Alan Hutton claims Tottenham have gone backwards under Ange Postecoglou this season - but has backed the under-fire manager to turn things around.
Spurs go into Sunday’s crunch clash with Leicester hovering above the Premier League drop zone after a nightmare run of five defeats in their last six games. Thursday night’s Europa League win against Hoffenheim gave Postecoglou a much-needed boost, but the heat is still on to haul Spurs up the table.
Former Spurs star Hutton said: “There's no getting away from it, they've gone backwards, but I hope they stick by him. I like him as a manager. I like his thoughts on the game and what he wants to achieve in that formation. Look, it's not going to happen overnight. This is the kind of guy that the Spurs fans wanted in. You look at the previous managers they weren't happy with, because they were so defensively minded.
“He comes in with a real energy to get the ball forward and create opportunities. That's what they want to see. If they get the players in over the next few transfer windows that they want, he can really build a team that will go and fight for trophies. Ultimately that's what they want. I keep saying this all the time, the last time they won one was 2008 when I was there. I'm retired. It shows you how long ago it was.”
Postecoglou has had to contend with a crippling injury list with top stars like Guglielmo Vicario and Micky van de Ven stuck on the sidelines. Spurs have shipped 35 goals in 22 Premier League games and Hutton has urged the Australian boss to adapt his approach in a bid to shore up his backline.
He added: “It's difficult but in a way, I think Ange has been stubborn. I think you can play that way against certain teams, but on the odd occasion, I think you have to change your tactics ever so slightly to be a little bit more defensive minded. I just don't think they've done that under Ange. It's plan A and if plan A is not working, do A better. There's no other way around it, so I think that's not helped them this season.
“The injuries have absolutely killed them. I don't like making excuses for teams but it's there for all to see. I think when you're playing the way that Ange wants to play with a high line, everybody getting forward, full backs coming inside, moving forward.
“You rely heavily on your defensive two if you want. That's your rock: Van de Ven, [Cristian] Romero. They're huge misses. I was looking at the game the other day. I think they had 12 first team players. So, it kind of tells you the situation that they're in and consistently wheeling these guys out and asking them to play at high intensity and run around and be very aggressive.”
Alan Hutton was speaking on behalf of Casino Scout.