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

Postecoglou's two-year tenure came to an end a just over two weeks after he led the team to victory in the Europa League final, delivering the team's first major trophy in 17 years.

Yet, this European success was not mirrored in the domestic league, with the side finishing in a disappointing 17th position in Postecoglou's final campaign in charge.

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 defeat to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

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

"I'm not sure how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was strange how everything went afterwards - he's the manager that won silverware to the club," he added.

"Later, when he got sacked, I texted to my dad and my mates and said, 'I never expected this.'"

Initial Success and Subsequent Struggle

The Australian manager joined Tottenham from Celtic ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, replacing Conte. He enjoyed early success with his offensive philosophy of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his opening 10 Premier League games.

Nevertheless, that unbeaten run came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five matches, and the club's form deteriorated, ultimately failing to secure a top-four finish by a mere two-point margin.

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

Tactical Concerns Revealed

Although he enjoyed Postecoglou's style, Dutch international Van de Ven believes the team lacked a "plan B" and disclosed he and defensive partner Cristian Romero spoke about taking a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I enjoyed the offensive play at that time but I like what we have now with our current manager. We are more secure at the back. I dislike getting exposed every game on the break," he said.

"At the beginning with that system, no team was accustomed to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

"However, managers study everything and opponents knew what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a backup plan and we were getting exposed. We didn't have solutions to resolve it."

"On one occasion Romero and I walked up to the manager and suggested we need to adjust tactically and be more defensive to ensure we secure victory in 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.'"