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Spurs centre-back Micky van de Ven has revealed he "was completely surprised by" the club's decision to part ways with former manager Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian's spell in charge was terminated a just 16 days after he led the team to victory in the Europa League final, delivering the club's first piece of silverware in nearly two decades.

Yet, this European success was not matched in the domestic league, with the team ending up in a disappointing 17th position in his last campaign in charge.

He was succeeded by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the summer, but Spurs are presently 11th in the table, with 22 points, following a 3-0 loss to Forest on Sunday.

"He was a fantastic manager. I still really like him," the Dutch defender told a podcast.

"I don't know how everything went backstage. I didn't expect it. It was strange how everything went after - he's the manager that brought a trophy to Tottenham," he added.

"Later, when he was dismissed, I sent a message to my dad and my friends and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

The Rise and Fall

Postecoglou arrived at Tottenham from Scottish champions Celtic before the 2023/24 campaign, taking over from Conte. He enjoyed early success with his offensive philosophy of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his opening 10 league matches.

However, that unbeaten run was halted with four defeats in five games, and the club's season tailed off, ultimately missing out on Champions League qualification by a mere two points.

In the next campaign, they won just 11 of their 38 league matches.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

Although he enjoyed the attacking approach, Dutch international Van de Ven thinks the squad lacked a "alternative strategy" and disclosed he and defensive partner Romero discussed taking a more defensive approach with the coach.

"I enjoyed the offensive play at that time but I like what we have now with our current manager. We are more solid defensively. I don't like getting exposed every game on the break," he explained.

"At the beginning under Postecoglou, no team was accustomed to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

"However, coaches analyse everything and opponents figured out what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a plan B and we were being caught out. We didn't have answers to get out."

"On one occasion Romero and I approached the gaffer and said we need to adjust tactically and play more defensive to make sure we win those games. He was responded, 'I understand with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"