Ten Hag sacking was 'almost inevitable' claims Postecoglou

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has said that he was unsurprised by Erik ten Hag's sacking at Manchester United given the amount of attention on both him and the club.

Postecoglou has faced criticism himself this season, with Tottenham currently eighth in the Premier League following a defeat to previously winless Crystal Palace at the weekend.

Similarly, Ten Hag oversaw a 2-1 defeat away to West Ham on Sunday that put United 14th in the table, just seven points above the relegation zone. It was to be his last in charge.

But Postecoglou was sympathetic towards the Dutchman, though, explaining that the pressure put on managers is sometimes hard to live up to.

"I'm not really shocked. Disappointing as it was, it was almost inevitable with the scrutiny he had," said Postecoglou in a press conference.

"If you look at Erik, he was there for two and a bit years. He won a trophy in each year, they finished third in his first year.

"If he was here with that record would he have lost his job? I don’t know.

"Would he be under the same scrutiny? I don’t know because everyone tells me all I have to do is win a trophy, but I have got a feeling it would be the same because, just the nature of the world today."

Club statement: Erik ten Hag. #MUFC

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 28, 2024

The Australian manager led Tottenham to a fifth-placed finish last season, two points outside the top four, having briefly flirted with the top two after a good start.

While Spurs eventually faded, it still constituted their second-highest finish in the last five seasons.

Postecoglou, meanwhile, has been frustrated at unrealistic expectations at the highest level.

"As a manager you have to hit a sweet spot where you get success, you play football everyone likes, you get every signing right," Postecoglou said.

"In that moment you seem to get some sort of validation.

"Anything other than that, it seems to be for some clubs they want trophies not football, others want football. It is a difficult task.

"But what you have seen in the past, I’m sure Erik will bounce back from that because he is a good manager.

"You have seen it with other managers. I’m sure his career will continue to go on strongly."