Why Tottenham emerged stronger from a 4-1 defeat: ‘It’s just who we are, mate’

When Ange Postecoglou took over as Tottenham Hotspur head coach this summer, we were told again and again that he simply would not compromise. Whatever the situation, he would continue to play in the same way. His almost evangelical devotion to his principles of football means he simply sees no other option.

At times on Monday, it felt as though the game against Chelsea was designed to test Postecoglou’s idealism.

Spurs were down to nine men and the centre of their defence was made up of Eric Dier and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. That’s one centre-back who hadn’t played a minute all season and isn’t known for his pace, alongside a reserve defensive midfielder playing out of position.

By this point, Tottenham had had two players sent off and lost two of their stars — Micky van de Ven and James Maddison — to injury.

But Postecoglou didn’t do the typical thing in this scenario of instructing his team to dig in and drop deep to try to snatch a draw. Instead, he doubled down, asking Hojbjerg and Dier to push up to the halfway line to try and squeeze the space, standing roughly in a line with five of Spurs’ six other defenders.

It was an extraordinary spectacle.

In the 68th minute, Chelsea finally worked out how to spring the trap. Despite having four players in an offside position, Marc Cucurella timed his run well from a deeper position and had a shot saved.

The freeze-frame of Tottenham’s defensive line feels symbolic of Postecoglou’s Spurs, and his principles more generally. Front-footed, bold, unconventional.

Just after that chance, Postecoglou called over Dier and reiterated the message that he and Hojbjerg should keep pushing up to the halfway line.

“It’s just who we are, mate,” Postecoglou explained after the game. “As long as I’m here, that’s what we’re going to do. Even with five men, we’ll have a go.”

Eventually, Chelsea worked out how to expose Spurs’ high line and ran in three late goals to seal a 4-1 win. Though the game-settling third in the 94th minute came just after Son Heung-min had very nearly equalised, Dier had a goal ruled out for a tight offside and Rodrigo Bentancur just failed to turn in a cross from close range. For a team with nine men, Spurs were remarkably in the game — even deep into stoppage time.

How, then, do we assess an extraordinary match? Encouraging proof of Postecoglou’s commitment to his principles, or evidence of his and his team’s limitations?

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Well, first of all, Spurs were likely to lose this game however they had approached it once they were down to nine men, with the score at 1-1 and only 55 minutes played.

And given those circumstances, there are a lot of positives.

For a start, Postecoglou has shown to his players that he believes wholeheartedly in what he is preaching to them. At Brisbane Roar and Celtic, there were equivalent early games that went disastrously but were subsequently cited as being crucial in both teams’ development, uniting them and crystallising some of his messages. At Roar, it was a 3-0 defeat to Melbourne Victory in September 2010. Then, at Celtic, there was a home 4-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in September 2021, a few months after the Australian had taken over.

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Both of those games were held up as evidence of Postecoglou’s naivety and stubbornness; both of those seasons finished with Postecoglou’s sides winning the title. He has spoken previously about how it’s in tough moments that you learn the most about yourself and your team.

Monday night may end up having a similarly galvanising effect. The mood in the Spurs dressing room after the game was one of defiance and pride in continuing to play their way. The reaction of the crowd was similar, cheering the team as if they had just scored a goal when they had conceded the game-settling third. Despite the scoreline, it was another night that strengthened the bond between the players and the fans, as well as the players and the manager, and the fans and the manager.

And that matters in maintaining the momentum of Postecoglou’s excellent start.

Spurs can take a lot from what happened after 55 minutes, but they also need to reflect on how they put themselves in such a hopeless position.

Destiny Udogie and Cristian Romero could have been sent off for straight red cards in the first 22 minutes, and even the normally calm Postecoglou was booked in the first half for stepping outside his technical area to express his frustration.

Following that early reprieve, Romero was sent off soon after for a foul on Enzo Fernandez, while Udogie took a needless risk in picking up his second yellow card when he slid in to try to win a ball that was out of his reach.

On a night that required cool heads, Romero lost his early on and didn’t even nearly relocate it before getting himself sent off. Among all of this, Postecoglou will be frustrated that before Spurs lost their discipline, they looked like they might run away with the game after Dejan Kulusevski’s early opener.

The result is deflating and could have serious longer-term consequences depending on the severity of Maddison and Van de Ven’s injuries, but Spurs’ performance also served to strengthen the clarity of Postecoglou’s message. Nothing will divert him from playing the way he believes will achieve sustainable success for this team.

Or, in other words, “It’s just who we are, mate.”

(Top photo: Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images)