Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy “got lucky” in appointing Ange Postecoglou this summer, according to Scott Minto. The former Chelsea defender says the Australian was the “fifth or sixth choice” for Spurs but admits it has currently worked out for all parties.
Tottenham were again in search of a new boss towards the end of last season. Antonio Conte was sacked in March following his rant about the club’s hierarchy.
Cristian Stellini didn’t last long in interim charge, with Ryan Mason again seeing out the campaign as caretaker. Tottenham were linked with a host of big-name appointments in the final weeks of the season.
Julian Nagelsmann, sacked by Bayern Munich in March, held talks over the role. Luis Enrique was also linked with Spurs before he took over at Paris Saint-Germain.
Feyenoord boss Arne Slot was also a top candidate, with some reports suggesting he was the No 1 target for Levy. But the Dutchman turned down the opportunity as he wanted to lead Feyenoord in the Champions League.
Postecoglou was appointed in early June, leaving the role at Celtic he had held for two years. Tottenham are thriving so far under the Australian and Minto says it has turned out to be a great appointment.
But he admits Spurs were fortunate to land at the 58-year-old. Minto told talkSPORT: “What I would say is, Daniel Levy got lucky in my opinion. Because Ange Postecoglou was about fifth or sixth choice.
“There were lots of people who they were linked to, spoke to – Nagelsmann, Luis Enrique, Slot. Many others. But I just think Postecoglou, whether he stumbled upon it or not, is a perfect fit for Spurs.”
Postecoglou had to cope with the departure of talismanic captain Harry Kane just a day before the start of the new season. But smart summer business, including the purchase of James Maddison, has seen Tottenham start the campaign on fire.
The north London club are top of the Premier League table, ahead of rivals Arsenal on goal difference. Postecoglou doesn’t have European football to contend with so can put all his focus on the league.
Talk of a first title since 1961 has surfaced. But Minto says those conversations shouldn’t be held until December at least.
He added: “If they’re up there by Christmas then we’ll start talking about title contenders. At the moment we talk about top four, which to be fair is still absolutely massive with the season they had.”
