Tottenham boss aims to avoid 'Jesse Marsch comparison' in media ploy to divert dismissal speculation

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou ‘deliberately acts spiky’ towards the media as he wants to avoid being stereotyped as a ‘typical Australian’ and deflect away attention that he could be in danger of the sack – while captain Son Heung-min has sent a message to his manager and their supporters on the club’s current form.

The 59-year-old arrived in north London last summer and was initially seen as a breath of fresh air for both his brand of football played and for the honest and straight-talking approach he adopted during interviews and press conferences. After leading Tottenham to eight wins and two draws from his first 10 games at the helm, Postecoglou made the best start by a debutant manager in the Premier League as Spurs set the early pace.

Fast forward a year, though, and the club have failed to kick on from that early promise, ultimately finishing fifth last season, but now entering the current international break in a lowly 10th place, having suffered three defeats in their last five Premier League games.

That has led to surprise speculation that Postecoglou could be coming under early pressure of the sack, though that theory was rapidly dismissed on Wednesday by two strong sources.

While Postecoglou is not under immediate pressure of the sack, he has been set the target of leading Spurs back to the Champions League this season and, with his deal expiring in summer 2027, he could have some difficult questions to answer if he fails to meet that objective.

In the meantime, ITV commentator and talkSPORT host Sam Matterface claims Postecoglou is using the media to come across as spiky and to avoid being labelled as a stereotypical cheery Aussie.

“What I’ve been told is, is that he’s so desperate not to be seen as sort of an Australian caricature,” Matterface said on talkSPORT’s Premier League All Access podcast.

“He doesn’t want to be Jesse Marsch two, he doesn’t want people to throw the sort of Australian Ted Lasso thing at him.

“So he tries to sort of not be the playful, happy character and tries to be serious, that’s what I’ve been told.

“It doesn’t come across very well. And Mark Scott of Match of the Day has had two rather difficult exchanges with him in a couple of weeks. I know [talkSPORT correspondent, Alex] Crook and I have both had interesting exchanges with him as well over the last year.”

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What has Son Heung-min said on Tottenham’s recent form?

Despite Postecoglou’s efforts not to fall into such a stereotype, there is a danger that his frosty approach could do more harm than good, with some feeling the former Celtic boss has come across as arrogant in recent weeks.

And while the five losses they have suffered this season in the Premier League is not a good return, Alan Shearer insists it is not the time to panic, especially considering that, had they beaten Ipswich on Sunday, as many expected they would, Tottenham would now be third in the Premier League.

“Typical Spurs though, isn’t it? My goodness me. They beat City at home, they beat Villa at home with a great win, and then you got Ipswich at home. Ipswich turn you over,” Shearer said on The Rest is Football podcast.

“I don’t think so [Postecoglou under pressure]. No, I think you just look at it like that, he took responsibility, didn’t he?

“He said it’s his fault, his problem. He’s got to sort it out. But when you see them in the second half against Villa and then beating City, it’s just, it’s the inconsistency again. How long have we been saying that about Spurs?”

Spurs captain Son has also sent a message to both his manager and supporters and accepts that recent results have fallen below expectations.

“We have to believe even more because I think we could be a really strong team,” he told the club’s official website.

“Everyone saw it, but in those kind of games, you have to think about them mentally in a very strong way, Villa, you have to be strong, then you play Ipswich, everyone expects us to win this game but, in football, you never get a free win, you have to earn it, you have to work hard.

“We have to believe more, be more disciplined, that’s for sure. Everyone has to be more disciplined and follow the structure and the plan. This is the main part of our strength, and we can make it stronger when we come back from the international break.”

Latest Tottenham transfer news: Spurs ready big January signing / shock Grealish links

Meanwhile, Spurs are allocating a sizeable wedge of cash to sign a new central defender in the January window amid concerns Real Madrid will look to prise away Cristian Romero.

The Spanish giants have lost Eder Miltao to a season-ending ACL injury and Romero is one of the players they are targeting as a replacement.

But irrespective of what happens, Spurs have big plans of their own to significantly bolster their central defensive options with a major January deal being planned.

Elsewhere, Spurs are being linked with a fresh move to sign England winger Jack Grealish after Manchester City made a big decision over his future.

The north London side have a long-standing interest in the 29-year-old having held extensive talks over a deal back in 2019.

And finally, sources have confirmed to us that Tottenham are one of a handful of Premier League sides taking a look at Gent left-back Archie Brown ahead of the January transfer window.

Comparing Tottenham starts in each of the last two seasons under Postecoglou

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