Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglu on their strong start to the season and the challenge of Fulham on Monday
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00:00 No props today, please.
00:01 No songs on your phones.
00:04 Go on.
00:04 And does everybody...
00:06 How are you? Sorry.
00:07 I'm supposed to be Martin Tyler.
00:08 How are you, mate?
00:08 And does everybody come through the international break OK?
00:12 Son, Romero and Johnson, will they be in contention for Monday?
00:15 Yeah, look, it's been a pretty positive international break for us.
00:20 So in terms of availability, the international players I'll address first.
00:23 Everyone's kind of back and
00:26 medical reports all seem to be good, so no real issues around the guys
00:31 from a fitness perspective.
00:35 Also, not just from that perspective, but, you know,
00:38 got a couple of senior debuts with Destiny and
00:40 and Mickey getting some runs in there and in terms of playing for their national team.
00:46 So it was a good break.
00:47 Gio Rancelso played for Argentina as well, which was great.
00:51 So those guys all came through it well.
00:54 And then, yeah, with Brennan, he's had a good, solid couple of weeks of training,
00:59 which has been good for him with the guys who've been left alongside
01:03 Benton Corr, Brian Gill and and yeah, they're all good.
01:08 So in terms of obviously being a Monday night helps us in that respect.
01:12 But all international players should be available.
01:15 Brennan, we'll just see how he goes next couple of days.
01:18 How far away are we from seeing Rodrigo Benton Corr?
01:21 Yeah, you know, we'll be careful with him.
01:24 He's actually, you know, now he's sort of fully training.
01:27 So that means, you know, he's he's into the whole session.
01:30 You know, we've sort of fed him into training the last sort of month
01:34 and he's coped pretty well with that.
01:35 Now he's into full training.
01:37 Yeah, we've got to be mindful that he's missed a fair bit of football.
01:40 But I think the more he trains with the first team over the next sort of few weeks,
01:45 we'll sort of pick our moment.
01:47 But, you know, he's he's looking good at training.
01:50 Like I said, it was great to have him for the last couple of weeks,
01:52 sort of fully integrated with the guys who were here and looking forward to getting him back.
01:55 During the break, you received the Premier League Manager of the Month award for September.
01:59 Has the start of the season gone better than expected?
02:02 And following this start, what do you think is achievable for this group of players?
02:07 Well, both those questions sort of
02:10 are predetermined by some target I may or may not have had.
02:16 And they didn't have a target.
02:17 So wherever we are is where we are.
02:19 You know, we've had a really encouraging start to the season.
02:22 Yeah, obviously, I wanted to receive the Manager of the Month,
02:27 but that's sort of representative of a larger group of people.
02:30 You know, the coaching staff, all the football department are working really hard
02:33 at the moment to create an environment and a training sort of base
02:38 for the players to perform.
02:39 And fair to say, I think, apart from the results, which have obviously been pleasing,
02:43 is I think we've had a level of performance in every game,
02:47 which has made us really competitive against all opponents home away.
02:51 You know, we've had some eventful games within that context.
02:57 But again, that's kind of given us a real sort of strong foundation
03:02 in terms of the character and resilience of the group.
03:04 So it's been an encouraging start.
03:06 And where that leads us,
03:08 you know, we'll find out.
03:12 Seb. Hi, Anj.
03:14 You just spent the international break in the lead.
03:16 How did that feel?
03:18 The same as any other international break.
03:22 You kind of, first few days, you kind of welcome it.
03:25 And then next few days, you kind of seek in the next contest.
03:29 So, you know, look,
03:32 we're in a great position in the league.
03:34 I think that's reflective of, like I said, our performance so far.
03:37 But it doesn't really sort of change the way,
03:43 you know, I'm thinking of kind of what we're trying to build here.
03:46 It pains to say we're still very much at the beginning.
03:50 So my main focus is continual improvement in this group
03:55 because there's a lot of young players.
03:58 We've got a new group, new leadership, a new way of playing.
04:01 All these things are all at the early stages.
04:04 That's undeniable.
04:06 Whatever start we may have had, good, bad or otherwise,
04:09 doesn't change the fact it's still the beginning.
04:11 So my, not my challenge, but my focus is on making sure we keep improving
04:16 because the worst thing you can do is, you know, if we'd had a poor start is to,
04:19 and I've done that in my career where, you know,
04:23 the beginnings haven't been great.
04:24 But what I've done during that time is make sure we stay true to what I wanted to build
04:29 and the beliefs we had.
04:30 And it's the same when things are going well,
04:31 because if you get sidetracked by how you're currently tracking
04:36 and move away from what the plan is,
04:38 then the traps are there for you to sort of stumble.
04:43 Do you still feel like this has reinforced a new status for Tottenham
04:48 in the Premier League this season?
04:49 That's not for me to judge.
04:51 That's for others to judge.
04:53 My sort of thinking around those things is always,
04:59 well, you know, how we present ourselves and how we perform.
05:03 It's going to be more sort of indicative of how we're perceived
05:08 than us trying to make any kind of statements around that fact.
05:12 So, yeah, that's for other people.
05:14 I think there's probably at the moment a little bit of a curiosity around us,
05:18 same way there is around me that, you know,
05:21 why is this happening and how is it happening?
05:23 I get that because there's nothing beyond that to sort of give you some sort of idea
05:29 of what sort of trajectory we should be on.
05:31 But so I understand that.
05:33 But again, that's not really what sort of for me is really important right now.
05:39 Funnily enough, you're playing your next three games in London,
05:43 whilst other teams around you in the table will be travelling around Europe.
05:47 Do you think that's something you have to take advantage of?
05:51 It is what it is.
05:53 I mean, you know, we've also only had three home games this year so far, you know.
05:57 We've had five games away from home.
05:59 So, you know, that's been a challenge in itself,
06:02 because we've seen particularly at our stadium this year,
06:06 we've had some cracking games, three cracking games,
06:08 and the supporters have helped us in that.
06:10 But we haven't had that for five games away from home.
06:13 So it is what it is.
06:15 Whatever the challenge is before you,
06:17 whether that's, you know, multiple games away from home or like I said, in London,
06:20 that's the challenge that's before us.
06:24 You know, all we've got to do, like I said,
06:26 is try and maintain a real focus around the level of performance we have
06:29 and make sure that, you know, we don't allow ourselves to kind of think
06:37 about what's gone before us and more importantly, what's too far ahead of us.
06:41 What's really important is we've got a real tough game Monday night
06:44 against a really strong Premier League opponent.
06:46 Martin.
06:48 Hi, Ange. Really nice to see you over here.
06:51 You too.
06:52 Congratulations on what you've achieved so far.
06:54 Ibus Umar is not going to play on Monday.
06:58 How much of an issue?
06:59 You've had two and a half weeks to think about what you're going to do.
07:02 I'm not expecting you to tell us what you're going to do,
07:04 but how much of a thought process has gone into the replacement?
07:08 Yeah, look, I think that's always a comment of a constant.
07:12 I think in every manager's head, you're always kind of looking at,
07:16 you know, you're realistic enough to know you're not going to run with the same sort of XI.
07:19 And every week there's always that, you know, you
07:23 you wrestle with what the best sort of line-up is going to be for you.
07:27 You're looking at everything, you know, the fitness, the form of players,
07:29 the way they're training, the opposition.
07:31 So, as you said, obviously with Biss missing out
07:36 this game, you know, we had to adjust without him at Luton
07:41 in the second half, which I thought we did awfully well with 10 men.
07:44 But we got some options in midfield.
07:46 Certainly Pierre is a ready-made replacement for Biss.
07:51 And, you know, he's been training really hard.
07:54 He's obviously probably wanted to play more,
07:57 because he's pretty much been a constant over the last two or three years
08:01 in that midfield spot.
08:03 But when he has come on for us, he's done really well.
08:06 And, you know, for me at this stage, he's the logical one to come in.
08:10 But we've still got a couple of sessions to go.
08:12 Just one question.
08:14 I'm not sure it's been asked before, but I've not been here before.
08:16 With Harry Kane going, it seems looking at the results and the performances
08:21 that everybody else in the group has taken on a little bit of extra responsibility.
08:26 That's what it looks from the outside.
08:27 Is it the same from the inside?
08:29 Yes. I mean, it's not something you consciously do.
08:33 Ultimately, you know, the players know that if you're around long enough
08:37 that, you know, very few people stay in the one spot forever.
08:42 And, you know, people come and go.
08:44 And obviously Harry going was a significant
08:48 sort of exit for us as a football club, as much as it was as a football team,
08:54 you know, because he was such a strong force for so long.
08:58 And you're looking at how do you replace him?
09:01 Well, you know, I was, you know,
09:03 I'm not the sharpest, but I was pretty quick to realise
09:06 you're not going to replace him like for like, you know,
09:08 you're never going to find another Harry Kane because it doesn't exist
09:11 in terms of somebody who has been at this football club for, you know,
09:15 for all these, as they keep saying, he's one of their own here.
09:19 And top goalscorer, captain of England, I wasn't going to replace.
09:22 So we had to look at how we were going to do that.
09:23 And, you know, gave us an opportunity to try play a different way,
09:27 set up a different way.
09:28 And that's what we've tried to do.
09:30 Now, whether the players have felt that extra responsibility,
09:32 what we've tried to do is actually take that responsibility away from them
09:35 and not worry about, you know, individuals trying to feel that breach
09:39 and just say, look, what's going to help us is to become a really
09:43 strong football team in terms of having multiple attacking threats
09:47 where hopefully on any given day we can hurt teams in many different ways.
09:51 Down to Rob, please.
09:54 Hi, Ansh. Brian Hill was back in the squad last time out against Luton.
10:05 What kind of role can he play for you over the coming months?
10:08 Yeah, it could be really important for us.
10:11 He's one, like I said, last couple of weeks, it's been great to have him
10:14 just working really hard at training.
10:16 He's obviously missed almost all of this season so far.
10:19 And, you know, well chronicled that we lost Ivan and we lost Manon,
10:23 who kind of play in that left, you know, left wing sort of position.
10:27 So having Brian
10:28 fit and available again is great for us.
10:31 Yeah, but he's, I guess, in the same boat as everyone else.
10:35 You know, at some point he'll be afforded an opportunity.
10:37 Then it's up to him.
10:38 He certainly has all the
10:41 sort of criteria and credentials to play in that position for us.
10:45 And, you know, like I said, his training's getting stronger now as part of the
10:49 as part of the group, and I'm sure he'll get an opportunity.
10:52 You know, obviously, like I said, we've got a Monday night game,
10:54 then we're backing up with a Friday night game.
10:56 So, you know, we're probably going to need
10:58 a good deal of the squad to deal with those two games over the next sort of five, six days.
11:03 We're cheering on ourselves, so we're not getting a lot of football
11:07 this season because of that injury.
11:09 Did the international break just come at the perfect time for him?
11:11 In a sense, I mean, like I said, the pleasing thing is that, you know,
11:15 he's obviously very highly regarded within the Argentine set-up
11:20 because they always call him up and he played in both games.
11:23 You know, he didn't play significant minutes, but again, he played in both games
11:26 and, you know, played 15, 20 minutes in the second game.
11:28 So it's great for him and his sort of confidence, like I said,
11:31 he's kind of, unfortunately, had a disruptive
11:34 early part of the season for us.
11:36 But again, another player who,
11:38 you know, we haven't really had a contribution from.
11:40 And I guess that's a pleasing thing for us is,
11:43 you know, as good as we've been, there's still a few players
11:46 mentioned so far, you know, Brennan and Benson, Cor, Gill,
11:51 Laselso, who haven't really played at all for us yet.
11:55 So having them back, just even in terms of training, raise the training level
12:00 and hopefully, you know, they're the kind of things that hopefully will give us that
12:05 sort of focus to maintain and keep improving our
12:09 performances. Because when there's competitiveness around the squad,
12:12 training and playing, that just,
12:15 you know, sort of guards against any sort of complacency
12:20 or anyone sort of feeling comfortable about things.
12:22 Since your last press conference, Johan Lang has been appointed as Technical Director.
12:26 Can I just get your thoughts on the appointment and what will he bring to Tottenham
12:30 as you build for the future?
12:31 Yeah, look, I've had a good couple of chats with Johan now
12:34 since he's sort of, you know, been appointed.
12:37 And yeah, look, I think it's fair to say it's a position that we needed to fill.
12:43 And, you know, with all sort of big football clubs now,
12:47 they've become such an important part of the function, knowing that
12:50 for the most part, you know, recruitment these days,
12:54 you know, I said a couple of weeks ago, there aren't too many hidden gems out there.
12:57 Everyone knows, you know, what's out there and, you know,
13:01 having people who are really adept and qualified
13:06 in sort of seeking out the ones that are going to be a good fit for us are important.
13:10 And that's kind of Johan's brief and looking forward to him getting started.
13:14 And obviously, we've got, you know, the January window
13:17 not too far around the corner, so I'm sure he'll be keen to get involved as well.
13:22 We'll finish this section with George, please.
13:30 Hi, And. I just wanted to go back to Pierre Mahoy-Berg.
13:34 I mean, in a sort of parallel universe, he could have been playing for Fulham.
13:37 They wanted him on transfer deadline day.
13:39 No move sort of went through.
13:42 I guess a lot of players in that situation, you know, might have struggled afterwards.
13:46 But it seems he's been a constant professional.
13:49 I think he played the next day at Burnley.
13:51 Obviously, he was very influential against Liverpool and Luton.
13:54 How impressed have you been by that kind of professionalism that he's showed,
13:58 even though there has been uncertainty over his head?
14:01 Yeah, look, I mean, in terms of him going anywhere,
14:04 I don't think there was any time during the sort of transfer window
14:09 where I felt Pierre was going to move.
14:11 I mean, I think, you know, discussions I'd had with him was that, you know,
14:15 he was here and wanted to contribute and sort of be part of what we were building.
14:21 As I said, you know, it's obvious that somebody who's played regularly
14:25 would have wanted to play more.
14:26 But ultimately, you know, our performances have been strong.
14:30 He's had to bide his time.
14:31 But he's also been very important in a lot of the games.
14:33 You know, as you know, we've won late or had to sort of shore up late.
14:39 And he's been one of the people that's helped us do that.
14:41 So it's not like he hasn't contributed at all.
14:43 He's been a really important part.
14:45 We wouldn't be in this position if we were just reliant on our starting 11.
14:49 You know, fair to say, if games had finished at the 80-minute mark,
14:53 we wouldn't be finished, you know, we wouldn't be in the top spot.
14:56 So not just him, but all the guys.
14:58 And it's something we're impressed on all of them, is that, you know,
15:01 as disappointed as you are about not starting, it doesn't mean you're not playing.
15:06 You know, you're still playing at some point.
15:08 And what you do with those minutes is going to help us be successful
15:12 and help push their own cause.
15:14 And as I said with Pierre, you know, he's a professional.
15:18 He's, I said, he's very determined to win a spot in the team.
15:22 And he presents himself well every day.
15:24 And, you know, over a 38-game season,
15:28 you know, all these guys will get an opportunity at some point.
15:31 And then what they do with that opportunity is up to them.
15:33 And in the meantime, what's important is if they want to keep getting opportunities,
15:37 that they train well.
15:38 And when they do play, because whether you start or not, you're playing,
15:42 is that you contribute to the team.
15:44 And in this same position, obviously, Bensikor is back in full training.
15:48 How far away is he from actually playing in the game?
15:51 Or could he potentially be in the squad, I guess, on Monday night?
15:54 No, he won't be on the squad Monday.
15:55 Like I said before, he's just started training.
15:57 So we'll kind of take our time with him.
16:00 He's missed a lot of football.
16:01 You know, we'll have a look at sort of the next few weeks, the games we've got.
16:07 And when we feel, you know, we've seen enough of training and he feels comfortable,
16:12 we'll slowly reintegrate him back into the team.
16:14 And just finally from me, Dejan Kudracevsky was playing for Sweden on Monday night
16:19 when there was the incident in Brussels.
16:21 Have you spoke to him since he's come back?
16:24 And is he available for Monday?
16:26 Or is it that maybe one you need to think about sort of further down the line?
16:29 No, no, he's fine.
16:30 Yeah, I've had a chat to him.
16:32 And yeah, like everyone else,
16:34 we shake our heads at these things where, you know,
16:38 you go to a football game and these kind of things happen.
16:42 And, you know, it's sad.
16:48 And, you know, it's kind of confronting how close it comes to your own world.
16:52 But no, Deki's fine.
16:54 He's back.
16:55 He trained yesterday with the team and he's ready to go.
16:57 Go.