Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou says he has little sympathy for Manchester United’s injury crisis after his side secured a vital 1-0 victory over Erik ten Hag’s depleted team on Sunday.
Speaking candidly in his post-match press conference at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the coach dismissed any notion of pity for United’s predicament, instead drawing parallels to his own team’s struggles earlier in the season.
If I check my office, I don’t have any sympathy cards from other managers, so that hasn’t happened,” Postecoglou remarked when asked about United’s injury issues.
There’s definitely a few out there. I could see Ruben there, players out of position, kids on the bench. Well, welcome to my world. But that’s for one game.
Now do that for two months. Do that for two months. Any club. Do that for two months,” he said in the interview retrieved by KUKURUKU Online on Monday.
It was a defiant response from the Spurs boss, whose side had suffered a mid-season slump due to their own injury setbacks.
Yet, on this occasion, it was Tottenham who emerged victorious, a win that Postecoglou believes could serve as a turning point in their campaign.
‘We Needed That Win’
Reflecting on the performance, Postecoglou stressed the importance of securing the three points.
I think the important thing is that we did win today. It was an important game for us and an important week. We needed to put in a performance today to get us the result and I think we did that.
That coupled with the fact that we’ve got some significant players back and they got through the game unscathed and really contributed—it was important for us. It signals a little bit of an opportunity for us to push on from here.”
The return of key players was a major boost, with James Maddison, Brennan Johnson, and Micky van de Ven all featuring in the squad.
For Postecoglou, having the ability to introduce experienced players from the bench was a luxury he had been missing for weeks.
Yeah, it does make a massive difference. Getting guys like Vic and Madders contributing straight away, you can see the quality they have and the presence they have.
As you said, I can put guys on, and for guys like Brennan, Wilson, Vic, Madders to a certain extent, it might take them one or two games to get up to speed, but the fact we have them available, yeah, it’s an enormous boost for us,” he continued.
Maddison’s Return, Celebration Controversy
James Maddison’s return from injury was a welcome sight for Spurs fans, with the midfielder capping his comeback with a crucial goal.
However, it was his celebration that drew as much attention as his performance.
Everybody has mentioned his celebration, but I didn’t see it, so I can’t comment on it. But it doesn’t surprise me that
Madders didn’t accept what was being said about him and threw a shot back over the bow.
It’s just great to have him back. He is a quality player. If you just look at his goals return from midfield this year, it’s still right up there,” he gave his opinion.
Minor Knocks, Targeting European Football
With three key players—Kevin Danso, Son Heung-min, and Rodrigo Bentancur—picking up knocks during the game, Postecoglou provided an update on their conditions.
The coach stated, “He got a knock on his knee. Him, Sonny, and Rodri all got sort of knocks. I don’t think it is anything significant.
But the beauty of it now is we can actually get them to recover instead of trying to patch them up and throw them out (onto the pitch) again midweek.”
While Tottenham’s recent struggles had some questioning their European aspirations, Postecoglou remains confident that the team can push for a strong finish to the season.
I certainly believe there is still a hell of a lot on offer for us, this back half of the year. Europe is the obvious one, but even in the league, I think we could make inroads. We’re not happy with where we are.
It’s unacceptable that we’re in the position we are. But the circumstances have dictated that to a great extent. The circumstances will change.
The guys who came back in today will improve and make us stronger. There’s still two or three more on the horizon who will also come back,” he asserted.
With a critical stretch of fixtures ahead, Postecoglou emphasised that the win over Manchester United was just the first step in their resurgence.
It’s only one game, but I thought today was an important game if we were going to start that progress. Getting three points makes us think, OK, it’s starting to make an impact,” he concluded.
