Ange Postecoglou has declared his desire to “win things” during his second season as Tottenham manager.
The 58-year-old joined Spurs last summer after two seasons as Celtic boss, during which time he lifted five trophies, including the Scottish Premiership twice.
During his first season in North London, Postecoglou guided Spurs to a fifth-place finish, just two points away from Champions League qualification but 25 points adrift of champions Manchester City.
While the attention on the Australian might have lessened since his headline-grabbing start to last season, his hopes have certainly not diminished.
I guess I m not the shiny new thing anymore, so there s other new managers. People can go off and discover them and their childhood and not have to speak about mine anymore,” he told Sky Sports.
Usually in my second season I win things. That s the whole idea. First year is about establishing principles and creating a foundation. Hopefully the second year is going on to win things.
“That s always the way I ve looked at it, is that the second year you should be in a position where you can push on, depending on how the first year has gone.”
Leicester make their Premier League return against Spurs |
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Postecoglou is realistic about the challenges of achieving his goals, however. After a blistering start to last season saw Spurs top the table in late October, injuries saw them struggle.
As momentum dropped, they suffered heavy defeats to Newcastle United and Fulham later in the season.
Should Postecoglou want a chance of silverware this season, they will need to sustain their early-season form far longer.
“Of course, it s easier said than done, particularly in the Premier League and the competition we re in,” he added.
Last year we had some really good moments, obviously we had some tough moments.
“We learnt as much from the tough moments as we did from the good stuff and hopefully that means we re in a good place. We re definitely a better-prepared team than we were last year.
Tottenham face newly-promoted Leicester City in their Premier League opener on Monday.
