Ange Postecoglou does not believe that the uncertainty over Tottenham's European fate next season should affect the overall transfer strategy of the club.
With Spurs currently languishing in the lower reaches of the Premier League table after a difficult campaign, European football next season is not going to arrive via any domestic avenue. However, Thursday's night victory in Frankfurt means that Tottenham are through to the Europa League semi-finals, where they will face Bodo/Glimt over two legs next month.
If the north London side are able to get past the Norwegian side and then manage to overcome either Manchester United or Athletic Club in the final in Bilbao then the reward would not only be a first European trophy in 41 years but also a place in next season's Champions League.
The uncertainty of whether Spurs will need a bigger squad for European football next season or be required to trim numbers for a smaller fixture schedule could affect their ability to plan for the coming summer transfer window. Postecoglou believes that either way the club needs to move in one direction.
"It depends on your outlook. I think irrespective we should keep building on what we've started. We've had a clear plan from when we started on how we're going to play, what kind of squad we're going to have, how we're going to build that squad," he said. "I don't think it's any secret, we've gone for a certain age profile, knowing it's something we're going to build on and that should continue.
"I don't think it should change. Obviously if you get Champions League football, that accelerates certain things. We know the demands of European football, irrespective of the competition - particularly Europa and Champions League can have a serious effect on your capabilities as a club. Not just us but all clubs. You can see that.
"The two extra games in Europe which are going to be there consistently now, that puts extra strain, so that affects the size of your squad and the profile your squad has. But for me it doesn't really change anything. We need to continue on the profile we've started with.
"We've got an exciting young squad and we'll continue to improve. We've obviously had some challenges this year around particularly injuries and our ability to cope with Europe and domestic [fixtures], and I feel we're better placed to tackle that if we're in Europe next year but in terms of the overall policy, I wouldn't see any significant change."
Another uncertainty is Postecoglou's own future, with the Australian the subject of plenty of speculation. So did the 59-year-old feel any personal vindication in managing Spurs to a victory in Germany that hit back at a number of the things his team have been criticised for this season such as fragility, a lack of adaptability and only playing in one way?
"No, no. I've said it many times - it's not a motivator to me to prove people wrong. I find that kind of an empty ambition. I just think some people will always take a view on something because of whatever personal feelings they have or historical context they give to things," said the Tottenham boss.
"So I don't get any satisfaction in proving people wrong, I get satisfaction from achieving things and sharing them with people. That's always been my motivator. I'm not everyone's cup of tea. I get that. That's fair enough. I don't think anyone is. We all have different views on life and people. I certainly think in this role anyway - and I say it to coaches all the time - the game and the noise around it will always try to change you as a person.
"Don't let that happen, be who you are. Some people will like you, some people won't. Ultimately what's important to me is to stay focused on trying to achieve something special and share it with people."
On the way Spurs won the game in Frankfurt, with strength, pragmatism at times and a defensive rear-guard late on with a back three, he added: "We’ve shown that before. A lot of our significant victories even this season have come away from home, whether that be Manchester City away or Man United away or Brentford away. Some of our best performances have been away from home, and a similar type performance. There’s always a difference when you play away in Europe.
"But again, that doesn’t fit into the narrative of me being fairly simple in terms of my tactical approach, that I only do things one way and that’s all I’ve done and all my success has been as a one-trick pony.
"What the players showed on Thursday – and it’s my experience – is that when you play away in Europe it demands from you different things to domestic competition. Not least because of the atmosphere you face, and the people who travel to these European games will understand what that means. That provides motivation and incentive to the opposition and you have to deal with that.
"The lads dealt with that outstandingly the other night. They are a team that at home are really tough, they always score goals at home, so you know if you can keep a clean sheet that’s a significant development. If you can win there, that’s another significant development because they’re very strong. So the manner in which they did it and another part of that is just the atmosphere in the ground because their supporters make them a tough team to beat."
There is the potential for that result in Germany to be a game changer for a Tottenham season that appeared to be spluttering into nothingness before the big night in Europe. Postecoglou believes that sometimes one result can change everything, but only if it's backed up with similar performances.
"At times it can, yeah. Depending on the result and more importantly the context in which it is made. It’s easy to sit here and say Thursday night is a pivotal moment, but it won’t be a pivotal moment if we don’t back it up in the semi," he said. "That’s when you’ll find out whether it was and if you do a season review DVD – do they still do DVDs? – you might go that was the turning point but you only do that at the end.
"But do I think Thursday was significant? Yes I do. For a number of reasons. We overcame a really difficult opponent. We deserved to go through. There was no luck about it. Over two legs we were the stronger team, we did it in a real convincing manner and just the prospect of being in a semi-final means you're two games away from being in a European final. That is hugely incentivising so maybe that was the pivotal game, but we won’t know that."
The key now for Postecoglou is not to allow the Spurs players' minds to wander to those European clashes when they have six Premier League matches to go, starting with Monday night's encounter at home against high-flying Nottingham Forest, led by former Tottenham boss Nuno Espirito Santo.
"Part of it is just our ability to manage the squad. In the past, it's been how do we manage a small squad? Now it's about making changes and not disrupting the fluency of it," he said. "A lot of it is about how the players understand each other and the cohesion that you have when you play a certain line-up continuously. That's our challenge.
"We have the semi-final in a couple of weeks' time and we have two important games before that. We certainly need to get some game-time into some guys between now and then and hopefully it doesn't disrupt our fluency. We know we're going to have to be at a certain level. Forest is going to be a big challenge for us but a good challenge."
He added: "I don’t think the players accept where we are [in the table]. I certainly haven’t accepted where we are in the league. It’s been a disappointing year in many respects. There are reasons behind that, but irrespective of those reasons, we should be in a better place. It’s not like the players are happy with where we are at. They haven’t been all along. They want to address that and Monday night is a good chance to do that."
United boss Ruben Amorim indicated this week that he is likely to play younger players in the Premier League games remaining in order to focus on the Europa League, but Postecoglou laughed when that was put to him.
"I’ve been playing the kids all year, mate! I don't know how many teenagers we've had in Europa League," he said. "We've been playing kids all year. That's the situation we're in. So we kind of had to deal with that for a long period of time.
"You pay a price for that, but we've also benefited from that because when you look at guys like Lucas [Bergvall], and I won’t name all of them, but all the others who've grown through the year. For us, the negative stuff hasn't been balanced by the positives, but certainly I think we'll get some some real growth. But I guess the beauty of it is now our kids are well and truly exposed to Premier League football, and I think that's going to benefit us moving forward."
Postecoglou is approaching three decades as a coach, having worked in both the club game and national environment and he has tasted success and heartbreak at all levels. He was asked about the quote from tennis legend Billie Jean King that "pressure is a privilege, and champions adjust" and whether that applied to managing Tottenham Hotspur.
"It depends on how you define pressure," he said. "I think a lot of people assume pressure is something that is a negative. What you do know in this role is that it's a constant, and you either embrace it or you're never going to be in a space where you're ever going to be at peace with what you do.
"Pressure is always there, irrespective of where you are. If a Tottenham manager is under pressure, all managers feel that pressure, but there’s also a side of it if you’re in this kind of role for any length of time, you know you’ll enjoy [it]. The opposite of not having pressure is pretty much not being in a job.
"I can tell you that it is a much worse feeling for anyone who likes this kind of vocation. I love the fact that in every game, everything is on edge; it can go one way, it can go the other. There’s always the unknowns, that’s what I love about it. What others see as pressure is the bit I enjoy. That’s why I do what I do. I would hate to think I would go to a football game and not really care about the outcome. I don’t think that world exists where you can just roll up, everyone just loves you, and there is no pressure and the outcome doesn’t matter – that’s just the role. You accept that as part of the role, I have from day one, I enjoy that part.
"In 27-28 years of management, it was only 9-10 months where I wasn’t coaching between roles, and that was the most unhappy I’ve been. And you realise what I miss is this, not this [the media part], what others see as pressure – that competitive unknown that we all strive for. That gets the adrenaline going. You saw after the [Frankfurt] game because that is what pressure is. The opportunity to achieve. I take it as a constant."
On whether his players share that, the Australian added: "I think so. It’s harder when you’re a player and you’re younger. The perception is that pressure is a bad thing but there isn’t a comfortable place if you’re an elite sportsman. Elite sport is about being uncomfortable all the time. I said after the game, this group of players and staff, I’ve never felt like I’ve lost belief, and they’ve stayed really, really united.
"That is why they were able to perform in the manner they did against Frankfurt, because we had the majority of our players available but also through the time they weren’t available, everyone stuck together. Now they have the opportunity to play in a semi-final and hopefully create something special."
