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Spurs centre-back Van de Ven has admitted he "was completely surprised by" the club's move to part ways with former manager Ange Postecoglou.

Postecoglou's spell in charge was terminated a just over two weeks after he guided Tottenham to victory in the Europa League final, delivering the team's first major trophy in 17 years.

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

He was replaced by ex-Brentford manager Frank during the summer, but Tottenham currently sit in 11th place, with 22 points, following a 3-0 defeat to Forest on Sunday.

"He is a really good manager. I still really like 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 strange how everything went after - he's the manager that won silverware to the club," he continued.

"Afterwards, when he was dismissed, I sent a message to my father and my friends and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

The Rise and Fall

The Australian manager joined Tottenham from Scottish champions Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, taking over from Conte. He made a bright start with his attacking style of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his opening 10 league matches.

Nevertheless, that fine start was halted with four losses in five matches, and the team's form deteriorated, eventually missing out on Champions League qualification by a mere two points.

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

Tactical Concerns Revealed

Although he enjoyed Postecoglou's style, Netherlands international the defender thinks the team was missing a "alternative strategy" and disclosed he and defensive partner Romero discussed taking a more cautious style with the manager.

"I enjoyed the offensive play under Postecoglou but I appreciate what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more solid defensively. I dislike getting exposed every game on the counter-attack," he said.

"Initially with that system, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing exceptional football."

"However, managers study everything and opponents figured out what we were doing. Sometimes we didn't really have a backup plan and we were being caught out. We didn't have answers to resolve it."

"On one occasion Romero and I walked up to the manager and said we should adjust tactically and be more defensive to ensure we win those games. He was like, 'I agree with you but I expect you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"