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Spurs 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 just 16 days after he guided the team to victory in the Europa League final, delivering the team's first piece of silverware in 17 years.

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

He was replaced by former Brentford boss Frank during the off-season, but Tottenham are presently 11th in the table, with 22 points, following a 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

"He was a fantastic manager. I still really like him," Van de Ven stated on a podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went backstage. It came as a shock. It was odd 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, 'I never expected this.'"

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

The Australian manager joined Spurs from Celtic before the 2023-24 season, taking over from Antonio Conte. He enjoyed early success with his offensive philosophy of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his first ten Premier League games.

Nevertheless, that unbeaten run was halted with four losses in five games, and the club's form deteriorated, ultimately failing to secure Champions League qualification by a mere two-point margin.

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

Tactical Concerns Revealed

While he appreciated Postecoglou's style, Dutch international the defender believes the squad was missing a "plan B" and revealed he and defensive partner Romero spoke about taking a more defensive approach with the manager.

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

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

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

"On one occasion me and Romero approached the gaffer and suggested we need to change some things and be 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.'"