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Spurs centre-back Van de Ven has revealed he "was completely surprised by" the club's decision to dismiss ex-boss Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian's two-year tenure came to an end a just 16 days after he guided the team to victory in the European final, securing the club's first piece of silverware in nearly two decades.

However, this European success was not matched in the domestic league, with the team ending up in a lowly 17th position in Postecoglou's final season in charge.

He was replaced by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank during the off-season, but Spurs currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 defeat to Forest on Sunday.

"He is a really good manager. I have a lot of respect for him," Van de Ven stated on The Overlap podcast.

"I'm not sure how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was odd how everything went afterwards - he's the manager that brought a trophy to the club," he continued.

"Afterwards, when he got sacked, I sent a message to my father and my friends and said, 'I never expected this.'"

The Rise and Fall

The Australian manager arrived at Tottenham from Scottish champions Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, replacing Antonio Conte. He enjoyed early success with his attacking style of play, collecting 26 points from his opening 10 Premier League games.

However, that fine start was halted with four defeats in five matches, and the club's season tailed off, ultimately failing to secure Champions League qualification by a narrow two points.

The following season, they won just 11 of their 38 Premier League fixtures.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

While he appreciated the attacking approach, Dutch international the defender believes the team was missing a "alternative strategy" and revealed he and fellow centre-back Cristian Romero spoke about adopting a more cautious style with the coach.

"I liked the attacking football at that time but I like what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more secure defensively. I dislike being vulnerable every game on the break," he said.

"At the beginning under Postecoglou, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

"But, coaches analyse everything and opponents figured out what we were doing. Sometimes we lacked a plan B and we were being caught out. We lacked answers to get out."

"At one point me and Romero approached the gaffer and said we should change some things and be more defensive to ensure we win those games. He was like, 'I agree with you but I expect you two guys to sort this on the pitch, make sure everybody knows.'"