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Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Micky van de Ven has revealed he "was completely surprised by" the club's decision to dismiss ex-boss Postecoglou.

The Australian's two-year tenure came to an end a mere 16 days after he led the team to victory in the Europa League final, securing the club's first major trophy in nearly two decades.

Yet, this European success was not matched in the domestic league, with the team ending up in a lowly 17th position in his last campaign in charge.

He was succeeded by ex-Brentford manager Frank during the summer, but Spurs currently sit 11th in the table, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

"He is a really good manager. I still really like him," Van de Ven stated on The Overlap podcast.

"I don't know how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was strange how everything went after - he is the coach that won silverware to Tottenham," he continued.

"Later, when he got sacked, I sent a message to my father and my mates and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

Postecoglou arrived at Spurs from Celtic before the 2023/24 campaign, replacing Conte. He made a bright start with his attacking style of play, collecting 26 points from his first ten league matches.

However, that unbeaten run came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five matches, and the team's form deteriorated, eventually failing to secure Champions League qualification by a mere two-point margin.

The following season, they managed only 11 of their 38 Premier League fixtures.

Lacking a Plan B

Although he enjoyed Postecoglou's style, Dutch international the defender thinks the squad lacked a "alternative strategy" and revealed he and fellow centre-back Romero discussed taking a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I enjoyed the offensive play under Postecoglou but I like what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more secure at the back. I don't like getting exposed every game on the break," he said.

"Initially with that system, no team was accustomed to playing against our system. We were playing exceptional football."

"But, coaches analyse everything and opponents knew what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a plan B and we were getting exposed. We didn't have answers to get out."

"At one point me and Romero walked up to the gaffer and suggested we should adjust tactically and play more defensive to make sure we win those games. He was like, 'I understand with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"