albion, Crystal Palace, Ipswich Town, Fulham and now Bournemouth. It is not good enough and Spurs have to find some consistency sooner rather than later if they want to make this season a success.

I don't believe sacking Postecoglou is the answer at present, though. Tottenham cannot keep parting with managers and go back to the start again as it has got them nowhere in recent years. After all, who would you even turn to if Postecoglou is to depart?

Tottenham have to try and navigate this period as best they can and stick with Postecoglou, just like Arsenal did with Mikel Arteta when things looked rather bleak for him down the road at the Emirates Stadium. Tottenham are in the middle of a project right now and there is unfortunately going to be some short-term pain which will hopefully lead to brighter days in N17 in the not too distant future.

Kieran King

For me, Tottenham should part company with Ange Postecoglou. They have not been good enough so far this season, and although impressive wins have come against the likes of Manchester City twice, Aston Villa and Manchester United, Spurs have failed to beat Leicester, Ipswich, Crystal Palace, Fulham, Brighton and Newcastle within the first 14 games of the Premier League season.

That, alongside their lowly league position of 10th with just 20 points from a possible 42, has raised alarm bells that Postecoglou's time at Tottenham could be coming to an end, and I think it's inevitable that he gets the sack. You can't simply turn up every other week a club the size of Tottenham and expect success. They look miles off compared to last season and something needs to change.

Should Postecoglou face the bullet, I believe that Tottenham need to look at Fulham's Marco Silva or Newcastle's Eddie Howe. Both managers have plenty of Premier League experience, play an attractive brand of football and would help ensure Spurs are more consistent as they bid to climb the table.

Kieran Horn

In short, there are far bigger problems at Tottenham than Ange Postecoglou right now. The Spurs head coach is not free from blame however with his tactics at both ends of the pitch flattering to deceive currently as the Lilywhites look rather lifeless in attack and very open in defence.

At the end of the day however, he just does not have a good enough squad to seriously compete in four competitions. Regardless of who is in charge, the problems are so deep-rooted that they cannot be solved imminently.

Followers of football, and this most definitely includes Tottenham fans, are impatient and too often the term project is thrown around, but that is exactly the process that is required. There is going to be some serious short-term pain but it will absolutely be worth it in the long run if Postecoglou is backed further.

Many raise a point that the 59-year-old has made minimal progress during his near 18 months at the club in comparison to Chelsea's Enzo Maresca who only joined this past summer. However, when comparing the two squads, it is very clear to see why the Blues are where they are currently.

And in all honestly it is very likely things become much more tense over the following weeks with home games against Chelsea and Liverpool on the horizon. However, some perspective is seriously needed as Spurs seemingly face the busy Christmas period with just one senior centre-back.

Every team gets injuries, but when there is three in one position it is very difficult to not suffer. Postecoglou is struggling and it is fine for questions to be asked about his future but anyone suggesting he should be sacked right now, is out of their mind.

Isaac Seelochan

It feels like Spurs have been pretty average for some time bar the odd good result. Ange Postecoglou got off to the perfect start last season but teams have by and large worked them out.

One of the most damning facts for Postecoglou is that a Bournemouth team under a manager who has been there for the same period of time is now above his side in the table. The Cherries played them off the park despite spending a fraction of the money Spurs have paid for some of their stars.

Postecoglou has often come across as quite arrogant and thin-skinned in some of his responses to journalists, despite the fact he has received a lot of good will in the media. I have a feeling he won't last the season and that won't be entirely unjustified.

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