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Spurs defender Micky van de Ven has admitted he "was completely surprised by" the club's decision to dismiss former manager Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's two-year tenure came to an end a mere over two weeks after he guided Tottenham to a win in the Europa League final, securing the team's first major trophy in nearly two decades.

Yet, this European success was not matched in the domestic league, with the side ending up in a lowly 17th position in Postecoglou's final season in charge.

He was replaced by former Brentford boss Frank during the off-season, but Spurs currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

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

"I'm not sure how everything went backstage. It came as a shock. It was odd how everything went after - he's the manager that brought a trophy to Tottenham," he continued.

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

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

Postecoglou joined Spurs from Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, replacing Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his opening 10 league matches.

However, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five matches, and the club's season tailed off, eventually failing to secure Champions League qualification by a narrow two points.

The following season, they managed only 11 out of 38 league matches.

Lacking a Plan B

Although he enjoyed Postecoglou's style, Netherlands international the defender thinks the squad lacked a "plan B" and disclosed he and defensive partner Romero spoke about taking a more cautious style with the manager.

"I liked the attacking football at that time but I appreciate what we have now with our current manager. We are more solid at the back. I dislike being vulnerable every game on the break," he said.

"At the beginning with that system, no team was used to playing against our system. We were playing exceptional football."

"But, coaches study everything and opponents knew what we were doing. Sometimes we lacked a backup plan and we were being caught out. We lacked answers to get out."

"At one point me and Romero approached the gaffer and suggested we need to change some things and be more defensive to ensure we secure victory in those games. He was responded, 'I understand with you but I expect you two guys to sort this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"