Ange Postecoglou hits back at critics: ‘Everything Tottenham does is wrong’

Postecoglou admitted that the ‘general sentiment’ is that he should be sacked even if he leads Spurs to Europa League success

Ange Postecoglou has hit out at overly-negative analysis of his Spurs side (PA Wire)

Ange Postecoglou remains determined to navigate his latest struggle and lead Tottenham to Europa League success, but acknowledged the "general sentiment" is he will not be in charge next season.

Speculation over Postecoglou's future has been rife for months following a difficult winter where 14th-placed Spurs slid down the Premier League table amid a hefty list of injuries.

It has left the Europa League as Tottenham's only chance to salvage a difficult campaign and with Eintracht Frankfurt set to visit on Thursday in the quarter-final first leg, Postecoglou made reference to a national newspaper opinion piece which suggested even European glory may be too little, too late for him.

"I just think we're in that position that the good stuff we may do is going to be turned into a glass half full rhetoric and from that perspective I don't think that can be a driver in what we want to do. The lads are really keen to bring success to the club," Postecoglou said.

"(Someone) wrote that even if we win it, I'm gone anyway. That's not having a go at you, that's just saying the general sentiment of people. So if you're trying to use that as a motivation, you're not going to win that anyway.

"I came to this club with a clear purpose and vision of what the club needed and what I could offer. That is to change the way the team plays, to obviously rejuvenate the squad because it was a squad that was coming towards the end of a cycle and to bring success.

"As long as I'm in this position, that's always my focus, irrespective of whatever noise there is or what there may or not be in the future. I don't see that that should diminish my burning ambition, my desire and my determination to make that happen.

"Anything you achieve in life usually comes with a struggle. Certainly everything I have achieved in my life has come with a struggle from a professional perspective.

"This is just another struggle, but never through this struggle have I lost the will to fight for what I think is the right thing to do and I'll continue to do that."

Spurs will be without key figure Dejan Kulusevski (foot) but have a largely fully-fit squad, with one of Postecoglou's biggest decisions whether to start Brennan Johnson or Wilson Odobert on the right wing.

Johnson scored twice in Sunday's 3-1 victory over Southampton to take his tally to 16 for the season but was denied a hat-trick after Mathys Tel was allowed to take a stoppage-time penalty over the Wales forward.

Brennan Johnson (right) was denied a chance at a hat trick (Getty Images)

Tottenham vice-captain Cristian Romero handed the ball to Tel to squash any debate, but questions on the subject on Wednesday frustrated Postecoglou.

He added: "It's incredible, it's just literally turning gold into crap when it's Tottenham. Seriously. If we're 2-1 up tomorrow night and get a penalty in the last minute, I want the best penalty-taker to take it.

"I mean the one slight against this club is apparently it hasn't been a winner. Well the winner's mentality in the last minute of the game is to score a goal. We scored a goal and yet somehow in this ultimate universe where everything Tottenham does is wrong, that's come out as a negative."

PA