Ange Postecoglou believes a first trophy in 17 years can transform the culture of Tottenham Hotspur after defeating Manchester United in the Europa League final.
Back in September, Postecoglou claimed he ‘always wins things’ in his second season and he delivered one of the most memorable nights in the club’s recent history by masterminding a 1-0 win here in Bilbao.
‘I’m still taking it all in,’ a stunned Postecoglou said, with Brennan Johnson’s goal the famous moment to seal victory.
‘I know what it means for this football club. The longer it goes, the harder it is to break that cycle.
‘I could sense the nerves in everyone at the club and until you take that monkey off your back you never understand what it feels like.
‘We have a young group and I hope by tasting this, the players feel different about themselves and what it means to them is unbelievable.’
Postecoglou believes a first trophy in 17 years can transform the culture of Tottenham Hotspur
Postecoglou previously claimed he ‘always wins things’ in his second season and he delivered
‘I’m still taking it all in,’ a stunned Postecoglou said, with Brennan Johnson’s sealing victory
Postecoglou snapped at a reporter in the lead up to this final and cut an edgy figure with serious question marks over whether he would be sacked irrespective of the result.
Now, after ending Tottenham’s trophy drought, he feels vindicated and hungry for more.
‘People misinterpreted me,’ Postecoglou said of his vow to win a trophy earlier this season.
‘It was not me boasting, just me making a declaration and I believed it. I had this thing inside me more than anything else.
‘I know our league form has been unacceptable, but coming third was not going to change this football club, winning a trophy would, that was my ambition and I was prepared to wear it if it did not happen.
‘People kept reminding me of it because we were getting closer but I’m happy with that.’
On the other side, a downbeat Ruben Amorim said he would leave Manchester United if the board or fans have no faith in him to turn it around.
Amorim took charge in November and has overseen a miserable six months which has his team 16th in the Premier League and losers in the Europa League final in front of the Glazer family and Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Spurs will compete in the Champions League next year despite finishing in 17th in the league
‘If the board and fans feel I am not the right guy, I will go in the next day,’ said Ruben Amorim
‘I have nothing to show to the fans, so in this moment it is a little bit of faith [in the future],’ he said.
‘I am always open. If the board and fans feel I am not the right guy, I will go in the next day without any conversation about compensation, but I will not quit.
‘I am really confident on my job, and as you see I will not change nothing in the way I do things.’
Asked how no European football impacts United’s summer transfer plans, with a £62.5million move for Matheus Cunha expected to be imminent, Amorim admitted they will now have to look to Plan B.
‘We have two plans for the market and we have to understand it is tough for a club like ours not to be in the Champions League,’ he said.
