Ange Postecoglou is not having a great season at all at Tottenham Hotspur.
The Australian, who finished fifth in his debut Premier League campaign, was adamant last year that he wins trophies in his second season.
However, Tottenham crashed out of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup in the space of four days, and the Europa League is now their only hope of winning a trophy.
Silverware aside, some of Postecoglou’s decisions haven’t made much sense this season, despite all the injury issues.
Pascal Chimbonda has highlighted one such call.
Pascal Chimbonda questions Ange Postecoglou’s goalkeeper decision
Tottenham started the season with Guglielmo Vicario as their number one. The Italian is still their first-choice goalkeeper, but he has been out injured for a few months now.
Fraser Forster took over from him for a few games, but that experiment did not work. Brandon Austin did well in the three opportunities he got, but he was quickly pushed back down to the bench.
That’s because Antonin Kinsky was brought in, and he has been playing regularly in recent weeks.
Chimbonda has claimed that it was a ‘strange’ decision to sign Kinsky because Austin was already there. He feels that the 26-year-old Englishman deserved more opportunities.
Speaking on Inside Spurs on talkSPORT, Chimbonda was asked why he thinks Austin hasn’t played more games.
He replied: “Because it’s the manager who decides, you have a goalkeeper coach as well who decides. But, I think they should’ve given him a chance early and see what he’s capable of doing.
“You can’t keep a young, tall, big keeper on the bench, and he’s been at Spurs for so long. They should’ve given a chance before when Vicario was even playing. Alternate sometimes to see what this kid’s capable of doing and take it from there.
“You can’t have a goalkeeper on your bench and after a couple of weeks, you go get another one (Kinsky). That, for me, is strange.”
Brandon Austin has an easy decision to make
Austin has been at Tottenham since he was a kid.
The Englishman came through the ranks at the club’s academy and has been around the senior setup since the pre-season of 2014.
However, Austin has made just three senior appearances for Tottenham, and with Vicario, Kinsky and Forster all at the club, he is probably the fourth choice right now.
The signing of Kinsky made it clear that Postecoglou didn’t have faith in Austin. That makes it an easy decision for the 26-year-old – he should leave the club for first-team opportunities elsewhere.
Austin, however, signed a new contract at Spurs just last year, and that deal does not run out until the end of the 2028/29 season.