Daily Record

Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou is odds-on to be sacked before Christmas - with his Celtic successor Brendan Rodgers favourite to replace him in north London!

The Aussie is coming under increasing pressure at Spurs after a shaky start to the season which included defeat to Arsenal in last week’s derby and they scraped through in the EFL Cup with a late show against Championship outfit Coventry City. Postecoglou moved to the English Premier League outfit from Parkhead at the start of last season with Rodgers returning to the east end of Glasgow for a second stint at the Hoops in a controversial move.

Rodgers won the double and has made a flying start to his second season and is tipped for a third stint in the English Premier League having previously managed Swansea City, Liverpool and Leicester City.

Postecoglou is due to return to Glasgow in December to face Rangers in the Europa League but the bookies reckon he might not even be at the club at that time. The sportscasting.com/uk traders are making him 8/11 to be gone by Christmas and even shorter (2/5) to not last the season.

The oddsmakers are also pricing up Rodgers as the favourite to take over at 5/1 - a man that’s been rumoured for the Spurs top job many times before - with former England man Gareth Southgate not ruled out either at just 7/1. Spokesman Andy Newton said: “The new Premier League season is only a handful of games in but already there is mounting pressure on Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou after a very average start.

“Postecoglou had promised big things over his second season at the North London club, but he’s already on the back foot with just one league win so far and with Spurs chairman Daniel Levy no stranger to culling his managers, I’m not surprised to see Ange odds-on to be gone by Christmas. If so, there has been a lot of talk about Brendan Rodgers joining Spurs in the past and they could finally get their man - if, of course, the compensation to Celtic is enough to let their highest ever paid manager leave the Scottish giants.”

ANGE POSTECOGLOU ODDS SPECIALS

To be sacked or quit before Xmas :

Yes 8/11

No 11/10

To be sacked or quit before the end of the season:

Yes 2/5

No 2/1

Ange Postecoglou Next Job

Leicester 4/1

Southampton 9/2

Everton 5/1

Wolves 7/1

Man Utd 8/1

Crystal Palace 9/1

Next Spurs Manager

Brendan Rodgers 5/1

Thomas Tuchel 11/2

Gareth Southgate 7/1

Graham Potter 7/1

Maurizio Sarri 8/1

Xavi 9/1

A video showing panic-stricken Tottenham fans turning their back before Arsenal's winner has been seized upon and used to slap down Ange Postecoglou's controversial post-match narrative.

The under-fire Spurs boss – now winless in seven London derbies – was visibly miffed by questions surrounding his side's power-puff defending which their biggest rivals took full advantage of for Gabriel's booming header from a set piece. Postecoglou claims it would be folly to only look at set plays – with jangly Guglielmo Vicario causing fear in the Spurs goal – as the reason why they failed to lay a glove on Mikel Arteta's side. But if he's not sweating it, then it's a different story in the stands.

And now a video nasty has been unearthed by the Gooners, which shows worried Spurs fans looking away before the corner which provided the winner, a scene more traditionally associated with managers when their side are facing a penalty, not a cross into the box. Postecoglou wasn't without his problems to seek in the post-match debrief as onlookers collectively wondered what had happened to the swashbuckling nature of Angeball.

Jamie O'Hara let rip over the signing policy which has included arrivals from Bournemouth, Leeds United and Burnley. But an ashen-faced Postecoglou is adamant set-pieces – led by former boss Nick Montgomery – is high on his agenda. He said: "I know, I know, for some reason people think I don't care about set pieces and it's a narrative that you can keep going on for ages and ages. I understand that. Like I said, we work on them all the time like we do for every other team. You know that they're a threat, as I said, for the most part, we handled (Arsenal) really well today, but we switched off for one and we paid a price and you learn from that and you move on.

"But it is what it is, you know, it's my burden to carry, mate, and I'm happy to do that. It's not like, like I've always said, for me, there's a bigger picture that's at play here that's much more important than the finer details of us getting to where we want to. For us, the way forward is to try to turn the football we're playing now into something meaningful."

A report in the Netherlands claims the candidates who could sign Sam Lammers are shrinking with Twente unable to afford the Rangers outcast.

The 27-year-old – who turned heads with 10 goals on loan at Utrecht in the second half of last season – is seeking a permanent exit from Ibrox as he trains and plays with the B team until his future is sorted. The forward has been an ill-fit in Glasgow and now a report in his homeland states his current wage isn't one which the side who finished third can pay. Utrecht appears an option, however, AZ are out after they signed Troy Parrott.

Dutch insider Leon ten Voorde weighed in on the state of play surrounding Lammers and claims the striker isn't even willing to discuss a move to Enschede. He said: "Lammers is training with the second team of Rangers, but he earns such a salary that he doesn't even come to talk in Enschede. And then you're not talking about half as much. He has to give up a lot more. FC Twente has a higher budget than FC Utrecht, but can't yet keep up with the salaries of FC Utrecht. NEC is also a difficult story every now and then and AZ is also still a step higher.

"Of course, they are working on making FC Twente able to participate in the future and at least be able to pay the same as FC Utrecht. But at the moment that is not yet the case. Lammers played for FC Utrecht for the past six months, and he did not do that for nothing."

Meanwhile, Jermain Defoe has left Tottenham after coaching the club's U18s. The former Rangers striker is on the move but he paid tribute to the club he played for during two spells in his goal-laden career before returning to a coaching capacity. Posting on social media, the 41-year-old wrote: "For the past two seasons I have thoroughly enjoyed my coaching time at THFC. Today I leave this incredible club, and I want to say thank you to all the amazing people in the building who have helped me learn and grow.

"Special thanks go to Donna Cullen who brought me back to the club, and in particular, Paul Bracewell, Stuart Lewis, Nigel Gibbs, Wayne Burnett and Bradley Allen, who have all been paramount in helping me evolve into the coach I am today. It has been a pleasure to achieve so much at Spurs including reaching UEFA A coaching status which was always an ambition of mine following my playing career. Spurs will always hold a special place in my heart and the fans already know how much the club means to me. much the club me

"However, now is the right time for me to move on and shape the rest of my coaching and managerial career, nevertheless I will forever remember my time at Spurs fondly. All great journeys eventually come to an end and I wish everyone at the club nothing but the best for the coming season and the future. "Until next time"

Tottenham Hotspur’s new £40million wonderkid Archie Gray has revealed how Ange Postecoglou was the crucial factor in his switch to north London - because he’s Celtic-daft.

The teenager was unveiled by his new club after making the switch from Leeds United and in his first interview spoke of his love for the Hoops and his new boss who spent two outstanding seasons at Parkhead, winning five trophies out of a possible six, before making the switch to the English Premier League.

Gray said: “I’m not going to lie to you, I’m a massive Celtic fan. I love him, my whole family is to be fair, my whole family loves him. I haven’t said this to be fair. He’s also a massive factor to me joining.” The 18-year-old comes from a family of Scottish football royalty. His grandfather Frank and great uncle Eddie are Scotland Elland Road legends and dad Andy also played for Leeds. He followed in their footsteps at the Yorkshire giants but after missing out on promotion last season, Spurs met a clause in his contract to swoop.

Gray initially looked set for a move to Aston Villa before Brentford jumped to the head of the queue when he completed a medical, however, Leeds pulled the plug on a deal with the Bees over payment structure and Spurs swooped.

Leeds confirmed the move in a statement: “Leeds United can confirm Archie Gray has completed a permanent transfer to Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur for an undisclosed fee, after the North London outfit met a release clause that was triggered by the club’s failure to get promoted at the first attempt.

“Gray progressed through the ranks of the Academy at Thorp Arch and became involved with the first team setup at the age of just 15, when he was named on the bench for the Whites against Arsenal in the top-flight in 2021. He subsequently went on to make his senior debut in last season’s Sky Bet Championship opener against Cardiff City at Elland Road, aged 17.

“Going on to become a mainstay and thriving in the side under head coach Daniel Farke at right-back, he played a key role in helping the Whites reach the Sky Bet Championship Play Off Final. Throughout his time at the club, Gray also featured on the international stage, earning 24 caps for England at youth level, from Under-15s to Under 21s. He now departs having made a total of 52 first team appearances for the Whites in all competitions.”

It was the move from one job to another that brought to life all those expressions you’ve heard before on the subject of luck.

Like the one about falling in the river and coming out with a salmon in your mouth. Or the other one about falling out of a window and going upwards. Nick Montgomery, a managerial appointment made by Hibs who was so unsuccessful he was binned after eight unfulfilling months in charge, has joined Ange Postecoglou’s backroom team at Spurs.

The English Premier League. The supposed best league in the world. The Promised Land. Like swapping a Mondeo for a Mercedes. Neil Warnock will be wondering why he was overlooked after all he did for Aberdeen, which was about as much as Nick did for the cabbage and ribs. If this is the kind of luck Montgomery carries with him, I would expect Spurs to be in the Champions League at the end of the season.

Meanwhile, I like bit of optimism over a manager hired in response to repeated pessimism regarding his predecessors. The vote of confidence given to the new Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin by Pittodrie’s chief executive Alan Burrows was above and beyond the call of duty.

“I’d rather have a good manager for a short period than a poor one for a long time” was Burrows’ welcoming statement. After four quickfire failures in a row in the manager’s office, the Swede now has to live up to his star billing. The Chief Exec has portrayed him as being someone good enough to attract offers to go elsewhere in jig time, presumably as a result of having lit a fire under the previously faltering Dons. No pressure then..

The 18-year-old is still to agree a new deal at Celtic Park - and that is attracting plenty of interest from elsewhere

The Aussie coach is known for toying with reporters in his press conferences.

The win moves them level with Aston Villa in fourth and leaves Manchester United with work to do to close the gap.

The Australian laid out what he views as progress this season - and the answer raised some Spurs' eyebrows.

Ange Postecoglou has warned Tottenham that Champions League qualification will be meaningless unless the club build on it this summer, with Spurs fans already frustrated this week