Change is good, Big Ange – Spurs need not be so stubborn over style…

Short-handed Spurs’ defeat to Chelsea showcased Ange Postecoglou’s steadfast belief in his principles. There’s no shame, though, in adaptation. It’s what the best coaches do…

In case you hadn’t noticed, we are all a little high on Ange Postecoglou. And his comments on respecting the authority of officials made us, and many others, fall a little harder for the Tottenham manager. But something else he said in the wake of a completely batsh*t defeat to Chelsea is giving us – okay, me – the ick.

“This is who we are, mate.” Unmistakably Big Ange, that, in response to questions over Spurs taking a 7-0-1 shape on the halfway line while handicapped by a two-man deficit.

His steadfast refusal to change or tweak his tactical principles by insisting that his makeshift back four occupy a different postcode to his goalkeeper has been widely lauded, despite the inevitability of the 4-1 defeat that came as a consequence. Spurs deserve plenty of credit for the spirit and character, especially compared to the absolute dearth of both traits in recent seasons, but can we really ignore the role they played in their own derby downfall?

Having lost their starting centre-backs before half-time, meaning he had to dust off Eric Dier and shift a full-back inside, Postecoglou absolutely refused to change tack for the second half. If anything, as his numbers decreased further, he doubled down harder on his higher-than-a-space-junkie defensive line.

Still buzzing off that game last night, and I still can’t stop looking at this 😂😂 #TOTCHE 🔥 pic.twitter.com/rtR0pIX0rC

— Jamie Carragher (@Carra23) November 7, 2023

If the intention was to flummox Chelsea, it initially worked. Premier League clubs rehearse all manner of scenarios in training but facing unhinged, kamikaze hosts was evidently not in Mauricio Pochettino’s playbook. Chelsea looked more perplexed than those of us watching at home and, for much of the second half, they made some terrible choices of their own.

But it was inevitable that Chelsea, or any team above Under-10s level, would eventually suss how to break beyond that line of relative strangers. That it took so long says much more about the Blues’ absentmindedness than Spurs’ savviness.

Yet, alongside the deserved plaudits for Postecoglou’s contrasting stance to Mikel Arteta, Spurs are also fielding many compliments over their refusal to alter their primary approach. “This is who we are, mate.”

Postecoglou is wisely tapping into the modern-day insistence on coaches and teams having a clearly defined style of play. A philosophy and a general set of principles has always been important, but we seem to have reached a tipping point where, to some, it is more important than anything else.

Is tactical flexibility now passé? The ability to adapt to changing circumstances and challenges used to be one of the hallmarks of a great coach. Sir Alex Ferguson certainly wasn’t afraid to mix things up when needed. Even Pep Guardiola, a man previously seen as an extremist on certain principles, is willing to alter his approach when the situation demands. Pep isn’t a dinosaur already, is he?

Likewise, Jurgen Klopp is a front-footed sort, a heavy-metal football practitioner. But even the Liverpool boss, just this season on the same pitch in the same perilous position, allowed his side to drop into a low block on the edge of the Spurs box. And, had Joel Matip not tw*tted one past his own keeper in added time, it would have paid off. Liverpool came much closer to pulling off a shorthanded heist.

And Postecoglou, being a man with eyes, would surely have been aware of Chelsea’s problems, this season and last, when faced with a low block. It’s their kryptonite. Assuming the Spurs boss knew that, he didn’t act on it. Which, to us miserable sorts, seems an unfathomable stance to take.

Perhaps Postecoglou was playing the long game. The way he has imparted his style on his new side is one of the success stories of the season so far. If he felt the need the reinforce the messages about high tempo, high pressing and higher lines, then doing it with nine men is certainly one way to ram home his point. Defeat on Monday night, which may have been an unavoidable consequence of playing with such a disadvantage, was maybe a price he was willing to pay even as Spurs retained parity.

But Postecoglou seems more willing than most to be taken at face value and we believe him when he says he won’t change for anyone or anything. Spurs fans, finally awoken from Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte’s Mogadon-ball, are certainly on board the Big Ange express.

But such rigidity tends to have a shelf life. There was another manager recently, similarly wedded to his principles, who refused to change. Did Marcelo Bielsa die for nothing?

Leeds’ opponents took a season or so to suss Bielsa’s style, which breathed new life into a previously-downtrodden club. But once the blueprint had been circulated among the rest of the Premier League managers, Bielsa refused even to apply minute tweaks or fixes. He paid with his job, and Leeds fans remain bereft at the loss of their deity.

Bielsa and Postecoglou have plenty in common, not least the sheer scale of their cojones, as well as their ability to unite and reinvigorate players, clubs and supporters. Rare gifts, those. But the Spurs boss should be mindful of Bielsa’s steadfast refusal to adapt.

We know Postecoglou isn’t doing this lightly or for effect. He proved it throughout his coaching career, which took in Australia, Greece, Japan and Scotland before Spurs. At Celtic, two years ago, he faced similar questions after Europa League defeats which gave him no food for thought of a change.

“My view on that is: if you are a strict vegetarian, you don’t drop into Macca’s just because you are hungry mate, you know?”

No one would dare suggest a tactical Big Mac and 20 nugs, Ange. There would be nothing wrong, though, with a large fries if veggie options are temporarily unavailable. Mate.

Read next:Big Ange made a Big Mess of that Chelsea game; that’s the real Spurs truth