Tottenham Hotspur and Ange Postecoglou were incredibly close to securing Champions League football in his first season at the helm in north London, finishing just two points outside the top four with Aston Villa pipping them to the post - but with a huge summer kitty being spent on top young recruits, writer John Cross believes that the Lilywhites will have a huge task on their hands when it comes to the pressure being on them to finish in the top four this season.
Postecoglou massively impressed in his first Premier League season, winning eight of his first ten games in charge of Spurs, with only away draws at eventual title challengers Arsenal and fellow London outfit Brentford halting them in that regard. However, some poor runs throughout the season - including two separate spells with no wins in four and five respectively - halted their charge. A tough start to the season has seen them look to replicate that - but the pressure is on the Aussie to deliver, according to Cross.
Pressure on Postecoglou to Deliver This Season
Spurs have spent more than they usually would
Postecoglou spent big this summer, bringing Dominic Solanke, Archie Gray, Wilson Odobert and Lucas Bergvall to the club for big fees - whilst youngster Yang Min-hyeok was signed before heading back to Gangwon FC to finish the K-League season.
But with big fees comes a huge responsibility to finish in the Champions League and Cross says there will be pressure to record a top-four finish, or a fifth-placed finish at worst. He told the Sky Sports Back Pages podcast:
"What I would say is, having spent again - and you know, big time this summer - I would think it's a fair assumption to say that he's probably under pressure to get back into the Champions League places next season.
"But what I do find really interesting was that you can't knock Tottenham's ambition, and Daniel Levy who is really going for it, trying to get Spurs back up there and with a team to match the stadium.
"But you quickly forget the kind of Solanke's, Maddison, Romero, you know - Brennan Johnson was a lot of money. They have spent a lot of money in that squad and within that team, and it's now, I think, time for them to kind of push on and ensure they finish in the top four, possibly fifth."
Levy Must Trust Postecoglou to Deliver
The Aussie has been showered with new signings
Levy has typically been quite the penny-pinching style of an owner, who is always eager to squeeze every last pound out of a deal, but he has loosened his purse strings in recent years and that has seen Tottenham spend big since their new stadium opened.
Solanke recently became their record signing at a fee of around £55million, which could rise to £65million if bonuses are met - overtaking the £53.8million deal to sign Tanguy Ndombele back in 2019.
GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Tottenham haven't finished in the top four since the end of the 2021-22 season.
And having added Richarlison, Brennan Johnson, Cristian Romero and James Maddison to their ranks in the past two years, we could well be seeing Spurs embark on a crusade after years of financially prudent spending.
Frustrating results via the draw at newly-promoted Leicester City on the opening weekend and a loss against Newcastle United on Sunday - when on the run of play, they should have beaten both teams - won't please Postecoglou too much, but the Australian has a chance to appease the fans when Arsenal travel to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after the international break in a huge derby day clash.