Danny Murphy believes Tottenham Hotspur need to let Ange Postecoglou leave, regardless of Europa League Outcome
Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy has questioned the long-term suitability of Ange Postecoglou as Tottenham manager, saying the North London club would be making a “huge mistake” by retaining him, even if he were to deliver silverware this season.
In a scathing assessment, Murphy dismissed the Australian’s coaching credentials, pointing to Tottenham’s incredible drop-off in form after his first few months on the job.
“I like him as a person, I just don’t think he’s a good coach,” said Murphy. “I think he’s a really likeable guy trying to play football that the fans want to see.
“He started like a train, but as soon as other sides realised what they did, they just get picked off.”
Tottenham began the Ange-ball era with flair and optimism. Postecoglou was praised for implementing a bold, attacking philosophy. But what followed after the first three months – when he won manager of the month three times in a row – was inconsistency and defensive fragility, and speculation over his future has become deafening this season.
With Spurs currently in the hunt for Europa League glory, Murphy believes it would be a potentially season-damaging mistake to keep the Australian in the next campaign.
When asked whether the club should keep Postecoglou if he manages to win the Europa League, Murphy said: “That would be a Ten Hag moment.”
“[He has lost] 20 league games, could be 22, 23 by the end of the season,” continued Murphy. “You can’t give a manager a job based on beating a Norwegian side [Bodo/Glimt] in the semis. Eintracht Frankfurt was a great result.
“Let’s say it’s 3-3 in the final and they beat Manchester United on pens, you’re keeping him in a job for winning a one-off game against Man United on pens.
“The biggest problem is not the stats. The biggest problem for any manager at any football club is when the fans turn.”
