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

Postecoglou's spell in charge came to an end a just 16 days after he led Tottenham to a win in the European final, securing the team's first piece of silverware in 17 years.

Yet, this continental triumph was not matched in the domestic league, with the side ending up in a disappointing 17th place in Postecoglou's final season in charge.

He was replaced by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank during the summer, but Tottenham are presently 11th in the table, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

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

"I don't know how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was odd how everything went afterwards - he's the manager that won silverware to the club," he continued.

"Later, when he got sacked, I texted to my dad and my friends 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 offensive philosophy of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his first ten league matches.

Nevertheless, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five games, and the team's season tailed off, ultimately missing out on a top-four finish by a mere two points.

The following season, they won just 11 out of 38 Premier League fixtures.

Lacking a Plan B

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

"I enjoyed the offensive play at that time but I appreciate what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more secure defensively. I dislike getting exposed every game on the counter-attack," he explained.

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

"However, coaches study everything and opponents knew what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a backup plan and we were being caught out. We lacked answers to get out."

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