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Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Micky van de Ven has revealed he "was completely surprised by" the club's move to part ways with former manager Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian's spell in charge was terminated a just 16 days after he led the team to victory in the European final, delivering the team's first piece of silverware in nearly two decades.

However, this European success was not mirrored in the Premier League, with the team finishing in a lowly 17th place in Postecoglou's final season at the helm.

He was replaced by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank during the off-season, but Spurs currently sit 11th in the table, with 22 points, following a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

"He is a really good manager. I have a lot of respect for him," Van de Ven told a podcast.

"I don't know how everything went backstage. It came as a shock. It was odd how everything went after - he is the coach that brought a trophy to the club," he continued.

"Later, when he got sacked, I texted to my dad and my mates and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

The Rise and Fall

The Australian manager arrived at Spurs from Scottish champions Celtic before the 2023/24 campaign, taking over from Conte. He made a bright start with his attacking style of play, amassing 26 points from his opening 10 Premier League games.

However, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five games, and the team's season tailed off, eventually missing out on a top-four finish by a narrow two-point margin.

In the next campaign, they won just 11 out of 38 Premier League fixtures.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

While he appreciated the attacking approach, Dutch international the defender believes the squad lacked a "alternative strategy" and revealed he and defensive partner Cristian Romero spoke about adopting a more cautious style with the coach.

"I enjoyed the offensive play under Postecoglou but I appreciate what we have now with our current manager. We are more solid defensively. I dislike being vulnerable every game on the break," he explained.

"At the beginning under Postecoglou, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

"However, coaches study everything and opponents knew what we were doing. At times we lacked a backup plan and we were being caught out. We lacked solutions to get out."

"At one point Romero and I approached the manager and suggested we should change some things and be more defensive to ensure we secure victory in those games. He was like, 'I agree with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"