ANGE POSTECOGLOU is braced for a red-hot reception in the Europa League on Thursday – and NOT from Tottenham fans.
After enduring personal abuse at Bournemouth last Thursday and more jeers after the Chelsea capitulation on Sunday, the big Aussie now returns to Glasgow.
Postecoglou remains beloved by Celtic fans after winning FIVE trophies in two years – and catching the eye of Daniel Levy.
But after snatching the Premiership title from Rangers in two glory-laden years in Scotland, he’ll know exactly what to expect when Spurs arrive at Ibrox for the Battle of Britain.
Celtic legend Frank McAvennie told SunSport: “The Rangers fans will give him pelters.
“He’ll know that and he’ll know there will be a little bit of humour in there, too.
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“He’ll be getting the old ‘You’re getting sacked in the morning’ chants.Ange will take it and he’ll understand why he’s getting it.
“Spurs have been magnificent in 20-minute spells – then lost the games.
“The players have let him down. They have been guilty of not concentrating for 90 minutes and leaking goals.
“But Ange will relish going back to Ibrox for a big game – and one he’ll need to win. I can’t see the Tottenham fans having it if they don’t beat Rangers.”
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After the 4-3 home loss to Chelsea – when they led 2-0 – Postecoglou was cut to 4/1 to be the next Premier League manager to be axed.
It’s all a far cry from his two-year spell at Celtic, when we won the Double in his first season and the Treble in 2022/23.
Those triumphs – and previous title wins in Australia and Japan – convinced Levy he was the right fit for North London.
But his journey to the East End of Glasgow was a far more complicated route filled with plenty of twists and turns.
With Neil Lennon gone and Steven Gerrard having ended Hoops’ hopes of a tenth straight title, the Celtic hierarchy wanted a big-name boss in the summer of 2021.
They doggedly pursued Eddie Howe, who had left Bournemouth and was yet to join the Saudi revolution at Newcastle United.
A deal for Howe appeared close, only to collapse at the last minute and leave Celtic looking elsewhere for a saviour.
Postecoglou was in the J-League with Yokohama F Marinos, one of the City Group’s network of clubs.
Ange’s Celtic success
He had worked closely with City Group recruitment guru Mark Lawwell, son of Peter – then Celts’ chief executive and now chairman.
And Postecoglou’s dynamic style of play ticked several boxes for the Celtic board and their fans.
McAvennie recalled: “I was delighted with everything Ange did at Celtic.
“Yes, we’ve now got Brendan Rodgers but I still think of Ange from time to time.
“And I’m sure Ange thinks of his time at Celtic, too. It did him the world of good.
“The pressure of having to win every game at Celtic probably prepared him for the pressure he’s now under at Tottenham.
Rough start
“People talk about him being in trouble if he loses this game but the same could be said for Rangers manager Philippe Clement.
“If he loses to Tottenham then loses to Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup final at Hampden on Sunday, the heat will be on him.”
Postecoglou faced three Rangers bosses in two years in Glasgow, with Gerrard quitting for Aston Villa, Giovanni van Bronckhorst axed despite winning a Scottish Cup and reaching a Europa League final then Michael Beale appointed.
Ironically, he didn’t enjoy the same swashbuckling start as at Spurs 16 months ago.
He was knocked out of the Champions League qualifiers by a mediocre Midtjylland team before losing his league opener at Hearts.
He lost his first trip to Ibrox, albeit he won there later in the season as Celts edged closer to the title – his only victory in four trips across Glasgow.
‘We Never Stop’
By then, he’d returned to the J-League to inject pace and purpose into the side with Kyogo Furuhashi, Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda all signing.
Cameron Carter-Vickers had arrived from Spurs, initially on loan, to stiffen the defence in front of Joe Hart.
Portuguese winger Jota and Denmark midfielder Matt O’Riley were bought for £8million and later sold to Al-Ittihad and Brighton for £50m.
Postecoglou’s ‘We Never Stop’ mantra was adopted by the Hoops’ faithful and became a slogan which underlined every success.
McAvennie added: “Ange changed the team completely. He signed players who stepped up to the mark.
“He got together with Peter Lawwell at the start and everything just clicked.
“We’d never have known about Kyogo, Hatate or Maeda without Ange.
“The same could probably be said about Jota, who was in Benfica’s B team. He changed everything about Celtic for the better.”
Alas, things have now gone from bad to worse for the big Aussie at Spurs.
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Defeat in Glasgow would be tougher to take than the rocky reception he’s guaranteed from Rangers fans.
But as McAvennie says: “Being a West Ham man myself, I couldn’t care less about Tottenham…”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
