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Was Ange a Spurs Tottenham flop? Club legend weighs in
Jaiden Sciberras • December 11th, 2025 8:54 am
Ange Postecoglou's tenure at Tottenham feels like a distant memory, yet his legacy at the club remains up for debate.
Viewed as a cult hero by many, Postecoglou’s time with the club - specifically on-field - is hardly looked upon fondly by those in and around North London.
While his fast-paced, attacking football was most certainly conducive of high-level entertainment, it proved rather unsustainable against Premier League opposition – a club-worst 17th place finish in the Premier League suggests as such, despite enduring a woeful run with injuries.
Although many point to his first season in the English top flight - a fifth-place finish to propel the club into Europe - as a taster for what 'Angeball' could produce at its high-flying best, Postecoglou's short-lived Premier League career may well have come to an abrupt end - handed a second chance at Nottingham Forest earlier this season, Ange was sacked after just 39 days, failing to win a league game upon his return to management.
These are lows that European champions very rarely experience, but it is that title alone that divides opinions across the planet.
On a night that will be remembered by Tottenham fans globally, Ange Postecoglou delivered something that no Spurs manager could for 41 years – claiming the title on a European stage. A 1-0 win over Manchester United in the Europa League final secured the club’s first major trophy in 17 years, breaking the club’s extensive drought in dramatic fashion.
Despite the triumph and the celebrations that followed, Ange’s European glory would prove the last of his successes with the club, having been relieved of his duties just weeks later.
Whether justified, necessary or cruel, Tottenham’s decision to part ways with Ange was the cost of domestic expectation, as explained by Spurs legend Jermain Defoe.
“Ange came, and he said he was going to win a trophy. He delivered,” Defoe told SEN 1170 The Run Home.
“I think it’s just part and parcel of football, nothing really surprises me. When you are at a top club, there is a demand and an expectation.
“Regardless of who the manager is, if someone would have said to me, next season Tottenham are going to finish 17th in the league, I’d say that could never happen. It’s unacceptable, if we’re being totally honest, for a club of that size, or any of the top clubs.
“But, if someone said to me, the manager is going to come in and win a European Trophy after 41 years, I’d have been like, ‘he’s going to be a legend’.
“It’s crazy the way it happened. You win a trophy, but domestically, you finished 17th. It’s actually so unlucky. There’s been managers in the past… Carlo Ancelotti won the league and the FA Cup at Chelsea and he got sacked!
“There’s been managers before that have done well, done okay… it’s just part and parcel. It’s unfortunate the way it happened for Ange.”
So, what is Ange’s legacy at Tottenham?
“I wouldn’t say he’s a flop,” Defoe continued.
“Most fans would think, he said he was going to come and deliver a trophy, and he did that. A lot of the fans will think you have to appreciate what Ange did.
“When you see those celebrations around North London that night when we won, and the day after, and the parade… I was at Tottenham for nine years, and I was like, wow!
“I was at home watching the celebrations, seeing people come together outside the stadium and on the streets. I thought, this is priceless, you can’t beat this.
“Mums and dads, kids, nan and granddad, brothers and sisters, mates, it was just the best thing, and Ange brought that. You have to appreciate that.”
Despite knowing that the decision was coming, Ange still went out with his natural confidence, boasting an achievement that eluded several of the world’s greatest managers.
“Ange said that he knew it was going to happen,” Defoe said.
“He is an experienced guy, he is an honest guy, and that was his words – ‘I knew it was coming’. Probably because of results domestically, in the league.
“If we didn’t win the cup, then what would people have said? Domestically, you want to do well. But he won a trophy, and it’s amazing, and it was a long time coming.
“We’ve had some amazing managers over the years, and they didn’t manage to do it, but he did.”
Since his axing at the hands of Forest, Ange is yet to disclose what the future may hold, however, that night in Bilbao may have already cemented his managerial legacy.
