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Spurs defender Micky van de Ven has admitted he "was completely surprised by" the club's move to dismiss ex-boss Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's two-year tenure came to an end a mere 16 days after he led the team to victory in the European final, delivering the team's first major trophy in nearly two decades.

However, this European success was not matched in the Premier League, with the side ending up in a lowly 17th position in Postecoglou's final campaign in charge.

He was replaced by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the off-season, but Spurs currently sit 11th in the table, with 22 points, following a 3-0 loss to Forest at the weekend.

"He was a really good manager. I have a lot of respect for him," the Dutch defender told The Overlap podcast.

"I don't know how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was odd how everything went afterwards - he's the manager that brought a trophy to Tottenham," he added.

"Afterwards, when he got sacked, I sent a message to my dad and my mates and said, 'I never expected this.'"

The Rise and Fall

Postecoglou joined Tottenham from Celtic ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, taking over from Antonio 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 was halted with four defeats in five games, and the club's form deteriorated, ultimately failing to secure a top-four finish by a narrow two points.

The following season, they won just 11 of their 38 league matches.

Lacking a Plan B

While he appreciated the attacking approach, Dutch international Van de Ven thinks the squad was missing a "plan B" and disclosed he and fellow centre-back Romero spoke about adopting a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I enjoyed the attacking football under Postecoglou but I like what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more solid at the back. I don't like being vulnerable every game on the counter-attack," he explained.

"Initially with that system, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

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

"On one occasion Romero and I approached the manager and said we need to adjust tactically and be more defensive to ensure we secure victory in those games. He was like, 'I understand with you but I want you two guys to handle this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"