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Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Van de Ven has admitted he "never expected" the club's decision to dismiss ex-boss Postecoglou.

The Australian's two-year tenure was terminated a mere over two weeks after he guided the team to a win in the Europa League final, delivering the club's first piece of silverware in 17 years.

Yet, this continental triumph was not mirrored in the Premier League, with the side ending up in a lowly 17th place in Postecoglou's final season at the helm.

He was succeeded by ex-Brentford manager Thomas Frank during the summer, but Spurs currently sit 11th in the table, with 22 points, following a 3-0 loss to Forest on Sunday.

"He is a really good manager. I have a lot of respect for him," the Dutch defender told The Overlap podcast.

"I don't know how everything went backstage. It came as a shock. It was strange how everything went after - he's the manager that won silverware to the club," he added.

"Afterwards, when he got sacked, I texted to my father and my mates and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

The Rise and Fall

Postecoglou arrived at Tottenham from Scottish champions Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, taking over from Antonio Conte. He made a bright start with his offensive philosophy of play, amassing an impressive points haul from his opening 10 Premier League games.

However, that unbeaten run came to an abrupt end with four losses in five matches, and the team's form deteriorated, ultimately missing out on Champions League qualification by a mere two points.

In the next campaign, they managed only 11 of their 38 league matches.

Tactical Concerns Revealed

While he appreciated Postecoglou's style, Netherlands international the defender believes the team was missing a "plan B" and disclosed he and defensive partner Cristian Romero spoke about adopting a more defensive approach with the manager.

"I liked the attacking football at that time but I appreciate what we have now with Thomas Frank. We are more secure defensively. I dislike being vulnerable every game on the break," he said.

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

"But, managers study everything and opponents figured out what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a plan B and we were being caught out. We lacked solutions to resolve it."

"At one point me and Romero walked up to the gaffer and said we should change some things and be more defensive to make sure we secure victory in those games. He was responded, 'I understand with you but I want you two guys to sort this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"