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Tottenham Hotspur defender Micky van de Ven has revealed he "never expected" the club's move to part ways with former manager Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian's two-year tenure came to an end a mere over two weeks after he led Tottenham to a win in the European final, delivering the club's first piece of silverware in nearly two decades.

Yet, this continental triumph was not mirrored in the domestic league, with the team finishing in a lowly 17th position in Postecoglou's final campaign at the helm.

He was succeeded by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the summer, but Spurs are presently 11th in the table, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 defeat to Forest on Sunday.

"He is a fantastic manager. I still really like him," the Dutch defender stated on a podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went behind the scenes. It came as a shock. It was odd how everything went after - he is the coach that won silverware to Tottenham," he continued.

"Afterwards, when he was dismissed, I texted to my father and my mates and said, 'I never expected this.'"

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

Postecoglou joined Tottenham from Celtic before the 2023/24 campaign, replacing Antonio Conte. He made a bright start with his offensive philosophy of play, amassing 26 points from his first ten Premier League games.

However, that unbeaten run was halted with four defeats in five matches, and the club's form deteriorated, ultimately failing to secure Champions League qualification by a narrow two-point margin.

The following season, they managed only 11 out of 38 Premier League fixtures.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

Although he enjoyed the attacking approach, Dutch international the defender believes the squad lacked a "alternative strategy" and revealed he and defensive partner Cristian Romero discussed adopting a more defensive approach with the coach.

"I liked the attacking football under Postecoglou but I appreciate what we have now with our current manager. We are more solid defensively. I dislike getting exposed every game on the break," he said.

"At the beginning under Postecoglou, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

"But, coaches study everything and people figured out what we were doing. Sometimes we lacked a backup plan and we were being caught out. We didn't have solutions to resolve it."

"On one occasion me and Romero approached the gaffer and said we need to change some things and play more defensive to ensure we win those games. He was responded, 'I agree with you but I expect you two guys to sort this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"