Former Celtic and Tottenham defender Ramon Vega has leapt to the defence of under-fire boss Ange Postecoglou and insists the club’s failings in recent seasons are all on Daniel Levy and the board.
Postecoglou is facing fresh calls for the sack after his side were beaten 3-2 by Everton on Sunday, their fifth Premier League game without a victory. The Aussie has led Spurs to the last four of the EFL Cup where they hold a 1-0 aggregate lead against Liverpool ahead of the second leg at Anfield, but a disastrous start to the league season has left them sitting in 15th place, nine points adrift of the top half.
But in ex Switzerland defender Vega’s view, Spurs’ problems lie much deeper than calling for another manager’s head. Asked on Sky Sports if he would considering making a change in the dugout, he bluntly replied: “No. It’s a no because the club are halfway through the January transfer market and we are talking again about the manager.
You can change players and change the coach but we have been doing this for years. The board has to look in the mirror and think ‘what’s (been) happening in the last four or five years. They might have been really really good with real estate and organising concerts, but running a football club? Big question mark.”
However, ex Spurs midfielder Jamie O’Hara also appeared on the show and argued that the club are going nowhere under the Aussie. Asked if Postecoglou should be sacked, the brash-talking pundit replied: “I would say yes, it ain’t gonna get any better.
“Obviously Spurs have got injuries and there are a number of players out at the moment who are a key part of what Ange wants to do. We can sit and blame Daniel Levy for the (lack of) investment and his focus in terms of where he wants Tottenham Hotspur to go. But there is still top players to choose from, (James) Maddison, (Pedro) Porro and (Radu) Dragusin, who is an international by the way, and everyone is digging him out.
“You’ve got (Lucas) Bergvall who’s he’s brought in as a young star. I get that there is injuries but the games and the results are unacceptable. If you are mid-table and you are just outside the top eight where you are trying to fight to get into Europe, then you’d say its acceptable.
“But to be 15th in the table is unacceptable. They are playing like a reserve team, its’ embarrassing. That first half against Everton was pathetic to watch and it’s like that every week. I am all for Ange, the football we play and when it’s good it’s great. But hold on a minute, football is about discipline, football is about defending and football is about winning.”