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Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Van de Ven has revealed he "never expected" the club's decision to part ways with ex-boss Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian's spell in charge was terminated a mere over two weeks after he guided the team to a win in the European final, securing the team's first piece of silverware in nearly two decades.

However, this continental triumph was not matched in the domestic league, with the side ending up in a disappointing 17th position in Postecoglou's final campaign in charge.

He was replaced by former Brentford boss Thomas Frank during the off-season, but Spurs currently sit 11th in the table, with 22 points from 16 games, following a 3-0 defeat to Forest on Sunday.

"He is a really good manager. I still really like him," the Dutch defender told The Overlap podcast.

"I don't know how everything went behind the scenes. I didn't expect it. It was odd how everything went afterwards - he is the coach that won silverware to the club," he continued.

"Afterwards, when he was dismissed, I texted to my father and my friends and said, 'This was the last thing I thought would happen.'"

The Rise and Fall

The Australian manager arrived at Tottenham from Celtic ahead of the 2023-24 season, replacing Conte. He made a bright start with his attacking style of play, collecting an impressive points haul from his opening 10 Premier League games.

Nevertheless, that fine start came to an abrupt end with four defeats in five games, and the team's season tailed off, ultimately missing out on a top-four finish by a narrow two-point margin.

In the next campaign, they won just 11 of their 38 Premier League fixtures.

Lacking a Plan B

While he appreciated the attacking approach, Netherlands international Van de Ven thinks the squad lacked a "alternative strategy" and revealed he and fellow centre-back Romero discussed adopting a more cautious style with the coach.

"I liked the offensive play at that time but I like what we have now with our current manager. We are more secure at the back. I don't like being vulnerable every game on the break," he said.

"Initially with that system, no team was used to playing against our style. We were playing unbelievable football."

"However, managers study everything and opponents figured out what we were doing. At times we didn't really have a backup plan and we were getting exposed. We didn't have answers to resolve it."

"At one point Romero and I approached the manager and suggested we need to change some things and be more defensive to make sure we win those games. He was like, 'I agree with you but I want you two guys to handle this on the pitch, ensure everybody knows.'"