Spurs boss Postecoglou won’t give up on Champions League ambition

Tottenham Hotspur’s Greek-Australian Head Coach Ange Postecoglou gestures during the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England on May 5, 2024. (Photo by Darren Staples / AFP)

Ange Postecoglou has insisted he is still aiming for a top-four finish that will secure Champions League football but accepts Tottenham have work to do before they can compete effectively with Europe’s elite.

Tottenham are at home to Burnley on Saturday, with Postecoglou’s team bidding to end a run of four straight defeats that have taken the shine off a promising first season under their Australian manager.

Fifth-placed Tottenham are seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa but have a game in hand over Unai Emery’s men.

Villa have also struggled in recent games but the 1982 European Cup winners could assure themselves of Champions League football in the coming days.

Postecoglou, asked if he had given up on a top-four finish, told a pre-match press conference on Friday: “That’s a harsh term, ‘give up’.

“What does that mean, I come in here at 12 o’clock (1100 GMT), have a latte, go home and just let the guys train?”

The former Celtic boss added: “I don’t give up on anything. I’m here fighting tooth and nail every single day for everything I can get for this football club because that’s my responsibility. I would not give up on any cause, even the most lost of causes, because then I’d be abstaining from my responsibilities.

“I want us to finish the season strong. I want us to try and win three games of football and see where that takes us.

“I never said I didn’t care about finishing top four. What I said was finishing top four does not mean we’re going to be the team I want us