In Ange Postecoglou’s words, uttered a few weeks back, he is not the messiah, just a “naughty little boy”. It was actually not his own work, rather a riff on the famous line from Monty Python’s Life of Brian but the point was well made.
Despite his commitment to doing things differently on the tactical front, to providing exhilaration, even escapism, the Tottenham manager does not want to put himself on a higher plane; to be preachy, holier than thou.
And yet there he was on Wednesday night, up on his top table mount after Spurs’ 1-0 win over Liverpool in the Carabao Cup semi-final sounding very much as if he had been sent from a parallel universe (Australia) to save the soul of the English game.
It is a game he loves, having followed it as a boy back at home, particularly the fortunes of his favourite team – Liverpool. It is one he cares about, which adds a significant layer to his personal story; the Premier League as a long-pursued destination. Now that he has arrived, he is rubbing his eyes in disbelief.
“What is going on?” It is the essence of what Postecoglou practically wants to scream. Nobody knows any more because the game has come to be micromanaged to such a suffocating extent, in the PGMOL corridors of power, in the Stockley Park bunker, that the ability to interpret, to just feel what is correct, has been lost. There is a plague of second-guessing.
It is why, to borrow the phrase that Postecoglou used after his team had lost 2-1 at home to Newcastle in the league on Sunday, the playing field is not “fair and even”. It is overbearing to the point of unpredictability. And if Postecoglou has to be the man to call it out, the only person to do so, to hold up the mirror for everybody to peer into, then so be it.
“I could be on a lone crusade here but I’m happy to do that,” Postecoglou said. “I’m happy to be the lone voice of saying: ‘Just leave the game alone for a bit.’”
Postecoglou is always thought-provoking. He was on safe ground when he derided the EFL’s move to have the referee explain important VAR interventions to the crowd via a microphone. Hence Stuart Attwell’s rushed and slightly clumsy clarification that Dominic Solanke’s finish for what would have been 1-0 to Spurs in the 77th minute was ruled out for offside. It did exactly what it said on the big screen. What was the point?
Everything is changing very quickly, according to Postecoglou. The addition of so many minutes for stoppages; in Wednesday’s tie there were 18 across both halves. Again, it alters the feel of the spectacle.
Postecoglou zeroed in on the advantage rule. Only if a foul is deemed reckless will a referee retrospectively issue a yellow card. But he felt some Newcastle players made repeated fouls and got away without bookings because Spurs were given the advantage. It was one of the reasons for Postecoglou’s “fair and even” comments. Another, surely, was the decision to overlook a Joelinton handball, which sparked the move for Newcastle’s equaliser.
The boot was on the other foot on Wednesday, with the Spurs midfielder Lucas Bergvall escaping a second yellow card for a scything foul on Kostas Tsimikas after Attwell had played the advantage. When he did so, the Liverpool substitute Luis Díaz was 10 yards inside his own half; Spurs had men back and more getting back.
It is easy to imagine Attwell would have booked Bergvall had he blown for a foul rather than played the advantage. Arne Slot would certainly have preferred that. Bergvall would score the winning goal moments later, with Tsimikas still off after treatment. On a related point, the Liverpool manager was entitled to ask whether Bergvall’s challenge was reckless enough for Attwell to go back and show him a second yellow.
For Postecoglou, everything is linked to the overall meddling – along with the unnerving march of technology. “I’m really surprised at how people in this country are so easily letting the game change so much so quickly,” he said. “I just thought people would be a little bit more protective about the sanctity of the game. That’s what I was talking about [after Newcastle]. I wasn’t criticising referees. I didn’t think the [handball] decision was right but it’s just the way of the game.
“There’s a lot of confusion at the moment. That’s my belief – that the game is changing on the basis of technology and I’m saying: ‘Why isn’t anyone speaking up about it?’ Especially in this country where you guys think you’re custodians of the game. You’ve got a song that says: ‘It’s coming home.’ This is your game. And yet it takes an Aussie from the other side of the world to be the one that’s most conservative about changes.
“So my comments about a fair and even playing ground … that’s what they’re about. Against Liverpool, it advantaged us. I wasn’t saying that there was a vendetta against me or Tottenham. Now everything is changing and that was my point. I can see why Arne would be very disappointed [about the Bergvall decision]. I’d be disappointed as well but apparently they’re the rules.”
It is plain that Postecoglou has become a more demonstrative presence on the touchline in recent weeks; no more Zen-like calm. He ran the gamut of emotions against Liverpool and he showed them. He had his hand over his eyes after one refereeing decision. There was sarcastic applause when Liverpool bought cheap free-kicks. He was on his knees when his full-back Pedro Porro missed a clear chance.
This is what the job does; what Spurs’ situation has done to him. The poor results until Wednesday, the selection crises, the reliance on young players, some of them out of position – and a word here for Archie Gray, the 18-year-old who has excelled in central defence. Postecoglou, the conscience of English football, has additional concerns.
