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Tottenham Hotspur defender Van de Ven has revealed he "never expected" the club's move to dismiss former manager Postecoglou.

The Australian's two-year tenure was terminated a mere 16 days after he guided the team to victory in the Europa League final, delivering the team's first piece of silverware in 17 years.

Yet, this continental triumph was not mirrored in the Premier League, with the side finishing in a disappointing 17th position in his last season at the helm.

He was succeeded by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank during the summer, but Spurs currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points, following a 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

"He was a fantastic manager. I have a lot of respect for him," Van de Ven stated on a podcast.

"I don't know how everything went backstage. It came as a shock. It was strange how everything went afterwards - he is the coach that won silverware to Tottenham," he added.

"Afterwards, when he got sacked, I texted to my father and my friends and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

Postecoglou joined Spurs from Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, taking over from Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his first ten league matches.

Nevertheless, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four losses in five matches, and the club's form deteriorated, eventually failing to secure a top-four finish by a narrow two points.

In the next campaign, they won just 11 out of 38 league matches.

Lacking a Plan B

Although he enjoyed the attacking approach, Dutch international the defender thinks the squad lacked a "plan B" and disclosed he and fellow centre-back Romero discussed adopting a more cautious style with the coach.

"I liked the offensive play under Postecoglou but I appreciate what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more solid defensively. I don't like getting exposed every game on the break," he explained.

"At the beginning under Postecoglou, no team was accustomed to playing against our system. We were playing unbelievable football."

"But, coaches analyse everything and people figured out what we were doing. Sometimes we didn't really have a plan B and we were being caught out. We lacked solutions to get out."

"On one occasion Romero and I walked up to the manager and suggested we should adjust tactically and play more defensive to make sure we win those games. He was like, 'I agree with you but I want you two guys to sort this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"