Former Socceroos boss Ange Postecoglou has been installed as the favourite to take over at Tottenham Hotspur after reports from England suggested that the London club are ‘strongly considering’ an approach for the Celtic manager.
The Independent broke the story that Spurs had been knocked back by their prime candidate, Feyenoord manager Arne Slot, who had recently lead the Rotterdam club to the Dutch championship, and were moving down their list of options to the Australian.
The London giants have been on the hunt for a new coach since March, when they sacked Antonio Conte following a string of poor results.
The man leading the search is a fellow Aussie, former Melbourne City CEO Scott Munn, who worked with Postecoglou at Yokohama and as part of the City Football Group before being named Chief Football Officer at Spurs.
There had been a hope that Mauricio Pochettino would return to the club, but he has now agreed to take over at rivals Chelsea, while Slot has now announced that he will remain in the Netherlands.
Ex-Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann has also been discussed at length, but is thought to be lukewarm to the idea and may wait for movements elsewhere, with Paris Saint Germain – and potentially Real Madrid – set to be in the market for a new manager.
Other favourites include Brendan Rodgers, Ruben Amorim of Sporting Lisbon and Graham Potter, recently sacked from Chelsea.
If he were to take the job, Postecoglou would become the first Australian to manage in the world’s biggest football league and improving his claim to be one of the country’s best ever sporting coaches.
Aaron Mooy has joined Postecoglou at Celtic. (Photo by Craig Williamson/SNS Group via Getty Images)
He has been a revelation at Celtic, winning back-to-back league titles and now on the brink of a domestic treble, with the Scottish Cup Final set for early June.
It is not known if Postecoglou would want the job. While speculation has emerged every time a Premier League job has become available this season, he has repeatedly said that he will stay in Glasgow longer than people expect.
Furthermore, he has spoken of his desire to test himself in the Champions League again.
Celtic returned to Europe’s top table thanks to Postecoglou’s domestic title last year and managed just two draws from six games, admittedly in a tough group with Real Madrid, RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk, and Postecoglou will see unfinished business with his playing group in that arena.
Having won the league again, the Scottish champions will enter at the Group Stage and get another crack – something that Spurs, who are currently outside of the European places entirely in the Premier League, cannot offer.
Tottenham travel to Leeds on the final day of the season and would need to win, while hoping that Aston Villa lose, if they are to play European football at all next year, and even then, it would be in the lowly Conference League.
13th Man
Roar Rookie
You are still yet to provide a league that you think is better…
chris1
Roar Rookie
"Will probably win it". Your argument is starting to wane. Anyway, if you believe it's the best league in the world that's all that matters.
13th Man
Roar Rookie
Isn’t it? Man City will likely win the CL, after Chelsea winning it 2 years ago and Liverpool a couple of years before that. Pretty good strike rate in recent years..
chris1
Roar Rookie
Again, that is just speculation and your opinion. The only way we can do any sort of comparison is Euro comps. And England is not top of the pile. That's not speculation or my opinion they are the facts. Whether Everton or Crystal Palace can beat Sassuolo or Atalanta or FC Koln or Real Betis we won't really know.
mrl
Roar Rookie
Edit... the cricketers play around the Commonwealth and have maybe 10-12 opposition. I agree, the socceroos have 207 opponents. At least the cricketers have 10-12 more opponents than the AFL National team.
Tony Harper
Editor
Have you seen what Spurs do to the world's best managers?
Tony Harper
Editor
Nah, because Tottenham
Grem
Roar Rookie
Around the world? India, Pakistan. Australia, NZ, South Africa, England, Sri Lanka, West Indies (not a country) and now we begin to struggle… Zimbabwe? In the last year The Socceroos have played: Ecuador, Argentina, Denmark, Tunisia, France, UAE, New Zealand, Peru, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Vietnam, and more! And that doesn’t even scratch the surface of world teams that play! And they have no player in the Australian Sporting Hall of Fame! Having written that – Bradman was an absolute freak though, and Warne would not be too far behind him.
13th Man
Roar Rookie
If he wants to manage in the Prem he won’t get that opportunity, at least not straight away. City and Newcastle won’t be looking for new coaches anytime soon. Spurs is perhaps the biggest job he may get in the premier league if he wants it, that is of course up to him.
13th Man
Roar Rookie
There are standout teams at the top of each of the leagues - your Real Madrid’s, Bayerns and PSG’s but overall I think the teams at the bottom of the Premier League would comfortably account for those at the bottom of other leagues. We can see this happening with West Ham who have narrowly avoided relegation into the conference league final. It’s not that the best teams in other leagues aren’t good, it’s the fact there are more good teams in England, and that is mainly down to more money because of the much more significant international market the EPL receives - i think that’s just the way it is now.
chris1
Roar Rookie
So your measure of what's the best is due to the Brightons, Newcastle and Villa "becoming really good"? There are many examples of middling teams suddenly becoming good in all the leagues - not just in England. Count how many English teams have won Euro honours in say, the past 20 years. And, that is just your opinion that all the best managers want to go to England.
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
The two clubs you know have the riches are City and Newcastle. Tottenham are too risky a proposition for a front runner like Ange. Ange is a front runner and a win everything guy, I cant see him being strategic at all with regards to cup competitions. The only place Ange belongs is at the very top of a league.
13th Man
Roar Rookie
Can you please tell me what league is better? Spain? - two teams dominant Germany? - one team is dominant Italy? - even the good teams in Italy are no match for the best English sides as will be proven in the champions league final France? - that’s a joke right, PSG a one team league. Why do all the best players and coaches in the world want to go to England? Because it’s the most competitive and most exciting league in world football, we’ve got teams like Newcastle, Brighton and Villa all becoming really good - this is not the case in other leagues. I just can’t make a case for any other league in world football competing with the EPL. If you can I’d like to hear it.
mrl
Roar Rookie
The AFL guys are full on, genuine superstars and legends, who score miracle goals every week-end (mostly in Victoria). The Rugby League guys are "future immortals", who play in NSW most of the time. The cricketers are in a different category....at least they play against the best players around the world.
Grem
Roar Rookie
I don’t want to diminish what others have done in regards to their contributions to games, but how is Johnny Warren not there for his contributions to Australian football? He cut through our society in the 70s when the game was even more invisible. Someone like Craig Johnstone played over 200 games in what’s talked about as the greatest Liverpool team ever. Championships, FA Cups, European Cups were won with him being a major player and he’s not in the hall of fame???? The amount of headlines this skippy received for his achievements were proudly displayed in newspapers and on television in Australia and throughout the world. This is pretty big stuff! I absolutely agree. As Tim Cahill, Harry Kewell, Mark Schwarzer, Lucas Neill, etc reach their 15 years, and they retrospectively reward the 74 Socceroos and Craig Johnstone, etc they had better start to make plenty of room. Making your way in a world game should score a lot of extra points.
chris1
Roar Rookie
I think your view of everything English is the best is somewhat misguided. EPL is not the best league in the world and only the English and non football followers here in Aus would think that it is.
chris1
Roar Rookie
SS I wouldn't write Inter off against City. I have a sneaking suspicion they will beat them. City do have Haaland but I feel Bastoni will negate him (as much as he can be negated). What a shame it's on Stan.
chris1
Roar Rookie
Grem we have legends, immortals, superstars, statues everywhere for them. And they all play AFL, league and cricket. What an amazing quirk of nature that all these God's of sport all play basically a small provincial game.
mrl
Roar Rookie
Ange has them trumped...due to the mass and popularity of football.
Stevo
Roar Rookie
The legacy of Ange will have to wait for another day but it's safe to say now that it will be immense in both Australian football and sport in this country more generally. Ange has nothing left to prove in Scotland. Sure, Celtic in the Champions League is enticing but seriously how far can he go in that competition. He can keep winning the SPL but that's hardly a challenge. On the other hand, Tottenham currently sits 8th and likely to finish in that position. The last time they finished lower than 8th was in the 2007/08 season (11th). I think Tottenham presents a good challenge for Ange. It's very unlikely to be a relegation battling team, he's too good for that to happen. But climbing up from 8th would be a solid challenge of his coaching ability with the the aim of finishing in the top 6 to claim a spot in Europe CL/Europa league. I think he'd relish a challenge like with a club that play in a top tier league.