The Mirror

Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham Hotspur future continues to hang in the balance despite Europa League glory, with the London side slumping to a 17th-place finish in the league

Ange Postecoglou is hoping the tide of emotion will give him a stay of execution as Tottenham boss. The expectation remains that Postecoglou is set for a summer exit despite leading Tottenham to glory in the Europa League final.

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is facing a heart-rending call over Postecoglou’s future after the Spurs boss delivered the club’s first trophy in 17 years and a passport into the Champions League. Postecoglou has made it clear he wants to stay, has made a string of public statements to push his claims but, realistically, the Aussie knows that it would take a huge shift for him to get another year.

There is unlikely to be a quick resolution over Postecoglou’s future but the players have made it very clear that the dressing room is behind him after the jubilant scenes in Bilbao last week when Tottenham beat Manchester United. Tottenham midfielder James Maddison has reiterated that the players are behind him as a “winner” after guiding the club to success.

Maddison told Sky: “The start of the season when he says I don’t usually win things, I always win things. We knew that would create uproar in the media. Never once did I stop believing he meant that.

“He’s been brilliant. The season three line was iconic as well, that was the ultimate mic drop moment. His biggest strength is his self belief in what he does and that feeds off into us and it’s been installed into us into Europe this year. Managers and clubs can go long periods without winning trophies - you don’t need a bigger example than Tottenham - but he’s a manager who has always had success.”

The European success was celebrated with a parade when Postecoglou got a huge reception from the fans as they lapped up his promise that the best TV series have a better third season than season two. However, Postecoglou’s issues came back to haunt him just two days later when Brighton battered Tottenham 4-1 to inflict a 22nd defeat of their Premier League season to leave the club stranded in 17th, just one place above the relegation zone.

That is the reason why it remains highly likely that Postecoglou will be shown the door because the risk will be that if they stick with him then results will not improve. Brentford boss Thomas Frank has admirers within the club while Marco Silva has hinted heavily that he will stay at Fulham even though he is on Tottenham’s hit-list.

Bournemouth are determined to keep Andoni Iraola who is another who has been heavily linked. But Tottenham are set for big changes behind the scenes this summer, although Fabio Paratici could return to the club as director of football after serving a FIFA ban.

It points to a complicated process and that is another factor in why decisions may take time over the manager’s future. Paratici’s contacts book can almost certainly deliver a big-name manager but Levy will be reluctant to make a change until they have a candidate in the bag.

Arsenal and Tottenham will both compete in the Champions League next season, but Spurs could pocket slightly more cash than their rivals despite finishing well below them in the Premier League

Tottenham may have finished well below Arsenal in the Premier League this season, but they could stand to rake in more than their bitter rivals in the Champions League next year. Spurs endured a season to forget under Ange Postecoglou in the Premier League, finishing in 17th place.

But they made amends for their shocking domestic record by clinching the club's first major trophy in 17 years in last week's Europa League final. Their triumph in Bilbao also guarantees Tottenham a spot in the Champions League next season and all the financial benefits that brings.

It also means the Londoners will face the winners of this weekend's Champions League final in the Uefa Super Cup later in the summer - and that would potentially allow Tottenham to bank more than cash than their domestic rivals.

As outlined by The Sun, all six English teams who have qualified for the Champions League will earn a 'starting bonus' of £15.72million as per the terms of the cash model Uefa employed last season.

The total sum earned by each club is divided up based on European performances over the last five to 10 years and size of the respective nation's TV contract.

England's contract, which includes a £305m agreement with TNT Sports, is second only to France's coverage which is worth an estimated £411m-a-year.

City are ranked highest of the English clubs in the five-year coefficient table and therefore stand to earn the biggest share of the 'European' portion of the finances on offer, plus the third largest slice of the 'non European' pot. In total, they stand to pocket ££53.13m.

Arsenal are fourth in the earnings list with a sum of £47.86m. But although Tottenham are below them, they could end up earning more; this is partly because they will earn a further guaranteed £3.38m for reaching the Uefa Super Cup.

But if Benfica fail to advance past the tournament's qualifying rounds, then Tottenham would stand to land £48m in total: an amount slightly in excess of what Arsenal will earn.

The Gunners finished second for a third successive year to clinch their golden ticket to the Champions League, where they reached the semi-finals before losing to PSG.

Ange Postecoglou's future at Tottenham is still uncertain despite leading Spurs to their first trophy in 17 years, as they finished one place above the relegation zone in the Premier League

Ange Postecoglou insists that he's 'relaxed' about his future as Tottenham manager, despite the looming threat of the sack. Postecoglou, 59, enjoyed his finest hour as Spurs boss less than a week ago, ending their 17-year trophy drought by winning the Europa League.

But Tottenham's woes domestically have been impossible to ignore and Sunday's 4-1 thrashing on the final day at home to Brighton saw them finish 17th in the Premier League table. It confirmed their lowest top-flight finish in 48 years.

Postecoglou, however, still believes that Tottenham's campaign has been 'outstanding', having delivered on his September promise that he always wins a trophy in his second season. Spurs chairman Daniel Levy will run the rule over the Aussie-Greek manager's future while Postecoglou enjoys a holiday.

"It doesn't bother me asking me about my future; I can't answer," he told Match of the Day. "I'm pretty relaxed about it. It's been an unbelievable season. I couldn't be any prouder."

Asked if he'd been given any indication by Levy, Postecoglou replied: "You're asking the wrong person. Everyone in the media is intelligent enough to know I'm not the person to know to ask those questions. I'll have a break and then hopefully we'll be back first day next season to start things."

During his post-match press conference, the 59-year-old described speculation over his future as 'weird'. "I'll be honest, I've been finding it really weird talking about my future when we've done something unprecedented," Postecoglou said.

"I've had to answer the questions because no one else at the club is kind of in the position to do so, I guess. But I can't answer that question about me and my future, and part of me is kind of thinking, well, why have I been asked that question? But it is what it is.

Should Tottenham sack Ange Postecoglou? Have your say in the comments section.

"And I've got no doubt, though, that this could be a real sort of defining moment for this club because wherever I've been, I've kind of made an impact where I've brought success to a club that hasn't had for a while, and you just have to look at those clubs' trajectory even after I've left, they're still competing for things.

"I really think this is a moment in time where this club can really push on and be a real contender for honours on a yearly basis."

In his post-season letter to fans, Levy made no mention of Postecoglou's future, although he did thank him for achieving silverware. Fulham boss Marco Silva, Brentford manager Thomas Frank and Bournemouth's Andoni Iraola have all been linked.

Manchester City, Chelsea and Newcastle have all qualified for the Champions League after final-day drama in the Premier League. Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest, who started the day outside of the top five, cruelly missed out and will have to settle for the Europa League and Conference League next season respectively.

The Premier League were awarded five qualification spots thanks to English clubs' performances in Europe. The first two places were taken by champions Liverpool and runners-up Arsenal.

Tottenham then booked their ticket to Europe's elite competition after beating Manchester United 1-0 in the Europa League final on Wednesday. That left three places vacant going into the final day.

City, despite their disastrous season by their standards, were all but guaranteed a Champions League berth thanks to their superior goal difference. But Pep Guardiola's former champions rubber-stamped it themselves with a 2-0 win away to Fulham courtesy of Ilkay Gundogan's overhead kick and an Erling Haaland penalty.

Chelsea, meanwhile, made the journey to Forest, knowing that a win would confirm their qualification and end their hosts' chances. Levi Colwill scored in the first half and his goal was enough to get the job done at the City Ground and condemn Forest to seventh place after a remarkable season.

The drama, though, was at St James' Park and Old Trafford. Newcastle suffered a stunning 1-0 defeat at home to Everton and looked to have blown their chances of returning to the Champions League.

But Villa's 2-0 loss against United meant that they clung on to fifth place. The Red Devils' first goal came just minutes after 10-man Villa had one controversially ruled out.

Morgan Rogers put the ball in the back of the net after United goalkeeper Altay Bayindir failed to keep it within his grasp after the Villa forward got a touch on it. But the whistle had already been blown for a foul on Bayindir by the time Rogers' shot went in, meaning that VAR were unable to check referee Thomas Bramall's on-field decision.

Should Aston Villa's goal have counted? Have your say in the comments section.

The Premier League posted on their Match Centre account: "The referee's call was a free kick to Manchester United with Bayindir deemed to be in control of the ball before Rogers gained possession. The whistle was blown by the referee before the ball entered the goal, therefore the incident was not reviewable by the VAR."

Champions League: Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle and Tottenham (Europa League winners)

Europa League: Aston Villa and Crystal Palace (FA Cup winners)

Conference League: Nottingham Forest

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has addressed supporters ahead of their final game of the Premier League season, but barely mentioned the club's manager Ange Postecoglou

Daniel Levy failed to give Ange Postecoglou any assurances over his job in his first words since the Tottenham manager delivered the Europa League. Spurs beat Manchester United 1-0 in the Bilbao final on Wednesday night to end their 17-year wait for a trophy – yet Postecoglou’s future at the club remains unclear.

Postecoglou went into the final under huge pressure to deliver, with Spurs 17th in the Premier League following a dreadful domestic campaign. But the Australian did what he’d promised and broke Spurs’ trophy drought in his second season in charge.

There had previously been reports that Postecoglou would be sacked by Spurs chairman Levy regardless of whether he won the Europa League. And he remains in the dark ahead of the final game of the season, against Brighton on Sunday afternoon.

The 59-year-old wants to stay, having declared at the team’s open-top bus parade, that “season three is always better than season two”. But Levy refused to reassure him, or Spurs fans, of the plan for next season in his traditional address before the last game of the season.

He wrote: "Dear all, We did it. What an unforgettable night it was in Bilbao as we ended our long wait for glory. This is a huge moment for the whole club, an historic achievement that sees us lift our first European trophy since 1984.

"This club has been on an incredible journey on and off the pitch since we last won silverware, the League Cup, in 2008 – establishing ourselves as one of the biggest in Europe, moving into our new stadium and experiencing some incredible moments – we knew a trophy was the missing piece.

"We’ve come so close on a number of occasions and never quite got over the line – I have never wavered from the belief that success is just around the corner. I’d like to thank Ange and the players for making this incredible achievement possible and thanks to all of our amazing staff – there is so much hard work that goes on behind the scenes and this moment is for everyone to enjoy.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Tottenham stick with Ange Postecoglou? Comment below.

"I’d also like to thank you – the fans – for staying with us and carrying that same belief. I know it’s been hard at times and I have shared in that pain and frustration along the way. But when we all come together, we know we can achieve something special.

"Your support – whether that was in Bilbao, in our own stadium or in pubs and homes around the world – was the driving force behind our team. This is one trophy – our clear ambition as a club has always been long-term, sustained success, competing for top honours every year.

“We have now tasted success and we are determined to use this as a springboard for more. Let’s enjoy this moment as a club together, finish the season strong with a win today and go again next year. Most of all, be proud. Come on you Spurs! Daniel."

Ange Postecoglou has sent a message about his future as Tottenham Hotspur staged an open-top bus parade to celebrate their win over Manchester United in the Europa League final

Ange Postecoglou has told Tottenham Hotspur fans that "season three is better than season two" as they gathered to celebrate their Europa League win with an open-top bus parade on Friday.

Postecoglou's future has been the subject of huge speculation in recent weeks due to Spurs' poor Premier League form. Tottenham currently sit 17th in the Premier League with one game left to play and only the three relegated teams have picked up less points.

However, the Australian guided Spurs to their first trophy in 17 years as they beat Manchester United 1-0 in the Europa League final. The victory came after he memorably stated earlier in the campaign that he "always" wins a trophy in his second season at a club.

It remains to be seen whether Tottenham will stick with Postecoglou next season, but the Australian certainly appears confident that he is the right man for the job. As he addressed a cheering crowd of fans outside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Postecoglou said: "I told them and they laughed.

"I told them and they didn't believe. But here we are and we're here because of the unbelievable group of people, staff, heroes, led by the legend Son Heung-Min, [Cristian] Romero, [James] Maddison and [Guglielmo] Vicario.

"All of them [are] heroes. And they did it all for you. Because you deserve it. This club deserves it. I'll leave you with this: all the best television series, season three is better than season two. Thank you."

Postecoglou told TNT Sports immediately after the final that he wanted to "build on" their victory and he has been backed by his players. "I don't feel like I've completed the job yet, we're still building," he said.

"The moment I accepted the role I had one thing in my head, and that was to win something. More than anything else I had that in my head, and we've done that now so I want to build on it."

Brennan Johnson, who scored the winning goal, said: "He has done his job. He said he wins in the second year and he has, if there's ever a time for a mic drop, it's now [when he speaks to the media].

"I can't thank the manager enough for how much trust he has in us and he has a really good way of getting us up for it." Club captain Son Heung-min added: "He won the trophy. Nobody did it, so...

"Look, it's not up to me or the players, but we just have to look at the facts, at the fact that we haven’t won in 17 years, today is the day we finally won it. It's the manager who wins the trophy. So we see what’s going to happen.

Son Heung-min leads celebrations and drops F-bomb as Spurs stage Europa League victory parade

Tottenham Hotspur celebrated their Europa League win with an open-top bus parade, with thousands of supporters lining the streets after their triumph over Manchester United

Tottenham Hotspur supporters were out in force to celebrate their Europa League triumph on Friday, as thousands of fans attended the club's open-top bus parade in north London.

A goal from Brennan Johnson earned Spurs a 1-0 win over Manchester United in the final in Bilbao on Wednesday, with manager Ange Postecoglou delivering on his infamous promise to win a trophy in his second season.

And captain Son Heung-min led the celebrations, with the forward carrying the trophy onto a white double-decker bus with "Europa League winners" written across the front. The bus began to drive down the High Road at 5.30pm to chants of "glory, glory Tottenham Hotspur".

An estimated 150,000 fans were on hand to witness the parade, which was Spurs' first since a 1991 FA Cup win. The bus arrived at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at around 7.30pm, with Postecoglou telling supporters: "I told them and they laughed.

"I told them and they didn't believe. But here we are and we're here because of the unbelievable group of people, staff, heroes, led by the legend Son Heung-Min, [Cristian] Romero, [James] Maddison and [Guglielmo] Vicario.

"All of them [are] heroes. And they did it all for you. Because you deserve it. This club deserves it. And I'll tell you something. All the best television series. Season three is better than season two."

Maddison described Wednesday as "one of the best nights of my life" as he told the fans: "With the whole tag around the trophies, we're the group who put that to bed. We'll have that for the rest of lives.

"When we bump into each other in 50 years, we'll always have this night in Bilbao. The best decision I ever made was joining this club."

Son addressed the crowd and said: "You guys have been the same from day one until now. I f***ing love you. We f***ing won the Europa League. And you all deserve it."

Club legends were also present, including Graham Roberts who scored when they won the 1984 UEFA Cup. Roberts said: "This will give them belief now. All that pressure that was there, that's gone.

"We have to strengthen our squad, but I think we have a great bunch of boys. They love Ange, they went round him, they cuddled him, they wanted him in the photos. The team spirit is there. We'll get more now, the rest will come.

"Wednesday was one of the greatest nights. I had tears in my eyes. We were in the fan park, me and Ledley (King). The fans were magnificent. They deserve it. I just hope we get a team on the pitch on Sunday."

Gareth Bale once had the option to move to a dominant Manchester United side during the early stages of his career, but the Welsh talisman ended up turning down the great Sir Alex Ferguson

Gareth Bale watched on with a smile as his old club Tottenham Hotspur lifted their first trophy in 17 years after defeating Manchester United. But the Welshman's story could have been very different had he not turned down the chance to join the Red Devils over the north London side.

Almost two decades ago, a young Bale was catching eyes from full-back, scoring five goals and assisting 12 times across 45 appearances for then-Championship side Southampton. New Spurs chairman Daniel Levy was interested, but he faced stiff competition from Premier League giant Sir Alex Ferguson and his Manchester United boardroom.

Bale decided to turn down Ferguson, though, and head to north London in 2007 instead, telling his Airwayz channel in 2023 that this decision actually led to his success rather than any potential downfall.

The 35-year-old said: "I rejected Manchester United and went to Tottenham. At that time, United were the biggest team in the league, they were winning trophies, they had the biggest players, the best manager.

"The easiest decision would be to go to Man United and the biggest club. You always want to be at the biggest clubs but I took the approach that I wanted to be playing first-team football."

But Bale bucked the trend; he chose Spurs and spent six seasons carving out a move from left-back to creative forward, scoring 42 goals in 142 appearances and impressing throughout his time in the Premier League.

From there, the Welshman carved out a sensational transfer to Spanish giants Real Madrid in 2013 for a then-world record fee of £85million. He joined superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Angel Di Maria, Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos, Casemiro and Luka Modric in the famous white kit, and spent nine seasons with the club.

In this time, Bale scored 106 goals in 258 appearances, winning five Champions Leagues, three La Liga titles and a host of other honours. The attacker spent one season back on loan to Spurs, before joining Los Angeles FC and retiring in 2023 as one of the greatest players in both Welsh and footballing history.

So while many would assume Bale would regret the decision to snub Ferguson and his Red Devils – who won the Premier League title under Sir Alex in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2013 – for Spurs, the retired winger insisted that a need for consistent game time at a young age was more important to him than money and glory.

He added: "At that age, a lot of players would go for the money and would want to go to a bigger club.

"But I was playing, developing and learning. It was an important part of my development to keep playing first-team football because you can't replicate that."

Now, it seems that Bale will have the last laugh over the team that could've been but wasn't, as he made a sly joke at United's expense following their damaging European defeat this week.

During TNT Sport's broadcast of Spurs' 1-0 Europa League final win, Bale was questioned on whether this win will get rid of the 'Spursy' tagline that the club are serial losers.

He was quick to respond at United's woes, as he said: "It could be a United-y thing now, I am telling you. But it gets rid of that stigma now for sure, and hopefully we can build on it."

Tottenham finally ended their trophy drought by beating Manchester United in the Europa League final on Thursday night and now the squad are set to be rewarded for the historic achievement

Tottenham are set for a massive payday after clinching Europa League glory, with boss Ange Postecoglou pocketing £2million while the rest of his squad will share a £3m bonus between them. Spurs finally ended their 17-year trophy hoodoo on Wednesday night after a famous 1-0 victory over Manchester United in the final, with Brennan Johnson netting the winner.

Spurs partied long into the night after their triumph also secured them a spot in next season's Champions League - which will earn the club a £100m windfall.

According to the BBC, Postecoglou has been rewarded for his incredible achievement that saw the club win their first European trophy since 1984, with the Australian enjoying a huge bonus.

And while the players will split their own performance-related package, not all of them will enjoy automatic pay increases after reaching the Champions League.

The trophy win is all the more remarkable for Postecoglou after insisting he "always wins something in his second season" last year.

However, that goal has looked incredibly unlikely during a nightmare campaign that has led to 21 defeats in the Premier League and the team plummeting to 17th in the table.

There has been huge pressure on Postecoglou from fans while there were claims he could be sacked by the club regardless of whether he delivered the trophy.

The BBC claims Spurs are "some way down the line in the process of identifying potential replacements" for the Australian and believe he "may still be on borrowed time".

Postecoglou refused to discuss his future after winning the Europa League but insisted the decision over whether he stays was "not in my hands".

"I've had such a laser focus on winning this thing that I didn't....Whatever happens happens. I said yesterday that we are still building this team. It's still a very young team and we need to add some experience to it.

"We're in the Champions League and my thought process, and what I've been doing this year is trying to build a team that can be successful for four, five, six years. Now, I'm the manager of a football club.

"That decision is not in my hands. It doesn't affect me. If it was going to affect me then you would have seen it in the buildup to here. All that I cared about was this thing [the medal]. You know, having this thing around my neck means this football club has won a trophy."

Ange Postecoglou followed through on his promise by sacrificing some of his principles. And by quitting on the domestic campaign to end Tottenham’s trophy drought, chances are he has also relinquished a chance to continue his project.

As the Australian pushed aside a hard-earned opportunity to gloat on Wednesday night, he instead offered a vital insight into why he is still expected to be shown the exit.

How must chairman Daniel Levy, a man who has never been slow to make changes in the dugout, feel after hearing Postecoglou claim the Premier League was written off in late January?

Not great, presumably – irrespective of the 17-year drought being ended.

Postecoglou was honest enough to admit certain figures at the club were “at odds” with his decision to put all his eggs in the Europa basket “at a cost.”

But the suggestion that Spurs effectively gave up on the Premier League must not be spun into an act of clever management.

Ignoring the fact Tottenham were already on the ropes by the close of the January transfer window – they had lost eight from ten – for the manager of one of the world’s richest clubs to claim he effectively wrote off almost half a league season is unacceptable.

Sure, the injury problems were unprecedented. Sure, the trophy is a piece of physical justification for his decision.

And, of course, the financial boon of reaching next season’s Champions League is huge. But if a narrative was allowed to develop in recent days around the importance of the £100m pot for the winners, let’s not forget finishing in the top five remains far more lucrative. Being mid-table would have earned another £20m.

Postecoglou, nothing if not stubborn, is unlikely to have regrets because the risk paid such a handsome reward. Except there is no time to stand still and next season’s Champions League, even in its new bloated format, will offer far more ruthless opposition than Ferencvaros, Elfsborg and Bodo/Glimt – especially for a young squad that currently lacks depth.

It is also worth mentioning the great irony to how Postecoglou guided Spurs to glory. For all the talk about the unwavering commitment to Angeball in the past two years, this triumph was earned through a degree of pragmatism that has so often appeared anathema to him.

The flawed-but-fun approach that has made them top entertainment for the neutrals was replaced in Europe by something more tailored and sensible. And for all the prickly exchanges he has had with the media over his refusal to change, it was his willingness to quietly adapt that has brought victory.

For that he deserves credit and it should be stressed that Postecoglou has remained popular among his players throughout. Some refer to him as Uncle Ange and appreciate how he absorbed the hits this season rather than deflect it on to their underperformance. That, unquestionably, is excellent management.

But in Levy’s 24 years in charge, there has never been much room for sentimentality.

Postecoglou deserves a big send off, the chance to lap up every moment of today’s parade and Sunday’s season closer against Brighton. All signs, however, suggest it would be a mistake for him to still be there come August.