Pressure builds on Ange Postecoglou after Tottenham trophy claim, Premier League news, punditry – MASHAHER

Is that it? Is the honeymoon period over already?

Another underwhelming north London derby result, more problems defending set-pieces and what has been described as a “spiky” interview have the spotlight squarely on Ange Postecoglou.

Given how fiercely loyal Postecoglou is to his players, maybe he would prefer it that way, and based on his comments earlier in the week the Australian is supremely confident in not only turning it around but challenging for silverware.

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In case you missed it, Postecoglou was adamant after Tottenham’s 1-0 loss to Arsenal over the weekend that he “always wins” trophies in his second year — emphasis on the word always.

Because when Sky Sports’ Emma Saunders said Postecoglou “normally” wins trophies in his second season in charge, he couldn’t help but correct her.

It is not “usually” win things, it is “always”. Like he did at South Melbourne, Brisbane Roar, Yokohama F Marinos and, most recently, Celtic.

Although there are question marks over whether the latest defeat to Arsenal proves just how far Postecoglou and Tottenham are from actually continuing that trend, while the interview with Saunders in itself raised eyebrows.

Starting on that interview, Postecoglou was very matter of fact when asked about it on Tuesday night.

“It’s amazing, I just stated a fact… should I lie?” he told reporters.

“I am not sure how am I supposed to answer something that’s true and it seems like I upset some people for some reason. Is it me boasting? How am I supposed to answer something? “You could say they are those competitions – or are easy or something – but it is true and I am not sure why people think I am boasting about it. It is true and my plan is for it to happen this year and if it doesn’t happen then I will say it is mostly – but not always.”

Tottenham certainly has its sceptics, with former England international Paul Merson laughing off Postecoglou’s second year claim on Sky Sports’ Super Sunday, joking that he has “more chance of winning Strictly”.

For context, Merson is competing on the British TV show Strictly Come Dancing and clearly doesn’t rate his own chances of going far.

“That’s what chance they have got. I don’t see it at the moment,” added Merson.

“There’s not a lot wrong, but if you look at them and look at Newcastle, Tottenham have been playing better over the first three games – but Newcastle have more points than them. These are fine lines.

“If they get top four, that would be amazing.”

Although based on Postecoglou’s comments last year on the prospect of Champions League qualification, you’d have to think that wouldn’t exactly be top of mind for him.

For now, Postecoglou’s focus is on an EFL Cup clash with Coventry on Thursday, with former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock warning he better hope Tottenham wins that game.

“Or he’ll be under pressure, because then he’s only really got one competition (the FA Cup) to win, hasn’t he?” Warnock said on Sky Sports.

“And that becomes very difficult. It’s going to be tough for Tottenham to win anything, but it’s not without the realms of possibility. We know they’re a good team, we know that they’ve got players that are very capable of winning big games, so it is there for them, it is a possibility.”

But Warnock said Postecoglou’s comments after the Arsenal loss have put “immense pressure” on the team to win a trophy while also suggesting some of the charm that got him by last season is starting to wear off.

“He seems quite happy to be able to deal with it (the pressure), but he’s just very spiky at the moment, isn’t he?” added Warnock.

“I feel like, when he first came into the league, there was an element of… we all enjoyed his press conferences, we all enjoyed his nature of things.

“There’s an element at the moment where, I’d like to say he’s a bit rude in the way that he acts. I don’t think it’s a great look, I’m not a massive fan of it if I’m honest.”

Of course, none of this would really matter or be a topic of discussion if Tottenham was winning, but Postecoglou has come under fire for Spurs’ sloppy start to the season, which now includes successive defeats and only one win.

Having conceded more dead-ball goals than any top-flight team except Nottingham Forest over the last two seasons, Tottenham’s weak defending at set-pieces was ruthlessly exposed by Arsenal.

But Postecoglou insisted that wasn’t the reason for the loss, instead pointing at Tottenham’s lack of cutting edge and composure in the final third.

Son Heung-min was unusually quiet, while former Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke struggled on his home debut after returning from injury.

“We had some good opportunities but we could have had so many more. We wasted our good play, similar to other games when we haven’t had the conviction in the front third. You keep opponents in the game when you do that,” Postecoglou said.

On Tottenham’s set-pieces woes, Postecoglou added: “We handled them well for the most part. We switched off for one and paid the price. It wasn’t just (Cristian) Romero that switched off, it was a couple of others.

“There’s a narrative for some reason that people think I don’t care about set-pieces. We work on them all the time.”

But former Tottenham midfielder and now Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp said Spurs seem to have a “fear” of set pieces.

“It feels like they’re scared,” he said on Sky Sports.

“For the goal, in that six-yard box everybody – James Maddison, Micky van de Ven – is just holding on to their man for dear life. It’s panic, it’s fear. Mikel Arteta said it: can we get the delivery right? Can we attack the ball?

“Now I think about the great teams at set pieces, they used to keep Didier Drogba as a free man because they knew he might not be the best at getting involved in marking somebody. But you say to him: you go and attack the ball. You’re so good at attacking the ball, don’t worry about marking somebody.

“Alan Shearer, when he defended the near post, he was always fantastic at just going to leap. I think everyone is so conscious of not being the one who makes a mistake. I’ve got my man, I’m taking care of this. Instead of thinking: there’s only one ball, let’s go and attack it and make sure they don’t score.”

He is not the only one to hold serious concerns about Tottenham’s inability to defend set plays and even Guglielmo Vicario admitted after the loss to Arsenal that it is “tough to find a solution”.

“Of course in our meeting we will analyse, try to fix it and try to do better. It is tough because in this case small details can change the result and the outcome of the games,” he told Optus Sport.

But defending set pieces isn’t the only issue for Tottenham, with several pundits also pointing towards Spurs’ inability to score despite dominating possession.

“Gabriel’s goal was the first that Spurs have conceded from a set play so far this campaign, but another pattern, just as damaging, is emerging,” Jonathan Wilson of The Guardian wrote.

“In all four games so far this season, they have had at least 60% possession, yet they have won only one of them. In all four they have been ostensibly the better team – although Newcastle did ultimately register the better xG – but they have not created the chances they probably should have, have not, other than against Everton, taken their chances, and then have had their soft underbelly exposed.

“… What must be frustrating for Postecoglou is that his side don’t seem that far off. It sounds vaguely ludicrous to say of a team on four points but it really wouldn’t have taken too much to go differently for them to have won four out of four at the start of this season. In the expected points world, Tottenham are just one point behind Arsenal.

“But back in the real, actual world they’re already six points behind their rivals and four points off the Champions League spots. The basic processes seem there: they just need a little more ruthlessness, a little less carelessness, a little more confidence and decisiveness.

“The problem is that Tottenham, of all clubs, have heard this before: that is the very essence of Spursiness.

“At the beginning of last season, it seemed as though Postecoglou’s uncomplicated gruffness might be just the thing to cut through the years of underachievement. The problem now is that, as manifested in the problem of set-piece defending, it may have become a contributory factor.”

The Athletic’s Jay Harris, meanwhile, wrote that while Tottenham’s latest performance against Arsenal was better than the one earlier this year which saw them fall behind 3-0 at halftime, it still proved the gulf in class between the two teams.

“It is clear they still have a long way to go to bridge the gap to the best teams in the division and to win a trophy,” Harris wrote.

“Spurs had 63.7 per cent possession against Arsenal but only recorded an xG (expected goals) figure of 0.7. At the moment, they are struggling to create quality scoring opportunities despite dominating the ball. It is the same issue which caused them to drop points in prior games this season against Newcastle United and Leicester City.”

The hope was that Solanke’s addition would help but he is yet to score since making the move to Tottenham and is under pressure to produce as a result, although Arsenal legend Ian Wright questioned the team’s use of the 27-year-old.

“His hold-up play, link-up play, running channels is very good and he could give Spurs a different option,” Wright said on The Kelly & Wrighty Show.

“They could have so many different options, they could play up to him, they could go long, he can give them other options.

“I can’t understand why they aren’t letting him focus on that so when the chances come he’s more relaxed about it rather than feeling at the moment, he’s in there predominantly to score goals.”

Merson, meanwhile, also pointed to James Maddison, who was impressive last season before being sidelined by an ankle injury, as another key player who needs to step up.

“He’s got to be better,” Merson said.

“He’s playing in a position where you’ve got to make things happen. I don’t personally think he did that on Sunday and looking at who he was playing up against, he has to be better.

“I’m not digging him out because I’m a huge fan of his, but I’ve played that position and know that he needs to do better.”