Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglu on the North London Derby against Arsenal and Rodrigo Bentancur's FA charge for alleged racist remarks
Tottenham training ground, London, UK
Tottenham training ground, London, UK
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00:00How are you doing Andrew?
00:01Good Mark.
00:02Just got the team news pretty positive isn't it?
00:05Yeah, so I guess internationals all came back OK, Biss is the only one that's obviously got an issue,
00:14it's not serious but he's getting treatment today, we'll see if he can train tomorrow and make a decision there.
00:21Out of the other guys, Mickie Vandervin is all good, he's trained pretty fully through the international break
00:28and Dom back half of this week, sort of joined with the first team, trained today so again we've got training tomorrow,
00:35if they get through alright I guess we'll be available.
00:39Richie, Will Lancashire are the only two that are in rehab.
00:43You addressed it earlier in the summer but Rodrigo Bentecourt has now been charged by the FA,
00:48potential hefty ban, can I just get your reaction to the charge please?
00:53Yeah, not I guess unexpected from our perspective, we kind of knew that it's something that the league would look at
01:02and it's kind of, we need to let the process sort of play out now and you know,
01:09Rodrigo's well aware of the ramifications of any outcome from the panel but we'll just wait and see what they come out with.
01:18Special game Sunday, I was listening to you a few weeks ago talking about potential new cycles here
01:24and Mikko Arteta probably went through a similar one, do you see similarities of what he's building there
01:30to what you're trying to do at Tottenham Hotspur?
01:33It's hard to say because I guess every sort of situation is kind of unique in itself because they're different clubs
01:42and I guess different environments but obviously before there's obviously a way to sort of build a team and a club
01:58and sort of go in a certain direction and that always for the most part takes time,
02:04it's about finding the right people in the key positions and all those things are club decisions
02:09and as you go along I guess clubs decide whether they want to continue down that road or not,
02:13the results aren't always there immediately which is not surprising in this league
02:19but I think for the most part clubs that have sort of stuck to a certain direction
02:24because they believe they're heading in the right way,
02:28eventually sort of get to a place where their team is competitive for a sustained period of time.
02:35They're considered Manchester City's main title challengers but I know you're ultra ambitious as well
02:41and there's a lot of between the clubs, who finishes above who,
02:44do you think this current squad you've got now is capable of challenging Arsenal this season?
02:49Well not specifically Arsenal but we want to be a club that can challenge everyone
02:56so that's what we're trying to aim to become and to do that you've got to perform at a certain level on a consistent basis,
03:03you've got to have a squad strong enough to do that,
03:06to withstand the challenges that inevitably come during the course of a season
03:11but we've started the season fairly solidly from a performance perspective,
03:15obviously the results haven't reflected that but I think we're in a good place to really push on from last year
03:23and improve in all areas of our game and if we do that,
03:26I mean we got close to challenging last year, there's no reason why we can't this year.
03:32Thanks mate.
03:33Hi Andrew.
03:34Hi.
03:35After what you've experienced in this huge fixture so far in your time here,
03:38how would you try and sum up the rivalry in north London?
03:42Yeah I guess every sort of derby involves a bit different,
03:46obviously this one, yeah you can tell that it's fairly intense between the two clubs,
03:52obviously geographically sort of situated in the same part of town,
03:57they're trying to defend the same turf and there's always a little bit of an edge.
04:02I thought both games last year were very entertaining,
04:06I thought we played well at their place and really matched it with them
04:11and could have even won them the day.
04:14Here we're kind of at our place, we got blown away in the first half,
04:17sort of trying to make game of it in the second half so plenty of goals and exciting
04:21and we know what it means to our supporters and what it means to the club
04:26but I said for us what's really important is we've got to go out there and perform,
04:30we've got to play our football, play well because irrespective of the rivalry,
04:34they're a top side so you need to do that.
04:37What kind of impact could a win have on the rest of Tottenham's season?
04:42Look, hard to say, I've never felt like there's an easy way to success,
04:47I don't think one thing determines or can change a trajectory to a great effect
04:53but it helps because it's not just a win in a big game in a derby
04:58but it's a win against one of the top sides so that gives you small belief and confidence
05:04and potentially that could inject some real momentum into our season.
05:11I've never been one to think that just a win on the weekend is enough for us to say
05:16that we're on the right course and alternatively if things don't go our way
05:21then somehow we need to change course.
05:25They will be without some big players but what is it about this Arsenal side
05:29that makes them so hard to play against?
05:32I think consistency in approach and mentality.
05:35You've seen them in the last two years in particular,
05:39they've just had a real relentlessness about them.
05:42They haven't had to change their team too much,
05:45there's a solid core there that have carried them through the last two years
05:50and I think that gives you belief over time.
05:52In every game they feel like they can win,
05:55they have this confidence in themselves now that they can challenge
06:00over a course of a Premier League season.
06:03I think that more than anything else allows you to build momentum season to season
06:10where you can do it over a whole course of a season.
06:12They have the last two years, their form over the last two years in totality
06:16has been outstanding.
06:19They're going to be a tough nut to crack but a great opportunity for us to do that.
06:27Be it in Scotland when you were involved in the big derby up there
06:30or this derby here, how do you manage the expectations of the fans
06:34while wanting to tell them,
06:36yeah we're going to go out there on the front foot
06:38and we want to win this game and do this, that and the other.
06:40How do you also in a derby match manage the expectations or don't you?
06:46I don't think I ever have and I hate to think that I went into any game
06:51trying to get people to manage expectations
06:56because ultimately what's the point of doing what we do?
07:00You go into every game hoping to conquer and win and play well
07:05and do all the things that we love about the game.
07:07I don't think you should walk into a stadium fearing anything
07:11or having trepidation about anything or scared to dream
07:16or hope that you can be successful.
07:19I've never done that in the past and I wouldn't do that
07:23because it's not the way I coach or live my life.
07:26It's not the mindset I have.
07:28I think every game you have is an opportunity to do something special
07:31and that's the way you should approach it.
07:34These are special games.
07:36It's come very early in the season.
07:38That's not down to you, it's down to the fixture computer.
07:41In a way, would you prefer to be more up and running
07:44and have maybe 10 or 15 games behind you
07:47before the first of these derby matches?
07:49No, not really.
07:51If you're not ready, the league's started.
07:55You don't start a race and then think you're going to start sprinting
07:58after 10 metres.
07:59You've got to go from the start.
08:00You've got to be ready.
08:01We were ready at the start of the season and whenever the games come along
08:04you've got to be ready for it.
08:06We're three games into a season.
08:07Obviously the international break kind of puts a pause on things.
08:10But no, whenever it comes we need to be ready and we will be.
08:14Final one on Benton Core, if I may.
08:16Firstly, how are things in the dressing room between him and Hamid Son?
08:20And secondly, how do you tell footballers that in the real world
08:25you can't behave like this and therefore your behaviour,
08:29your discipline while you're wearing the club badge
08:33or even while you're under the employment of the club
08:35has to be absolutely top-notch?
08:37Because we saw how upset and angry you were a couple of weeks ago
08:40with Id Bissouma.
08:42Yeah, in terms of Sonny and Rodri, I think they had their kind of discussion
08:51about the whole incident.
08:52I think both players understand and respect each other's position
08:57and Rodri's already apologised for what he said and Sonny has accepted that
09:04and accepted the fact that one of his teammates
09:07and a person he's close to has made a mistake.
09:11Beyond that, I don't know what you mean by the real world.
09:14We all live in the same world, whether you're a footballer
09:17or you're anyone down the street.
09:19We all live in the same world and we all kind of understand
09:22the ramifications of our actions irrespective of who we represent.
09:26Ultimately we represent ourselves as people.
09:30You're trying along the way.
09:33As human beings we try and do the right thing all the time
09:36but it doesn't always happen.
09:37We all make mistakes.
09:38I've said before that for me it's not just about punishment,
09:45it's the opportunity for people to atone, to learn.
09:50Because if we're talking about having a society that's kind of understanding
09:56and tolerant of everything, we also must show that to people who make mistakes
10:01as Rodri has made in his time.
10:06We kind of know him very well, a lot better than most
10:09because we spend every day with him and we understand the kind of person he is
10:13and we understand that even though he's a great guy
10:17and a fantastic teammate, he's made a big error this time
10:20and he's got to take the punishment but also we need to make sure
10:24that we're giving the opportunity to atone for it and learn from it
10:27and hopefully others learn from it as well.
10:33You've had three good performances this season
10:35but the results haven't always married up.
10:37How close do you feel the team are to clicking
10:40and putting in a real 90-minute performance consistently?
10:45It's hard to say but I've always felt that if you're consistent
10:50in those underlying things we're looking for in our game
10:55that the results do come sooner rather than later
10:59and we've just got to stay really disciplined and consistent
11:02in our approach from our football because I think our football
11:05has been really good in all three games.
11:07We've dominated all three games.
11:09We've limited the opposition to very little and created a lot for ourselves.
11:14We've played in the manner we wanted to but the results haven't come.
11:19If we maintain that over 38 games I think we'll be in a really good position
11:23but it doesn't guarantee it.
11:25You can't just expect it to happen or try and pick a moment
11:29when it's going to happen.
11:30You've just got to keep at it, stay really focused
11:35on the important elements of our game and the results will follow.
11:40It feels like a while ago now but you had to select the Europa League squad
11:44and the 23-man squad.
11:46Jed Spence was left out.
11:48How difficult a decision was that and how has he taken that news?
11:52I'm disappointed.
11:54Ali's not here because this was his baby.
11:56But it was always going to be a difficult decision
12:01obviously with the make-up of our squad currently
12:03and the lack of club-trained players.
12:07We're always going to have to leave somebody out
12:09and Jed was the unfortunate one but at the same time
12:12Jed's already played in the Premier League
12:15and if you ask him at the start of the year where he sees himself
12:18I think the fact that he's part of our squad
12:20will obviously play a huge part in our year because he has already.
12:24I don't think you should take too much disappointment.
12:26Obviously everyone wants to play but in the end it was about team balance for us
12:30and we just feel that with the squad we've got some cover on the right side
12:36and we've got some players who can cover on the left side.
12:39I always tend to go for more attacking players in those kind of scenarios.
12:45So Jed misses out but as I said he's already played in a couple of games in the Premier League
12:49and there's plenty of football for him if he keeps going like he is.