Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou has plenty of admiration for Mauricio Pochettino’s appetite to take on a “big challenge” but has suggested he would never allow others to take complete control of recruitment.
Pochettino’s Chelsea visit Spurs on Monday with the west London club struggling for a second consecutive season despite an outlay of £1billion since Todd Boehly took over with his Clearlake Capital consortium last year.
While Pochettino has failed to hit the ground running and acknowledged at the end of September he would “need to be more involved now” with regard to the January transfer window, it is a different story for Postecoglou and his summer transfers.
“I haven’t come across him,” Postecoglou said of the former Spurs manager.
“From afar, great admiration. I think the impact he had at Southampton and at Spurs is unquestionable.
“He has taken on some pretty big challenges post-Spurs as well, which I’m all for. I like managers who take on big challenges, so great admiration and respect for his work.”
Paris St Germain was Pochettino’s destination after his departure from Tottenham, but a plethora of signings under his watch were made by PSG sporting director Leonardo.
This summer Chelsea spent more than £350million during Pochettino’s first transfer window, although he has been left with a bloated squad of big-money additions which lack experience.
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By contrast Tottenham’s Guglielmo Vicario, Micky van de Ven and James Maddison have quickly settled and Postecoglou said recruitment is a big factor for him, especially at the start of his tenure.
He added: “Wherever I’ve been, I’ve made sure that I have the biggest say over recruitment. I don’t do all the work, but I really think it’s an important part of my function and particularly when I first go into clubs.
“When you first go into a club, there are two measures that people will always put up against you.
“One is the results, that tells its own tale, but as a manager, and I’ve certainly had that experience, you can’t always guarantee the results early on.
“The other thing you get measured on is the people you bring in. Because at least if the results aren’t there, then people will say ‘okay, there’s something building here’.
“From my perspective, it’s the one area I really want strong control over.”
Spurs’ new technical director Johan Lange started work at the club on Wednesday and Postecoglou has already spent time with the ex-Aston Villa transfer guru, but a day earlier his focus was elsewhere.
Postecoglou and his wife Georgia were opening-night guests of Sir Kenneth Branagh on Tuesday at Wyndham’s Theatre to witness Shakespeare’s King Lear, a tale of a king seeking love from his three daughters, which ends in devastation.
The Aussie enjoyed the play but is eager for a different ending on Monday night.
“Sir Kenneth is a big Spurs fan and was kind enough to invite my wife and I to the theatre the other night,” Postecoglou revealed.
“We enjoyed it. I did have to swot up on King Lear. It wasn’t part of the curriculum at Prahran High!
“You always learn from life and the appreciation of seeing people excel at what they do is inspiring. You walk out of there thinking, ‘I don’t know how they do it’.
“Sir Kenneth was good after it. I caught up with him briefly, he was very kind with his time.
“He was all over how it’s going and gave me some little bits of advice, which I’ll ignore like he’ll ignore my advice on acting, mate! It was good. It was much appreciated.
“There was a fair bit going on in that play, mate! I definitely want a better ending than Sir Kenneth had.”
Outgoing Brighton boss De Zerbi not walking into new job
Roberto De Zerbi insisted he does not have another job lined up after overseeing his final game as Brighton and Hove Albion boss on Sunday.
One day after surprisingly announcing De Zerbi's departure, Brighton ended their Premier League campaign with a 2-0 home loss to Manchester United.
That meant they slipped below rivals Crystal Palace to finish 11th in the table, their first bottom-half placing since finishing 16th in 2020-21.
De Zerbi has been linked with several big clubs since leading Brighton to European qualification last season, with Bayern Munich, Milan and Napoli touted as possible landing spots for the former Sassuolo and Shakhtar Donetsk coach.
However, De Zerbi says he has not reached an agreement with any other club, telling reporters: "There isn't any club – no-one offered me anything. At the moment, nothing.
"I hope to work in the Premier League again. I don't know where or when, but it was an honour to work in the Premier League."
Sunday's defeat was De Zerbi's 70th Premier League game in charge of Brighton, with his top-flight win percentage of 37 per cent (26/70) the highest of any boss in the Seagulls' history.
Battling a lengthy injury list for much of 2023-24, Brighton made a total of 143 changes to their starting lineup throughout the course of the campaign, with only Manchester City in 2019-20 (144) ever making more in a single Premier League season.
Asked by BBC Match of the Day if there was a particular reason for his exit, the Italian added: "We didn't find the agreement to move on. I want to keep my way.
"I know very well what I want to do and I know I am a coach and I have to accept the policies of the club.
"They gave me an incredible chance. They gave me the possibility to know incredible people, to play and to work in the Premier League, to play in the Europa League. They gave me the opportunity to know this club, this city, these fans and that I cannot forget."
Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna and Nice coach Francesco Farioli have both been tipped as possible contenders to replace De Zerbi, with Brighton having a reputation for excellent succession planning under owner Tony Bloom.
Asked about the search for a replacement on Sunday, Bloom said: "We always try and have a plan. We have got a plan. We now need to execute that plan."
Mateta 'finishing everything that comes to him' as Palace rout Villa
Jean-Philippe Mateta is "finishing everything that comes to him", according to his Crystal Palace team-mate Eberechi Eze.
Palace thumped fourth-placed Aston Villa 5-0 at home on the last day of the Premier League season to seal an unlikely top-10 finish, with Mateta scoring a hat-trick and Eze adding two goals of his own.
They ended the season with a seven-match unbeaten run under Oliver Glasner, who made a huge impact after replacing Roy Hodgson in February.
Mateta has been a huge beneficiary, as since Glasner's first game in charge on February 24, he has scored 13 Premier League goals, which is more than any other player in the competition.
He ended the campaign with 16 top-flight goals, putting him level with the likes of Bukayo Saka and Jarrod Bowen in the scoring charts. Only Andrew Johnson has netted more for the Eagles across a single campaign in the competition, when he netted 21 in 2004-05.
"He is what I'm playing for," Eze said about Mateta, per Palace's official website.
"He is finishing everything that comes to him, which makes our life a lot easier when I'm playing for him, so it's good.
"I did come close [to a hat-trick myself], but the most important thing is putting in good performances. We're all going to flourish, we're all going to have games where we score.
"We're preparing the work and we're doing the work before we go on to the pitch, so we're enjoying it, that's the main thing."
The match also saw Mateta become just the second Frenchman to score in seven home Premier League home appearances in a row, after Thierry Henry for Arsenal between May and October 2004.
Eze has also finished the season with a flourish, ending the campaign with 11 goals and four assists.
Mateta is among those who have called for him to earn a place in the England squad for Euro 2024.
"Of course it's an honour [to play for your country]," said Eze. "It would be a great experience.
"I think it is a dream for any player to play in any big tournament. But the main thing, I'm being realistic. It is what it is: if I get a call, I get a call.
"But the main thing is doing what I need to do for my club, and that's the performance."
Villa are the first side to concede five or more goals in their first and final matches of a top-flight season since Manchester City in 1962-63, having been beaten 5-1 at Newcastle on the opening weekend.
But they were magnificent in between those two losses, enjoying a campaign to remember as they qualified for the Champions League, confounding pre-season expectations.
"Thank you to our supporters because even today they were with us," said Villa boss Unai Emery after Sunday's loss.
"We achieved our objective on Tuesday [when UCL qualification was confirmed] and we did everything we could with our supporters in Villa Park on Monday [in the 3-3 draw with Liverpool].
"They were travelling here to be with us, supporting us so we are disappointed with the result, but we have to accept it.
"We have to be happy and share with our supporters the whole season, not just today. Every match is very important and we lost, but we’d achieved our target.
"We have to accept it and keep going forward. Now it’s time to rest and try to follow our players with their national teams and prepare as best as possible the next season.
"We have to enjoy the season we did and we’re very excited for the next season, but we have to take our time now."
Howe taking plenty of positives despite frustrating Newcastle campaign
Eddie Howe was keen to look at the positives after Newcastle United secured seventh place in the Premier League on Sunday.
Alexander Isak and Bruno Guimaraes were among the goalscorers as Newcastle won 4-2 at Brentford to finish their Premier League campaign.
The victory ensured a seventh-place finish, and a Manchester City victory over Manchester United in next Saturday's FA Cup final will confirm Newcastle's place in next season's Europa Conference League.
While this season did not quite live up to the heroics of last term, which saw the Magpies finish in the Champions League spots, Howe still feels it has been a successful campaign.
"It summed up our season," Howe told BBC Sport. "We weren't totally secure at the back, but great credit to the players. They've done their job - now we wait and see.
"We anticipated after losing against Manchester United that our control of the [European] situation had gone. It's never a nice situation, but whatever happens, happens.
"We have issues to solve defensively. If we can do that, next season could be another season of really strong performances. This was a season that could have been better, but a good season overall.
"We're a really united club. I think we're still moving forward, so there's a lot to be positive about."
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