Ange Postecoglou has hit out at criticism of his administration by insisting “I’m not a clown” and vowed to “maintain profitable trophies” wherever he goes as hypothesis mounts over his future at Tottenham Hotspur.
Spurs will purpose to finish a 17-year await a significant trophy in Wednesday’s Europa League remaining towards Manchester United, an achievement which might go a protracted option to salvaging an in any other case determined season through which they’ve suffered a club-record 21 Premier League defeats and sit in seventeenth place.
Sources have instructed ESPN that Postecoglou is going through an uphill battle to avoid wasting his job and one report instructed Wednesday’s sport might outline the 59-year-old as both a “hero or a clown” relying on the result in Bilbao.
“I am going to inform you one factor: regardless of what occurs tomorrow, I am not a clown and I by no means can be,” Postecoglou stated in a pre-match information convention. “I am actually upset that you’d use such terminology about an individual who for 26 years with none favours from anybody has labored his option to a place the place he is main out a membership in a European main competitors [final].
“So that you can recommend that in some way us not being profitable signifies that I am a clown … [I’m] probably not certain the right way to reply that query.”
With hypothesis rife about his future regardless of having two years left on his present contract, Postecoglou continued: “Does it matter? Actually? It does not matter as a result of the fact of it’s the alternative is identical, for me and extra importantly for the membership.
“I’ve stated earlier than that no matter occurs past tomorrow is sort of irrelevant when you consider the chance that exists proper now.
“That chance is to offer one thing particular for the soccer membership and for the supporters and for everybody who has labored so exhausting, not simply this yr however for the 15, 16 years, nonetheless lengthy it has been with no trophy and in addition the 41 years with no European trophy.
“If I used to be frightened about my tenure at this soccer membership, it is truthful to say we would not have been on this place as a result of I’d have been distracted way back.”
Sources have instructed ESPN that the membership’s hierarchy have grown more and more involved concerning the workforce’s home droop regardless of their progress in Europe and Postecoglou dropped the clearest trace but he could possibly be sacked.
“I have been on this place earlier than the place the large sport was the final sport I managed,” he stated. “It is commonplace territory for me. I’ve at all times navigated it fairly nicely as a result of for me nothing is extra essential than my accountability for this soccer membership and its followers that tomorrow me, the gamers, our thoughts is barely on one factor and that’s to create one thing particular.
“I certified for a World Cup and left. Gained the treble with Celtic and left. Gained at Brisbane and left. It is truly extra widespread than you suppose.
“My future is assured. I would not be the primary one who adjustments jobs, all of us change jobs.
“I’ve received a wonderful household, an excellent life, I am going to maintain profitable trophies till I end, wherever that’s, don’t fret about my future, my future is just not entwined with something, my future is assured.”
Nevertheless, Postecoglou insisted that ending Tottenham’s trophy drought wouldn’t be a large enough achievement for him to stroll away glad from the function.
“No, as a result of I do not suppose my job is finished right here,” he admitted. “I actually really feel like we’re constructing one thing and what a trophy does is hopefully accelerates that.
“I nonetheless suppose there’s numerous work to be accomplished. The challenges we have had this yr are nicely chronicled, however there’s been some reasoning in that and there is additionally been development I would prefer to see by means of, however whether or not that occurs or not is just not that essential proper now.
“I believe this job is way from completed. There’s some development there to take this membership the place it must be.”
