Ange Postecoglou has signed a four-year deal to become Tottenham Hotspur’s new head coach.
Postecoglou, 57, joins from Celtic after two years with the Scottish side, with the club confirming his appointment on Tuesday morning.
The Athletic reported at the weekend that Spurs were close to appointing Postecoglou as their new head coach, with the Australian emerging as the frontrunner for the vacancy last week.
Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy said in a statement: “Ange brings a positive mentality and a fast, attacking style of play. He has a strong track record of developing players and an understanding of the importance of the link from the academy – everything that is important to our club. We are excited to have Ange join us as we prepare for the season ahead.”
Postecoglou will start on July 1 and the club said they would confirm his backroom staff in due course.
Postecoglou arrives at Tottenham having enjoyed two hugely successful seasons at Celtic. In his debut campaign, he helped the club reclaim the Scottish Premiership title from Rangers and also won the Scottish League Cup. Last season, Postecoglou’s Celtic went one better and completed a domestic treble.
Postecoglou previously managed the Australia men’s team and before joining Celtic, he managed Yokohama F. Marinos — the Japanese side part-owned by the City Football Group.
Tottenham, meanwhile, have been seeking a candidate to instigate cultural change and re-energise the style of play.
Arne Slot was a leading candidate before opting to stay at Feyenoord, while Bayer Leverkusen’s Xabi Alonso and former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann were also options.
Antonio Conte left Tottenham by mutual consent in March, which came a few days after he branded his players “selfish” in an explosive rant following a 3-3 draw against Southampton.
His long-time assistant Cristian Stellini was appointed as acting head coach but left Spurs less than a month later following a 3-2 home defeat by relegation-threatened Bournemouth and a 6-1 loss against fellow top-four chasers Newcastle United.
Ryan Mason took over as acting coach until the end of the season, but won only two of six matches at the helm as the club slumped to an eighth-placed Premier League finish and failed to secure European football for 2023-24.
There is a feeling at the club — perhaps overdue — that they had something special back in the Mauricio Pochettino days, when everyone pulled in the same direction, towards the same shared goals. That is what they want to get back to, a sense of ‘alignment’.
And they know that this has to flow from the manager himself. He has to be someone who can command buy-in from the players and crucially from the fans too. He has to be able to be the articulate authoritative persuasive voice of the whole institution. And on this point, Postecoglou has stood out as the best of all of the candidates by far.
The experience of employing big-name managers has not been a happy one. Both Mourinho and Conte gave the impression that they were taking a step down to manage Spurs.
It has led to tensions with club staff, players and fans. No one wants a repeat of the last four years. That is why Tottenham have been clear in their desire to go in a different direction this summer.
