Ange Postecoglou appears set to leave Celtic and take over at Tottenham.
Spurs fans appear to be split on the selection with some questioning his pedigree, but that will not faze the single-minded 57-year-old.
So what do Tottenham supporters need to know about their prospective new boss?
– Who is Ange Postecoglou?
The Australian, who emigrated from Greece at the age of four, won two titles as a South Melbourne player, where he worked under Real Madrid great Ferenc Puskas, and won four Australia caps before injury forced him to move into coaching at a young age.
– What success has he achieved?
Postecoglou led South Melbourne to two titles as manager in his early 30s and then spent seven years coaching Australia’s youth teams.
He burst back on to the domestic scene, leading Brisbane Roar from finishing bottom of the A-League to consecutive Grand Final victories in 2011 and 2012, with the help of a record 36-game unbeaten run.
He took charge of Australia at the 2014 World Cup, won the Asian Cup the following year and led his country to 2018 World Cup qualification before taking charge of Yokohama F Marinos, guiding them to their first J-League title in 15 years in 2019.
– And how about in Scotland?
He won five out of six domestic trophies during his two years in charge of Celtic, including a treble in what appears to have been his final campaign.
European football was the missing piece of the jigsaw. However, Celtic generally performed well in the Champions League this past season – against Real Madrid, RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk – while squandering chances that should have got them more than two points on their return to the elite stage.
– Does he have the experience for the Premier League?
Postecoglou addressed the fact there was a mixed response to his appointment as Celtic manager and was also unfazed by the fact a deal for Eddie Howe had fallen through.
“You’re assuming I was second choice, I might have been fifth choice, you never know,” he said at his unveiling. “It doesn’t really bother me. What’s important is that I have been given the responsibility and opportunity.”
He also dismissed suggestions he was making a “jump” in standard. “I have coached at a World Cup, I have coached against some of the best teams in the world,” he said.
He will not be concerned by the reaction to his Tottenham appointment given his total focus and belief in his process.
– What style of football does he employ?
Postecoglou has matched success with an attacking style and prides himself on building teams that get people talking and excite the fans.
Celtic scored a post-war club record 114 league goals this past season. His goalkeeper will need to pass the ball out, his centre-backs get on the front foot and are aggressive, while he employs inverted full-backs.
His team played with two attacking central midfielders and two wingers who have to get in front of goal when balls come in from the other flank, while the centre-forward can expect plenty of chances.
His mantra is “we never stop” and even the Celtic ball attendants are in tune with his demand to keep the game moving.
– What kind of manager is he?
Postecoglou has spoken of his love of a challenge and building something special from scratch.
“Just about every job I have had has been an extensive rebuild,” he once said. “Usually you come in when people are needing change. Secondly, the way I get my teams to play is challenging, and requires a major shift, usually both in playing staff and the way we work.”
He exerted control over a number of areas of the football department at Celtic and oversaw a massive rebuild while winning the title against a Rangers side who finished 25 points ahead the previous season and reached a European final in his first Scottish campaign.
He quickly won respect from Celtic players and fostered a culture of togetherness but also takes a step back from them and lets the dressing room run itself on match days. Australia international Ryan McGowan remarked how he sat next to Postecoglou on a long-haul flight in total silence as his manager does not want to be swayed by personal relationships when making decisions.
– What relationship can Tottenham fans expect to have with their manager-in-waiting?
Celtic fans bought into their manager’s style of play, how he represented the club and stood up for it in the media, although he very rarely talked about referee decisions.
He also understood how important the club is to people’s lives and used that as a motivation.
They gave him total backing in return, although success is obviously paramount to that.
Naparima, Fatima and San Juan North maintain 100 per cent win records in SSFL
Naparima, Fatima and San Juan North maintained their unblemished records following the fourth round of matches in Trinidad and Tobago’s Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) on Saturday.
Naparima College produced the most impressive victory of the unbeaten schools with a 7-0 thrashing of East Mucurapo Secondary. The result means they sit atop the 15-team league table with 12 points but enjoy a far-superior goal difference over Fatima College, who blanked Pleasantville Secondary 5-0.
San Juan North Secondary had a tougher time of it as they edged Queens Royal College 2-1 and lie third in the standings.
Meanwhile, Presentation College picked up their second win of the season with an impressive 3-0 victory over Chaquanas North Secondary. The three points earned from the win sees them fourth in the standings with seven points, one more than fifth-place Malick Secondary, who lost 1-2 to Speyside High School, who also have six points but are seventh on goal difference.
Also on six points but are sixth in the standings are Arima North Secondary who battled St Benedict’s College to a 1-1 stalemate.
St Anthony’s College defeated St Mary’s College 3-0 for their second win of the season in the other fixture played on Saturday.
Alvaro Morata brace inspires Atletico Madrid to victory over rivals Real Madrid
Alvaro Morata struck with two headers as Atletico Madrid clinched a rare LaLiga win over arch-rivals Real Madrid, winning 3-1 at the Metropolitano Stadium.
Morata and Antoine Griezmann gave Atletico a 2-0 lead inside 18 minutes and after Toni Kroos reduced the deficit before the break, Spain captain Morata headed his second against his former club a minute after the restart.
Atletico, who had won only one of their previous 14 league meetings against their rivals, halted Real’s five-game winning start to the league season.
Villarreal’s former Liverpool defender Alberto Moreno was sent off as his side drew 1-1 at Rayo Vallecano.
Kike Perez equalised for Vallecano a minute after Alexander Sorloth had fired Villarreal into a first-half lead and Moreno was shown his second yellow card in the 77th minute.
Real Sociedad sealed their second league win of the season in a seven-goal thriller at home against Getafe.
The visitors led 2-1 at half-time through Carles Alena’s header and Borja Mayoral’s penalty after Takefusa Kubo had given Sociedad an early lead.
Mikel Oyarzabal’s second-half double – his first coming from the penalty spot – sandwiched Brais Mendez’s effort to put the home side 4-2 up before Juan Latasa headed a late third for Getafe.
Guido Rodriguez’s second-half equaliser earned Real Betis a 1-1 home draw against Cadiz, who had led at half-time through Chris Ramos.
Las Palmas overcame the second-half dismissal of Mika Marmol to secure their first win of the season, 1-0 at home against second-bottom Granada, thanks to Kirian Rodriguez’s stoppage-time goal.
Italy midfielder Federico Dimarco’s first goal of the season clinched Inter Milan a 1-0 win at bottom club Empoli and kept them top of Serie A.
Dimarco struck early in the second half as Inter extended their 100 per cent league record this season to five matches.
Reigning champions Napoli were held 0-0 at Bologna and are now seven points behind Inter.
Fiorentina kept pace with the top four as goals from Lucas Martinez Quarta and Giacomo Bonaventura secured them a 2-0 victory at winless Udinese.
Atalanta, a point behind Fiorentina, won 2-0 at home against second-bottom Cagliari, with former Everton winger Ademola Lookman and Mario Pasalic both on target.
Duvan Zapata’s late header rescued a 1-1 draw for Torino at Roma, who had led through Romelu Lukaku’s second-half goal.
In the Bundesliga, Bayer Leverkusen are level on points with leaders Bayern Munich after beating newly-promoted Heidenheim 4-1 at BayArena.
Victor Boniface’s early opener for Leverkusen was cancelled out by Eren Dinkci in the second half, but Jonas Hofmann put the home side back in front and after Boniface had converted a penalty, Amine Adli completed the scoring.
Eintracht Frankfurt and Freiburg sit eighth and ninth respectively after drawing 0-0 at Deutsche Bank Park.
Paris St Germain climbed to within two points of surprise early Ligue 1 leaders Brest by thrashing Marseille 4-0 at Parc des Princes.
Goncalo Ramos notched a second-half double after first-half efforts from Achraf Hakimi and Randal Kolo Muani.
Strasbourg and Le Havre are among the early pace-setters after winning 1-0 at Metz and 2-1 at home against rock-bottom Clermont respectively.
Teenager Habib Diarra fired Strasbourg’s winner as they notched their third league win of the season, while Nabil Alioui and Mohamed Bayo put Le Havre 2-0 up inside seven minutes before Cheick Konate replied for Clermont.
Lens registered their first win of the season in all competitions, 2-1 at home against Toulouse, thanks to Morgan Guilavogui’s late strike, while Rennes were held 0-0 at Montpellier.
Alvaro Morata brace helps Atletico end Real Madrid’s winning start to season
Alvaro Morata headed a double as Atletico Madrid beat arch rivals Real Madrid 3-1 at the Metropolitano Stadium.
The Spain captain and Antoine Griezmann headed Atletico into a 2-0 first-half lead and although Toni Kroos pulled one back for Real before the interval, Morata struck again at the start of the second period.
Atletico fully deserved a rare LaLiga win in the Madrid derby – they had won only one of their previous 14 league meetings – and halted their rivals’ six-game winning start to the season.
Atletico made a dream start as they stormed into a 2-0 lead inside the opening 20 minutes.
Former Real striker Morata headed them in front in the fourth minute, stealing in behind the away side’s defence to glance home Brazilian winger Samuel Lino’s excellent cross.
After a spell of patient Real possession, Atletico exposed their rivals again out wide to double their advantage.
This time it was Saul Niguez who delivered an inch-perfect cross into the box, from the same left side, which Griezmann headed beyond on-loan Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Atletico almost added a third in the 31st minute when Kepa reacted smartly to keep out Saul’s effort.
An out-of-sorts Real hauled themselves back into it 10 minutes before the break through a piece of individual brilliance from Kroos, who turned neatly inside Marcos Llorente and arrowed a low shot into the bottom corner.
The visitors thought they had equalised just before the break, but the offside Antonio Rudiger was judged to have been interfering with play before Eduardo Camavinga turned the ball home.
Real boss Carlo Ancelotti sent on Joselu in place of Luka Modric for the second half, but his side were stunned inside a minute of the restart when Morata headed Atletico into a 3-1 lead.
Another Saul cross from the left picked out the ex-Chelsea striker and he provided another expertly-taken finish.
Atletico’s Mario Hermoso then headed against the crossbar before a triple substitution by Ancelotti saw Ferland Mendy, Nacho and Aurelien Tchouameni replace Fran Garcia, Lucas Vazquez and Camavinga.
Real began to force the issue as they searched for a way back into the match, with Rodrygo and Tchouameni both having efforts blocked and the latter fizzing a shot wide.
Rudiger and Federico Valverde both also fired shots just wide, but it was a night to forget for Ancelotti’ side, with a frustrated Jude Bellingham booked for a crude challenge in stoppage time.
Diego Simeone’s side climbed up to fifth, five points behind third-placed Madrid with a game in hand.
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