Former Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Joe Hart said Ange Postecoglou ‘blew his mind’ with his tactical philosophy and revealed how the Australian coach helped him adapt his playing style while at Celtic.
Hart retired in the summer after spending three seasons with the Scottish giants, two of which were under Postecoglou before he left to become Spurs manager.
Speaking on BBC 5 Live, the former England keeper has now heaped praise on his former boss, revealing how Postecoglou changed his perspective on playing out from the back and left a more lasting impact than some of his recent managers, including Jose Mourinho and David Moyes:
“Ange Postecoglou blew my mind, because he really opened me up.
“I actually thing I’d be sat here, having this conversation and not being able to understand Maresca and what his thought process is, if I hadn’t experienced what I did in terms of that specific detail.
“I always thought playing out from the back, does that mean I have to do [Johan] Cruyff turns, pick passes? No, it doesn’t, it means I need to stand on the ball and make sure my centre halves are on either side of me, my six is showing.
“If the space is being created, I’m not playing out for the sake of it. I’m playing out to score. If that full press comes and all I see is opposition players next to mine, I'm given that clarity in my mind that there's a little dink into the striker's chest.
“All these things come together, and it’s a totally different game and a totally different thought process.”
Hart enjoyed two highly successful seasons under Postecoglou at Celtic, winning back-to-back trebles before the Australian took his talents to North London in the summer of 2023.
In his first campaign with Spurs, Postecoglou guided the Lilywhites to a fifth-place finish in the Premier League, raising fans’ hopes for a top-four finish and potentially their first title since 2008 this season.
Tottenham had a stunning week, securing two statement victories by first beating Man City in the Carabao Cup and then coming from behind to defeat Aston Villa 4-1 in the Premier League.
The victory moved Spurs up to seventh, closing the gap to the top four after last week’s loss at Crystal Palace, with ourth-placed Arsenal now only two points ahead of Postecoglou’s men.
The Lilywhites will next travel to face Galatasaray in the Europa League on Thursday before hosting Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Sunday.