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Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou loves to cause a stir in a press conference.
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Whether it be on purpose or completely by mistake, Postecoglou often says something controversial in his meetings with the media. The words themselves may not even be contentious at times, but the head coach’s tone - whether it be serious, sarcastic or otherwise - usually prompts a response.
Postecoglou certainly caused a reaction after last weekend’s 2-0 home loss to Crystal Palace, as he attempted to excuse and reason his team’s awful position in the Premier League standings. Spurs are currently 17th with a whopping 20 defeats in 36 matches, a club record in a top-tier league campaign. Postecoglou has blamed injuries and the progression to the Europa League final adding fixture congestion, expecting supporters and journalists to understand.
“Yeah, look and I get it and people are banging the drum about this record with defeats, but if people don’t see there is a correlation between the two (fixture congestion and poor form), I am not going to sit here. It’s not exactly Pythagoras' theorem,” Postecoglou said via Football London.
“It’s quite simple to understand we would have had much better results if we didn’t have to navigate this. So, either you understand or you don’t and beat us over the head, I get it.
“I am not happy with the way we performed today, so that’s what I look at. I think we could have performed better and irrespective of the result you can still lose a game of football and our performance level wasn't anywhere near where it should be. That's my responsibility to address.”
Postecoglou speaks the truth, to an extent, as Spurs and fellow Europa League finalists Manchester United have played more games than any other Premier League team, with 57 apiece. But it’s only a marginal difference, with the much higher-flying Arsenal (56), Aston Villa (55), and Liverpool and Manchester City (both 54) still having to navigate hectic months.
Meanwhile, when it comes to injuries, Spurs have had 22 so far this season, five fewer than bitter rivals Arsenal and just one more than Villa. Brighton & Hove Albion, also with 22, have managed just fine as they are still in the fight for a Europa Conference League place. Similar can be said for Newcastle United, who look likely to earn Champions League football despite contending with 17 injuries.
Villa fans can especially take great amusement from Postecoglou’s comments, as Unai Emery has had to deal with fixture congestion and injuries but has guided his team to European qualification with two matches to spare. It could yet get better, too, with a Champions League finish still on the cards.
All that has proved possible despite Villa’s financial disadvantage compared to the so-called ‘big six’, including Spurs. The Villans had to sell Moussa Diaby and Douglas Luiz last summer in fear of a points deduction due to a possible PSR breach, while Jhon Duran was sold in January with PSR in mind.
Granted, Spurs may have had more important players missing at times and for longer, but it’s hardly been night and day between them and Villa in this respect. The gap ahead of this Friday’s meeting between the two sides at Villa Park is 25 points and, if the hosts win, it could grow to 28. It’s just injuries and fixture congestion though, right, Ange?