Ange Postecoglou has claimed he knew he would be sacked as Tottenham boss a long time before he led the club to their first trophy for 17 years.
The Australian was on Thursday presented as the new manager of Nottingham Forest and spoke for the first time about his dismissal by Spurs, 16 days after he lifted the Europa League.
He said: ‘It wasn’t a surprise. I knew it was coming a fair way before the final. We won it and had the parade, so those were three great days and I didn’t want it to tarnish but I knew it was done.
‘Other people make those decisions and it’s up to them to talk about their reasoning. We put the fans through tough times but there is no Spurs fan I come across who doesn’t want to hug me and take me home for dinner. That’s what we do it for.
‘It will always have a special place in my heart. How it ended, I don’t think about that. I’ve been on the other side of it a couple of times myself.
‘At Celtic and Yokohama I’m sure they were disappointed when I left. It’s part of the business. It’s allowed me to move into this job and maybe these things happen for a reason.’
Ange Postecoglou says he knew he would be sacked by Spurs before Europa League triumph
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The Australian was unveiled as Nottingham Forest’s new head coach on Thursday
Postecoglou was sacked by chairman Daniel Levy, who left Tottenham earlier this month following nearly 25 years in the role.
Asked about Levy, Postecoglou added: ‘I didn’t have a great deal of interaction with him. I got on with my daily business, but he was there for a long time and he invested a lot.
‘He appointed me and I’m thankful for that. Hopefully I repaid him with a trophy, something they hadn’t had for a very long time.’
Ange Postecoglou believes he may have to win a trophy in his first season at Nottingham Forest to keep his job.
Back in the Premier League following his sacking by Tottenham in June, the Australian will return to the dugout when Forest take on Arsenal at Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
Postecoglou replaces Nuno Espirito Santo, dismissed by Forest after a fall-out with the hierarchy, and knows expectations will be high from the start. As well as competing for the domestic cup competitions this term, Forest are also involved in the Europa League.
With a twinkle in his eye, Postecoglou said: ‘Of course I can win a trophy in my first year. I may have to, to have a second year.
‘I’ve won trophies my whole career and I want to try to do it here. There is the opportunity here. Every club wants to be successful but from what I have seen since the president (Evangelos Marinakis) took over the club, those ambitions are backed up with actions. These are the perfect conditions for me.
‘We got into preliminary discussions over the weekend and it all came to a head quickly on the Monday. I’ve been in the president’s company three or four times so I don’t know him well, but you have to admire the ambition from afar.
Postecoglou accepts he may have to win a trophy soon for his new boss Evangelos Marinakis
‘I know the fans won’t love me from the start and I’ll have to earn their trust and respect. This is a club on the way up and it is a great place to be.’
Widely praised for their daring football in Postecoglou’s first season at Spurs, when the club finished fifth in the Premier League, a spate of injuries saw Spurs’ domestic form slump in the following season. They finished 17th, and not even the Europa League could save him.
Though he played more cautiously in Europe, there is little prospect of Postecoglou changing those principles at the City Ground.
He said: ‘I like my teams to play exciting football, score goals and excite the fans. I make no apologies for the way I am.
‘I want to see them play well, dominate the ball, put pressure on the opposition and score goals – all with the goal of winning. That excites me more than anything.
‘It’s a chance to build something and I want us to be good to watch for everyone who follows the game.’
