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Tottenham Hotspur defender Van de Ven has admitted he "was completely surprised by" the club's move to part ways with former manager Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's two-year tenure came to an end a just 16 days after he led the team to victory in the European final, securing the team's first piece of silverware in 17 years.

However, this European success was not mirrored in the domestic league, with the side ending up in a disappointing 17th position in Postecoglou's final season in charge.

He was succeeded by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank during the summer, but Tottenham are presently 11th in the table, with 22 points, following a 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

"He was a fantastic manager. I have a lot of respect for him," Van de Ven told The Overlap podcast.

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

"Afterwards, when he was dismissed, 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 Spurs from Scottish champions Celtic before the 2023-24 season, taking over from Antonio Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his first ten league matches.

Nevertheless, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four losses in five games, and the team's form deteriorated, eventually failing to secure a top-four finish by a mere two points.

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

Tactical Concerns Revealed

While he appreciated Postecoglou's style, Dutch international the defender believes the squad lacked a "alternative strategy" and revealed he and defensive partner Cristian Romero spoke about adopting a more cautious style with the manager.

"I liked the offensive play under Postecoglou but I appreciate what we have now with our current manager. We are more solid at the back. I don't like getting exposed every game on the break," he explained.

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

"However, managers study everything and opponents figured out what we were doing. Sometimes we lacked a plan B and we were being caught out. We didn't have solutions to get out."

"On one occasion me and Romero walked up to the gaffer and suggested we need to change some things and be more defensive to ensure we win those games. He was responded, 'I agree with you but I want you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"