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Tottenham Hotspur defender Van de Ven has admitted he "never expected" the club's decision to dismiss former manager Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's spell in charge came to an end a just over two weeks after he guided Tottenham to victory in the European final, delivering the club's first major trophy in nearly two decades.

However, this continental triumph was not mirrored in the domestic league, with the team finishing in a disappointing 17th position in his last season in charge.

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

"He is a fantastic manager. I have a lot of respect for him," the Dutch defender told a podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went backstage. It came as a shock. It was strange how everything went afterwards - he's the manager that brought a trophy to Tottenham," he added.

"Later, when he got sacked, I texted to my dad and my friends and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

The Rise and Fall

The Australian manager arrived at Tottenham from Celtic ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, replacing Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his opening 10 Premier League games.

Nevertheless, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four losses in five matches, and the team's season tailed off, ultimately missing out on Champions League qualification by a mere two points.

In the next campaign, they managed only 11 out of 38 league matches.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

Although he enjoyed the attacking approach, Dutch international the defender thinks the squad was missing a "alternative strategy" and disclosed he and fellow centre-back Cristian Romero discussed adopting a more defensive approach with the coach.

"I enjoyed the attacking football at that time but I like what we have now with our current manager. We are more solid at the back. I dislike being vulnerable every game on the break," he said.

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

"But, managers study everything and people knew what we were doing. At times we lacked a plan B and we were getting exposed. We didn't have solutions to get out."

"At one point Romero and I approached the manager and suggested we need to adjust tactically and play more defensive to ensure we win those games. He was responded, 'I understand with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"