Postecoglou changed Spurs narrative, but trophy too little too late

LONDON :Ange Postecoglou will walk away from Tottenham Hotspur with his pride and his reputation intact and his place in the club's heritage assured after a two-year stint in north London.

Ending the club's 17-year trophy drought by winning the Europa League made sure of that.

The Australian delivered on his claim of always winning a trophy in his second season at a club, but few could have envisaged the circumstances in which it happened.

From the ruins of a nightmarish Premier League season, Tottenham ground out a backs-to-the-wall victory against one of the worst Manchester United sides in decades with a display at odds with the club's 'to dare is to do' motto.

Earlier in the season, after Tottenham beat United 4-3 in a rollercoaster League Cup quarter-final, Postecoglou railed against studio pundits who criticised his expansive style.

"Are you not entertained?! What do you want? Do you want a scrambly 1-0? The studio's probably going into meltdown over my lack of tactics but I love the fact we go out there and take it to opposition," he bristled.

A few months later, Tottenham did just that, beating United 1-0 with a messy goal and a second half display in which they had 19 per cent of the ball and barely crossed the halfway line.

Postecoglou had only to point to the euphoric scenes in the stadium to answer those who sneered at Tottenham's glory night.

In a parallel universe it could have heralded the ignition point for a Postecoglou dynasty at Tottenham, just as Manchester United's 1989 FA Cup win did for Alex Ferguson.

Instead, it just marked the end of another brief chapter in the club's history, albeit a memorable one, as he became the fifth full-time manager to be sacked in little over five years.

When Postecoglou arrived