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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 two-year tenure came to an end a mere over two weeks after he guided the team to a win in the Europa League final, securing the club's first major trophy in 17 years.

However, this European success was not mirrored in the domestic league, with the team finishing in a lowly 17th place in Postecoglou's final campaign in charge.

He was replaced by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the summer, but Spurs currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points, following a 3-0 loss to Forest on Sunday.

"He was a really good manager. I have a lot of respect for him," Van de Ven told a podcast.

"I don't know how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was strange how everything went after - he is the coach that won silverware to the club," he added.

"Afterwards, when he was dismissed, I sent a message to my dad and my friends and said, 'I never expected this.'"

The Rise and Fall

Postecoglou arrived at Tottenham from Scottish champions Celtic before the 2023/24 campaign, taking over from Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his first ten league matches.

Nevertheless, that unbeaten run came to an abrupt end with four losses in five games, and the club's season tailed off, ultimately missing out on Champions League qualification by a narrow two-point margin.

In the next campaign, they managed only 11 out of 38 Premier League fixtures.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

Although he enjoyed Postecoglou's style, Dutch international Van de Ven believes the squad was missing a "alternative strategy" and revealed he and fellow centre-back Romero discussed adopting a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I enjoyed the offensive play at that time but I appreciate what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more solid defensively. I dislike being vulnerable every game on the break," he said.

"At the beginning with that system, no team was accustomed to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

"However, coaches study everything and people knew what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a plan B and we were being caught out. We lacked answers to get out."

"At one point Romero and I walked up to the gaffer and said we need to change some things and play more defensive to ensure we win those games. He was like, 'I understand with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"