TBR Football

Tottenham Hotspur’s 2024/25 season was eventful, to say the least.

Spurs were awful in the Premier League all campaign. They lost 22 games and finished 17th in the table, which is simply not good enough.

Tottenham saved their season by winning the Europa League final against Manchester United. They will now be in the Champions League next season.

Ange Postecoglou has been earning a lot of praise for that, but the real plaudits should go to some of the players for making their manager change his ways.

What happened in a private meeting between some Tottenham players and Ange Postecoglou

Postecoglou has often been accused of being stubborn since he was appointed as the Tottenham boss.

The Australian was always adamant that he only had one style of playing, and that put him on the receiving end of a ton of criticism.

But, in the latter stages of the Europa League, Tottenham weren’t as open as before, and they were a lot more sensible in their approach.

ESPN’s James Olley revealed that the change came following a private meeting between some Spurs stars and Postecoglou, where the players demanded a change.

The journalist said in a video on ESPN FC: “My understanding is that the players were not entirely supportive of Ange Postecoglou’s approach in the second half of the season.

“I believe a group of them went to see him and sort of said: ‘Look, we need to do more work on the opposition, we need to be more versatile.’

“That’s one of the reasons why you saw a more pragmatic approach in Europe, where there was a competition where they actually could win something.

“I think there was a compromise there between what Ange Postecoglou wanted to do, how he wanted to play – ‘We are who we are, mate. We go and play how we want to play wherever we are’ – and the players sort of saying: ‘Well, that’s all well and good, but we’ve got five, six, seven, eight players out injured, we’re not actually the best team in the league like you’ve had at Celtic, in Japan in your career. We need to be more balanced in our approach.'”

Senior Tottenham figures think Ange Postecoglou has done something unacceptable

The expectation before the Europa League final was that Postecoglou would face the sack irrespective of what happened in Bilbao.

But, after ending the trophy drought, many fans have changed their mind and are now open to keeping the Australian at the club.

That may well be the reason why Daniel Levy has not pulled the plug yet, but senior figures at the club are not happy at all with what Postecoglou achieved in the Premier League last season.

Olley said: “The conversations I’ve had with some of the senior figures at the club can’t get past 22 league defeats, even though they have won their first trophy in 17 years.

“They just cannot get past that number and how badly that has affected the squad.”

TBR Football understands that Tottenham Hotspur had some contact with Simone Inzaghi’s people in recent weeks.

Daniel Levy could sack Ange Postecoglou following what has been a mixed season for the club, as despite winning the Europa League, the team finished 17th in the Premier League.

The decision on Postecoglou’s future is expected to arrive this week and in the meantime, Spurs have been holding talks with potential replacements.

One of those managers who has been in talks with the North London club is Inzaghi, however, he looks set to move elsewhere following Inter Milan’s Champions League final humiliation.

Simeone Inzaghi expected to join Al-Hilal over Tottenham

TBR Football chief correspondent Graeme Bailey understands Simone Inzaghi would have had some interest in coming to England and Tottenham Hotspur would be an option he considered, however, talks never got beyond that stage.

Now, the Italian manager has agreed a deal worth around £21 million a year to take charge of Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal.

Only Diego Simeone earns more and puts him on par with Pep Guardiola at Manchester City and clearly that sort of deal would not have been considered in North London – but was required to lure him to the Middle East.

Inzaghi, who’s been dubbed a ‘genius’, just suffered another Champions League final defeat with Inter, although this time his team were thrashed 5-0 by Paris Saint-Germain.

The 49-year-old now looks set to leave the San Siro having won six major titles with the Nerazzurri, and despite having spoken to Spurs, a move to the Pro League awaits.

Thomas Frank leading the race to replace Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham

Thomas Frank is the current frontrunner to replace Postecoglou at Tottenham Hotspur.

TBR Football revealed on Monday that Levy was impressed by Frank during several rounds of talks with the Danish coach.

Meanwhile, Brentford fear they will lose Frank as there is a sense that he could be the perfect fit for the North London club.

The 51-year-old has an impressive track record in terms of working with young players and increasing the value of the Bees’ top players.

Tottenham Hotspur players seem to have a clear view on whether Daniel Levy should sack Ange Postecoglou this summer.

Levy is considering Postecoglou’s future following an incredibly mixed campaign in which Spurs won the Europa League but finished 17th in the Premier League.

The decision on Postecoglou’s future is expected to arrive this week, and it seems as though Levy has long had a strong feeling on what he should do.

Meanwhile, the feeling within the dressing room is pretty clear on what should happen to the Australian coach, and that could be an influential factor on Levy’s decision.

What Tottenham players think about Ange Postecoglou behind the scenes

Tottenham Hotspur players are clear that they want Ange Postecoglou to remain in charge of the football club as they await Daniel Levy’s decision.

Tom Barclay has revealed that behind the scenes, he is hearing that the players want him to stay and still really like him.

The players have continued to play for him and have never downed tools, unlike previous occasions under Antonio Conte and Nuno Espirito Santo.

Pedro Porro wants Postecoglou to stay and spoke about how the dressing room at Hotspur Way thinks it would be better if he remained in charge.

Barclay told his YouTube channel: “It’s how they talk about Ange and the social media posts as well, when you put it all together and the stuff I’m hearing behind the scenes, there’s definitely a feeling the players want him to stay.

“They like him a lot. That’s always been the case, they haven’t downed tools. It would be better if Ange stayed from that perspective.”

Daniel Levy remains expected to sack Ange Postecoglou

Levy had already decided on Postecoglou’s future before the Europa League final and that was to sack the 59-year-old.

The Spurs journalist believes that stance remains the same, with the North London club looking at alternative options.

What could change Levy’s mind is fans’ strong feeling of affection for the manager who has just ended their 17-year wait for silverware, along with how expensive it would be to bring in a new head coach.

Barclay told his YouTube channel: “It’s pretty poor really, he’s just won the Europa League and he still hasn’t had any indication yet as to whether he will be carrying on or not.

“I’m sure he’ll be aware that the club are looking elsewhere which I’d love to hear his thoughts on that and what that must feel like. But nothing has moved forward on that front, it still remains to be seen whether he does stay or not.

“I do believe that it is still most likely that he goes and a new manager comes in. The pro-Ange opinion amongst the Spurs fans could be an influential factor in Daniel Levy’s decision, along with how expensive it would be to hire a new manager, added to the fact of how expensive it would be to sack Ange.

“His plan ahead of the Europa League final was to move Ange on, even if he won it. But the Ange love in from the fans really puts that theory to the test.”

Both Arsenal and their rivals Tottenham Hotspur could be pushing to sign a new striker this summer.

Mikel Arteta’s need for a striker at Arsenal is obvious — Kai Havertz has prevailed as an excellent signing from Chelsea but he needs more help.

And whilst Tottenham do have Dominic Solanke, it’s believed that Spurs are on the hunt for a new striker to add further depth to their squad.

That being said, Arsenal are considering a move for Benjamin Sesko at RB Leipzig right now, a 22-year-old striker who has plenty of admirers across Europe.

In fact, Benjamin Sesko has ‘universal backing’ at Arsenal too, but had things been different under former Tottenham sporting director Fabio Paratici, the Slovenian might be playing for Spurs.

Fabio Paratici recommended Arsenal target Benjamin Sesko to Tottenham

Paratici is set to return to Tottenham this summer — an experienced head who has been credited for so much good work at Spurs.

And harping back to 2022, Paratici was actually keen for Tottenham to sign Benjamin Sesko, a player he was scouting extensively whilst he was still playing for RB Salzburg in Austria.

Of course, Benjamin Sesko soon made the step up to RB Leipzig in Germany, and he’d now cost interested clubs a lot, lot more than he would have when Paratici was keen.

In fact, Arsenal are now in ‘concrete talks’ to sign Sesko themselves according to journalist Florian Plettenberg who is providing an ongoing update on the situation on X.

The Gunners have seemingly been wooed by Sesko’s height and power, a striker who would definitely offer something different to Havertz.

And whilst the youngster is not the finished article by any means, he could be well positioned to make an impact whilst dovetailing with Havertz, week in, week out.

Why did Benjamin Sesko reject Arsenal last summer?

Of course, it is worth noting that Sesko rejected a move to Arsenal last summer when he didn’t quite feel as if the timing was right.

The striker ultimately chose to stay ‘calm’, a message he gave in an interview to Nogomania when it became clear that he would be staying at Leipzig.

Sesko decided that he would be better off staying in the Bundesliga making steady progress, rather than switching to the Premier League.

And perhaps the 22-year-old will feel much better equipped to try his hand in England this summer, especially given that Leipzig have failed to qualify for European football next term.

Jurrien Timber could be facing a rather interesting scenario at Arsenal, given Tottenham Hotspur’s latest transfer target.

Timber, who Arsenal signed for £40m, will surely have a lot to say to Spurs’ transfer target about him moving to the opposite half of North London.

Tottenham Hotspur are trying to sign a midfielder this summer and have identified a player whom the Arsenal man will know better than anyone.

Tottenham want to sign Jurrien Timber’s twin brother, Quinten

According to reports, Tottenham are keen on Quinten Timber, who is the twin brother of Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber.

There are several Premier League clubs, including Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United, who have also shown an interest in the Feyenoord midfielder.

However, one of them is the Lilywhites and should they make a move for the 23-year-old, he could make a decision which could make family gatherings rather awkward.

The Timber household could be facing the prospect of the two twin brothers playing for opposing North London clubs.

Timber could prove to be an astute piece of business for Tottenham should they make the move with the midfielder having impressed for Feyenoord last season.

The Dutch international helped them to win the Dutch Super Cup at the start of the campaign before being part of the team that got Feyenoord into the Champions League Round of 16.

The North London club have been reportedly told they would need to shell out £25 million to land Timber, but would also face the hurdle of stiff competition from Premier League rivals.

Jurrien and Quinten Timber could become the third set of twins to face off in the Premier League

The Timbers could become just the third set of twins to face off in the Premier League showing just how rare an occurrence it could be.

There are many brothers who have clashed in the English top flight with the likes of Yaya and Kolo Toure, Phil and Gary Neville, Rio and Anton Ferdinand.

But in terms of twins, Michael and Will Keane were the first back in 2016 when Hull City held Burnley to a 1-1 draw at Turf Moor.

The Murphy twins were the second to go head-to-head as Josh Murphy and Cardiff City drew 0-0 with Newcastle United and Jacob Murphy.

But were the Timber twins to somehow meet in North London, it goes without saying that this would be the most high-profile clash between twins in the Premier League.

Cristian Romero’s future at Tottenham Hotspur is in some doubt right now and the club’s latest move could push him even further out the door.

Romero has been linked to Atletico Madrid with Diego Simeone keen to bring his fellow countryman to the Spanish capital.

The defender has just two years remaining on his current deal with the North London club, meaning Spurs face a tough decision as to whether they should sell him this summer.

Now, one of his close friends at Tottenham Hotspur has just been made available for transfer, and this risks the 27-year-old pushing even harder for his own move away.

Tottenham are now open to selling Son Heung-min

Tottenham Hotspur have made Son Heung-min available for transfer this summer to raise transfer funds, according to the Telegraph.

Spurs took up the option to extend Son’s contract by an additional year, however, this could now be used as a means of bolstering their transfer budget.

As TBR Football has previously revealed, Son has interest from the Saudi Pro League and that could be his next destination.

The 32-year-old could leave on the ultimate high having just become the first Tottenham captain since Ledley King to lift a trophy.

Son’s had a disappointing season by his standards and the Lilywhites may sense this as the best moment to part ways with the 32-year-old.

Why Tottenham could disappoint Cristian Romero by selling Son Heung-min

Cristian Romero will not be best pleased with this news, given the close relationship he has with the South Korean forward.

The 27-year-old recently spoke about how Son helped him to settle when he first arrived in London and what an amazing person he is.

Romero told Gaston Edul: “As a player, there’s nothing that needs to be added there, but as a person, he’s incredible, incredible, not at all bad.”

There is also the case that Romero will push to leave Tottenham if they were to sack Ange Postecoglou and the North London club risk annoying him further by selling one his close friends.

Tottenham will decide Postecoglou’s future this week, and they risk disappointing many of their players by parting ways with the Australian coach. Equally, the same applies for Son.

Cristian Romero and Son Heung-min’s record together for Tottenham

Son and Romero have played a total of 109 matches together for Tottenham and during that time, they have amassed a win percentage of 52 percent.

In total, the duo have won 57, drawn 16 and lost 36 times whilst they have played together for the North London club.

Romero will be hoping that the Europa League final against Manchester United in Bilbao was not the last time they share the pitch.

Pedro Porro has had his say on Ange Postecoglou’s future as manager of Tottenham Hotspur.

Tottenham are considering sacking Postecoglou, as despite their Europa League win, Spurs also endured their worst-ever Premier League campaign.

Postecoglou’s future will be decided this week, as revealed by TBR Football, and Thomas Frank has spoken to Tottenham about replacing him if he is sacked.

But ahead of the decision facing Daniel Levy, Pedro Porro has given his verdict on whether or not the 59-year-old should remain in charge of the team.

Pedro Porro wants Ange Postecoglou to stay at Tottenham

Porro has revealed that he is keen for Ange Postecoglou to remain as the manager of Tottenham Hotspur amid real uncertainty over his future.

The Spaniard played a key role in Spurs’ successful Europa League campaign in which they ended the club’s 17-year wait for silverware.

The defender has revealed that Postecoglou has brought a real unity to the dressing room at Hotspur Way and sacking him could potentially damage that.

Porro told The Guardian: “But him continuing would be good for the dressing room. He has built a very good group and coaches also need time. In the league, things didn’t go well, but he made you win a trophy.

“That’s important too. The people in the dressing room with weight have to understand that. But as I say, I’m thinking about the national team now; there will be time for that.”

Daniel Levy would be playing a dangerous game sacking Ange Postecoglou

Sacking Postecoglou could be a major risk for Levy, with the manager appearing to be a very popular figure within the dressing room.

Cristian Romero would push to leave Tottenham should the club opt to relieve the Australian coach of his duties as manager.

Losing such a key player like Romero could be quite damaging for the project at Spurs, but the Argentine is unlikely to be the only player upset if Postecoglou does leave.

Thomas Frank has held talks with Tottenham Hotspur about replacing Ange Postecoglou.

Tottenham could sack Postecoglou despite him winning the club their first trophy in 17 years following what was a dismal Premier League campaign.

A decision over Postecoglou’s future is expected to arrive this week and Frank is one of the leading contenders to take the job if he is relieved of his duties.

Reports suggest that during talks with Spurs, Frank discussed transfer plans with the North London club and one of their top targets may interest him a lot.

Tottenham enter intense negotiations to sign Mathys Tel

Tottenham Hotspur are keen to sign Mathys Tel and are locked in intense negotiations with Bayern Munich to sign him, according to Florian Plettenberg. Tottenham view Tel as a ‘generational talent’ and are desperate to keep hold of him.

Bayern’s sporting director, Max Eberl, has been talking to Spurs and Tel for weeks about a potential deal with the German club ready to sell him.

A new type of deal is being discussed with another loan with an obligation to buy, however, Bayern prefer a permanent sale.

Last week, TBR Football revealed that Tottenham are delighted with Tel and were eager to make the move permanent, as is the Frenchman.

The 20-year-old is now well settled in London and Champions League football has only added to his desire to remain at Spurs.

The issue is that Tottenham are unwilling to pay the £50m fee which was initially agreed on between the two clubs and are hoping to get him for around £33.5m plus potential performance-related add-ons.

Mathys Tel could be amazing at Tottenham under Thomas Frank

If Thomas Frank were to arrive in North London to replace Postecoglou, it could be great news for Tel, given the Dane’s impressive track record at improving attackers.

The Bayern Munich forward struggled to adapt to Postecoglou’s system and rarely found himself starting under the Australian.

But, it was clear that Tel is certainly a talent and if profiled correctly by the manager in his team, he could explode into life.

Frank has done a remarkable job improving the likes of Bryan Mbeumo, Ivan Toney, Ollie Watkins, Yoane Wissa and now Kevin Schade.

The 51-year-old keeps managing to get the best out of his attacking options, and given Tel’s huge potential, he could be just the man to help him succeed in N17.

Luka Vuskovic has just enjoyed an impressive season playing senior football ahead of his move to Tottenham Hotspur.

Tottenham signed Vuskovic back in the summer of 2023 when they paid £12 million to sign the then 16-year-old from Hajduk Split.

The teenager has now spent two seasons out on loan, where he first impressed at Polish club Radomiak Radom before joining Belgian top-flight side Westerlo.

Vuskovic, who rejected Man City, made huge strides in the Belgian Pro League and his form has seen him earn a call-up to his senior national team.

The North London club are now starting to realise the player they have signed and their plans for him this summer have been revealed.

Tottenham realising what a talent Luka Vuskovic has become

Tottenham Hotspur were so impressed by Luka Vuskovic‘s loan spell at Westerlo and are starting to see how big a talent the defender actually is, according to Ben Jacobs.

The 18-year-old’s ability to defend well, but also to offer a threat in the opposition’s penalty area has been something which has particularly caught Spurs’ attention.

Vuskovic was named among the best youngsters in football, highlighting just how highly regarded the young defender is within the game.

Jacobs told the Last Word On Spurs: “I think Tottenham were incredibly impressed by Vuskovic and his loan spell at Westerlo. Most of the reason is because they’re realising this is a very intelligent player who can defend solidly, but also has effective attacking qualities as well.

“That’s exactly the type of player Spurs and Ange Postecoglou like – someone that can make an impact in both boxes.”

Will Tottenham send Luka Vuskovic out on loan again?

Currently, Tottenham’s plan seems to be that they will assess Vuskovic during pre-season and then decide whether to loan him out or not.

Newly promoted Bundesliga side Hamburg have asked about signing him on loan for the coming season, however, Spurs told them that they remain undecided over his next step.

Jacobs added: “Tottenham are delighted with the player and his development; they think he’s on track, and to clarify, there is no suggestion, according to my information, that Tottenham would entertain any kind of sale.”

“But what they may choose to do is loan him out for one more season, and that’s where Hamburg may be a possibility – they made an enquiry and what they’ve been told by Spurs is ‘we’ll let you know later in the window’.”

Tottenham Hotspur have a big decision to make in the coming days.

Indeed, Ange Postecoglou’s future is very much up in the air, and the Australian is potentially set to be sacked.

Postecoglou is likely to be sacked, and that leaves Tottenham in a real mess once again.

Spurs will be headed back to the drawing board, and, frustratingly, this all could’ve been avoided if Daniel Levy had made the right decision two years ago.

Cast your mind back to the summer of 2023 and you’ll remember that Spurs looked at a number of different potential managerial appointments.

Arne Slot was linked to Spurs, Tottenham eyed up Vincent Kompany, while Fabio Paratici had a number one candidate in mind, but Daniel Levy didn’t go in that direction.

Fabio Paratici wanted Luis Enrique at Tottenham

Back in the summer of 2023, Fabio Paratici was pushing for Tottenham to hire Luis Enrique.

Indeed, Enrique was Paratici’s top target.

Enrique’s stock was not all that high after a disappointing 2022 World Cup campaign with Spain, but Paratici was a big fan of the former Barcelona boss.

However, Levy went in another direction, deciding to hire Ange Postecoglou.

Since then, both managers’ careers have gone in wildly different directions.

Postecoglou has just taken Spurs to 17th in the league, albeit winning the Europa League in the process, while Enrique has just won the Champions League and Ligue 1.

Paratici is set to return to Spurs, but he must be pulling his hair out about the fact Levy didn’t listen to him about Luis Enrique, because, two years on, it’s very clear that the Spaniard would’ve been a better appointment than Postecoglou.

Luis Enrique compared to Ange Postecoglou

You only need to compare the stats to see the mistake Tottenham have made here.

Indeed, Postecoglou’s numbers at Spurs compared to Enrique’s at PSG make for damning reading.

Of course, you could argue about the relative strength of Ligue 1 compared to the Premier League, but a discrepancy this large is simply unacceptable.

It’s not outrageous to suggest that Tottenham made a mistake here in going for Postecoglou rather than Enrique, and Paratici has a serious reason to be annoyed with Levy after watching Enrique win the Champions League this weekend.

That isn’t to say that Enrique would’ve won the Champions League with Spurs, but he probably wouldn’t have had them just one place above the relegation places in the Premier League.