Celtic fans were promised that Ange Postecoglou would “rock their worlds” and he certainly did that, leading the team to a domestic double in his first season, followed by a treble and a record-breaking 114 league goals in 38 games. However, despite his success, Postecoglou has been met with derision and contempt from the English media and Premier League fans, who have been quick to dismiss his appointment at Tottenham Hotspur. Postecoglou has had to prove himself by delivering success on three continents in order to get a sniff at a Premier League job, and he has done exactly that.
When he joined Celtic in 2021, an Australian media commentator tweeted that despite his lack of name value, Postecoglou was going to ‘rock the world’ of Celtic fans. He was embraced as a part of the Celtic family and quickly turned what should’ve been a difficult and time-consuming rebuild into immediate success. He assembled a squad producing the most entertaining football ever seen from a Celtic team, and his vibrant, energetic, joyful brand of fitba was far more enjoyable than Brendan Rodgers’ more sideways-based approach.
A key element in building that team and style was due to recruiting gems from Japan where he had worked previously, and this could be exactly what Spurs need after the club has shown little imagination in the transfer market in recent years. If Harry Kane departs, they may have the ideal man to help contribute to a better rebuild than they managed after the Gareth Bale sale.
Postecoglou’s transfer nous can be a huge benefit to Spurs if Harry Kane departs (Picture: Getty Images)I can end that debate – they are not and never will be. Postecoglou’s new role might mean a bigger salary and a bigger platform but not a bigger club, not by any stretch of the imagination. I’ve been a Celtic fan since the 90s, when we had the financial might to at least compete with Premier League clubs for signings and seeing the response to Tottenham’s announcement reminded me of hearing pundits and fans declare, in the same derisive vein, that ‘Henrik Larsson couldn’t do it outside Scotland.’ Just ask Arsenal fans, who will remember Thierry Henry saying Larsson was the ‘difference maker’ after the Swede turned the 2006 Champions League Final on its head with two assists from the bench for Barcelona – or the entire Manchester United dressing room who gave him a standing ovation after his final game for the club.
Postecoglou’s transfer nous can be a huge benefit to Spurs if Harry Kane departs (Picture: Getty Images). Despite his success at Celtic, Postecoglou’s move to Tottenham has been met with derision from English media and Premier League fans. However, Postecoglou has had to prove himself by delivering success on three continents in order to get a sniff at a Premier League job, and he has done exactly that. His vibrant, energetic, joyful brand of fitba was far more enjoyable than Brendan Rodgers’ more sideways-based approach, and his ability to recruit gems from Japan could be exactly what Spurs need after the club has shown little imagination in the transfer market in recent years. Postecoglou’s new role might mean a bigger salary and a bigger platform but not a bigger club, not by any stretch of the imagination. For Celtic fans, although they’re gutted at his departure, he leaves with their best wishes. He made them believe again that their club can succeed in Europe playing a forward-thinking brand of football. I genuinely think that under Postecoglou they would have competed for a last 16 berth in next season’s Champions League, playing a brand of progressive and attractive football. To all those writing the new Tottenham boss off in lieu of actually engaging with what he has managed to achieve in his career, I urge you to step out of the Premier League bubble and actually pay attention to someone’s story and track record before writing them off. I fully expect Ange to ‘rock the world’ of those querying his chances – although the influence of Daniel Levy will be a huge factor.