Pep Guardiola lavished praise on the Tottenham Hotspur coach, whom he will face on Sunday in the fourteenth round of the Premier League.
Arriving and kissing the saint. Ange Postecoglou came to London to change the dynamics of a Tottenham that was slipping into obscurity. Since Pochettino led the Spurs to the Champions League final, the leadership of the whites hadn't found a guide to set the team on the right course. Until this summer.
Ange Postecoglou arrived from Celtic and turned the North London stadium into a nightclub. That was his own comparison after one of the eight victories he harvested in his first ten league games in charge of the team.
The celebrations after each success were a real party. Even when the first defeat came, a 1-4 against Chelsea, the local fans celebrated the commitment of their players.
That first stumble was followed by two more against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa. And Tottenham lost pace in the race for the top spot in the standings, something that Manchester City took advantage of. Guardiola's team drew in the last round with Liverpool and arrive at the weekend as second, set to receive the Spurs on Sunday. Both teams will have the mission to follow Arsenal's trail, or even surpass them, in the sky blue case, if the Gunners stumble on Saturday.
At the press conference prior to this match, Guardiola praised Postecoglou's work, not only at the helm of Tottenham but also during his previous stints with Celtic and Yokohama Marinos. When he was managing the Japanese team, he first faced Pep, who on Friday explained that he has been following the Australian coach's career since then.
How do you see Tottenham?
They are already up there, in a short time. Even in the games they didn't win, I was impressed by how well they do things and the chances they create. They are aggressive on all fronts. He arrived and you can already perfectly recognize his team. Each team plays according to the wishes of its coach, and what he did in Japan, then in Glasgow with Celtic, and what he is doing now... Ange makes football a better place. I really enjoy his approach, and Tottenham fans can admit that the impact has been very quick.
Do you think Tottenham will attack despite their absences?
Ask him if he will change anything when he plays against us, I'm sure he won't. It won't happen, I would be surprised. I met him in a preseason when he was managing Yokohama. I watched some videos and said, "Wow!" There were things I liked, and I explained to the players that although we weren't ready, because it was preseason, we would play against a very good team, with good ball movement and high pressure. In the end, we won, but because we had better players, with all due respect to Yokohama. I have followed him since then, he did very well in Glasgow and also in the short time he has been in London.
What was that match in Yokohama like?
They were brave, they pressed high, with aggression, they combined a lot, they relied on the goalkeeper. They reached the wings, they were very dynamic, no matter who they played against, they played their game. Then it happened in Glasgow and now with Tottenham. They lost the last two games, but the players know why. There were many similarities to the games they won. Despite the two red cards against Chelsea and the bad moments, they were always positive.
Postecoglou said that he copied that high pressure from you...
It was a joke. I am not the only coach who plays with an advanced defense. He did that. Sometimes my full-backs move to the center, but his take advantage of spaces and play like offensive midfielders, I have never done that.
With two offensive teams, do you think there will be many goals on Sunday?
Yes, I encourage fans to come to the stadium. They will have a great time.
What is the status of your injured players?
Stones is much better, very close to returning. He will be with us, I don't know if he will play, but he will be with us. Kovacic is back, he has been training well. Nunes is in the final phase of his recovery.
