It’s done! Tottenham Hotspur have their new head coach, and he’s from Down Under. Spurs formally announced the signing of Angelos “Big Ange” Postecoglou on social media and their website after a whirlwind weekend of negotiations.
Postecoglou will join Spurs on 1 July (a couple of weeks before Spurs’ preseason trip to Australia!) on a four-year contract.
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Ange Postecoglou as our new Head Coach on a four-year contract
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) June 6, 2023
“Ange brings a positive mentality and a fast, attacking style of play. He has a strong track record of developing players and an understanding of the importance of the link from the academy – everything that is important to our Club,” Daniel Levy said in a statement.
“We are excited to have Ange join us as we prepare for the season ahead.”
Postecoglou joins Spurs as the 12th manager under chairman Daniel Levy’s tenure, replacing interim manager Ryan Mason and Antonio Conte after the latter left the club “by mutual consent” in March.
Postecoglou has his work cut out for him in the short term. He inherits a team that underachieved last season and that was, at some level, constructed for Conte, a manager with a hugely different philosophy and playing style. Spurs will not have European competition for the first time in over a decade, and so is extremely bloated. There’s a lot of slimming down and refreshing to do to make this into a team that plays free-flowing, progressive Ange-Ball.
But also, Postecoglou, along with the club, will have to decide what to do about Harry Kane who is entering into the final year of his contract and is already attracting interest from Real Madrid. Can Big Ange convince Harry to stay and sign a new contract that will keep him a Spurs legend and a one-club man like Ledley King? Or will he give the okay to sell Harry for a large amount of money and use those funds to help restructure the team?
On a personal note, I don’t know whether Ange Postecoglou will be a success at Tottenham or not. Just because he’s done well everywhere else he’s gone doesn’t mean that will scale to the Premier League, and there are significant problems, both tactical and structural, that will need to be overcome. Success may take time and is not guaranteed, so I hope that the fanbase will give him a chance. (If I can give Mourinho a fair shake, so can the loudest anti-Ange voices on social media.)
But by all accounts Postecoglou is an excellent human being — kind, warm, demanding, and fair. Omitting Mason’s interim stints and the Nuno Interregnum, this has been a club that has been dominated by dickheads over the past three years. I’m looking forward to Ange being a refreshing change of pace.
Plus he’s Australian, and that gives so many opportunities for good memes and jokes. I’m here for it! Hoist the inflatable kangaroo! Start growing that mullet and mustache combo! Welcome to Tottenham Hotspur, Big Ange!
