Tottenham's appointment of Ange Postecoglou is part of "a golden era" for Australian football, according to James Johnson.
Postecoglou was handed a four-year deal at Spurs on Tuesday, leaving Scottish champions Celtic after two successful years which culminated in a domestic treble.
Football Australia CEO Johnson believes Tottenham fans are wrong to hold concerns over Postecoglou – who has been hired to replace Antonio Conte – even if the 57-year-old was not one of the biggest names available.
Johnson feels Postecoglou's track record speaks for itself and is certain he will succeed in the Premier League in an era of rapid progress for figures connected with Australian football.
"Australian football is in a golden era right now," Johnson said to Stats Perform.
"It is a really extraordinary development and Australian football is very proud of Ange.
"Ange has gone through every level of Australian football. He's played in the NSL. He's coached in the NSL with South Melbourne.
"He's coached in the A-League with Brisbane Roar and Melbourne Victory. He's coached all our national teams from the youth national teams, all the way up to the Socceroos.
"He's had success at Celtic and now to land a job in the biggest league in the world with one of the biggest clubs in the world is extraordinary for Ange and for Australian football.
"The Ange appointment is another example of the many great waves that Australian football is pushing out at the moment.
"We are seeing a lot of our Matildas [Australia women's national team players] who are playing at some of the biggest clubs in the world from Chelsea to Tottenham to Arsenal to Lyon to Manchester City.
"We are seeing players re-enter the Premier League again, like Harry Souttar did at Leicester. We are seeing many players who are transferring from the A-League into Europe.
"And we are seeing our Socceroos coming off the best performance at a World Cup that they have ever had.
"Then we are hosting the biggest tournament in women's sports, the Women's World Cup, in only six weeks’ time, so it is a fantastic time for Australian football."
Postecoglou will take charge of a Spurs team that struggled to eighth place in the Premier League and will not play in Europe next season, with star striker Harry Kane facing an uncertain future.
Conte was sacked in late March, with Cristian Stellini and then Ryan Mason taking temporary charge. Johnson is convinced there will now be a rapid improvement and an attacking style of play.
He added: "Ange is someone who understands football from top to bottom, he's coached that youth team level. So at Tottenham, he's going to have a great connection with the youth team.
"He's competed at the European level. So he's going to understand what it's like to juggle players who were playing both domestically and European football which a club like Tottenham do.
"He's going to understand the friction between national team football and club football.
"Ange is a total package as a coach and Tottenham are very smart to hire him.
"He plays very attacking football. He's one of these people that he won't have restrictions put on him, he'll go out and play his style against any opposition.
"I think that kind of positivity and energy is exactly what a club like Tottenham need at the moment when they probably haven't done as well, in the past 12 months, as people would have expected them to."
Johnson continued: "I think people particularly in Europe need to understand the Australian football is coming quickly.
"Ange at the forefront of that movement and will be successful in the Premier League. I'm absolutely sure about that."
Spurs have friendlies against West Ham, Leicester City and Roma lined up in July.
Celtic urge fans to stop using pyrotechnics after another UEFA fine
Celtic have repeated their request for supporters to stop using pyrotechnics after being hit with another fine from UEFA.
The club said they had been fined 23,400 euros (about £20,260) after fans lit fireworks in the stands ahead of their Champions League group opener against Feyenoord in Rotterdam.
A spokesperson for Celtic said: “Clearly, we are concerned that, despite repeated requests and safety warnings, a small minority continue to use pyrotechnics at Celtic’s matches.
“The use of pyrotechnics represents a serious risk to the safety of our supporters.
“Celtic has been hit with another significant sanction by UEFA due to this behaviour. Again, the club requests that this conduct stops.”
News of the fine came hours before their first home game of the competition against Lazio.
Suriname's Robinhood, Dom Rep's Atletico Pantoja vie for second Group B semis berth
Suriname side Robinhood will be looking to seal their spot in the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Club semifinals when they take on Atletico Pantoja of the Dominican Republic in what is expected to be an intriguing Groub B showdown at the Dr. Ir. Franklin Essed Stadion in Paramaribo, o Thursday.
Robinhood currently sit in second position on six points, just one point behind leaders Harbour View of Jamaica, while Atletico Pantoja remain alive in the hunt for a semifinal berth, in fourth place on three points.
Robinhood can guarantee their semifinal place with a draw and could even capture group honours with a win, provided Harbour View drop points in their fixture against Cibao FC, also of the Dominican Republic.
However, an Atletico Pantoja win by a two-goal margin, would be enough to send them through to the Caribbean Cup semifinals ahead of Robinhood.
Needless to say, the night should provide plenty of great drama with so much at stake.
Robinhood have been buoyed by striker Shaquille Cairo, who has four goals in the tournament, making him the joint top-scorer along with Shaniel Thomas of Cavalier.
Cairo has been as consistent as they come, scoring in all three of Robinhood’s games and has gotten help from Tuur Don, who has two assists. Jamilhio Rigters also has contributed after scoring in their last outing, a 3-2 loss to Harbour View.
Atletico Pantoja have played to three straight 1-1 draws in the group, so they will need to break that streak with a full three points if they are to advance.
Jhon Mosquera has played a vital role as playmaker with two assists, while Ronaldo Vasquez has been one of the most active players in attack with 10 shots and 84 completed passes, along with two ball recoveries.
Ja's Harbour View takes aim at Dom Rep's Cibao FC with Group B honours in sight
Jamaica's Harbour View will be looking to complete their mission of a first-place finish in Group B of the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Cup, when they visit Cibao FC of the Dominican Republic at the Estadio Cibao in Santiago de los Caballeros, on Thursday.
Harbour View sit atop the group with seven points and have already clinched their spot in the semifinals, but they will need a victory at Cibao to assure themselves of group honours.
The East Kingston-based club has been excellent in the competition, opening with a 1-0 win against fellow Jamaican side Dunbeholden, before a 1-1 draw against Atletico Pantoja of the Dominican Republic, and an exciting 3-2 win versus Suriname’s Robinhood.
Cibao opened with a point in a 1-1 draw with Atletico Pantoja but have suffered back-to-back defeats since then. However, the opportunity is there to end on a high note.
Facundo Guichon has shown that he can find the back of the net, having scored against Dunbeholden, while Jean Lopez has an assist and leads the team in ball recoveries (8) and passes (186).
Harbour View will counter with the dynamic duo of Omar Thompson and Shaquiel Bradford. Thompson has scored in two successive games, while Bradford bagged a second half brace to spearhead Harbour View’s comeback win versus Robinhood.
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