Preparing for a match that could be a defining one in his Tottenham reign, there’s no hint of trepidation from Ange Postecoglou as he looks forward to stepping into the Liverpool’s fearsome Anfield den with a place in a Wembley Cup final on the line.
Holding on a 1-0 lead going into Thursday’s League Cup semi-final second leg, Postecoglou had more injury bad news to relate as he revealed key defender Micky van de Ven wouldn’t be fit for the tie.
That doesn’t bode well in a match that shapes as critical for Postecoglou after Spurs’ recent travails.
Booking a place at Wembley and the prospect of his first trophy for a silverware-starved club would represent a potentially job-protecting night for the Australian.
Defeat, though, would only heap the pressure further on a man who would then be reliant on a major Europa League or FA Cup run to deflect from Spurs’ current Premier League woes which see them languishing in 14th place.
Yet the 59-year-old still sounded in upbeat mood as he suggested soaraway Liverpool, the league leaders, had just as much pressure on them in such a big game. Spurs, he reckoned, were ready to “go for it”.
“It’s a big occasion for everyone. It’s a semi-final. I don’t think Liverpool will be any less anxious than us. It’s a big game for both clubs,” Postecoglou said on the eve of the match on Wednesday.
“You recognise that, you embrace that, but ultimately if you want to be successful, these are the games you want to be involved in, so there’s no point having any trepidation about it because the alternative is you’ll be watching two other teams playing on the TV and you’re sitting at home on a couch and wishing you were.
“So we’re going to be there, we’ve got a chance – and we’ll go for it.”
And would needing to protect a first-leg lead make any difference to the way Spurs, so often attack-minded under Postecoglou, approached the tie.
“It depends what you think our philosophy is,” said Postecoglou.
“My philosophy is to try and win games of football. If people haven’t understood my philosophy after 26 years of management, I don’t think anything I say now will change that.”
Spurs’ new recruits from the transfer window, Austrian defender Kevin Danso and Bayern Munich loanee striker Mathys Tel are both available to be plunged into high-profile debuts.
“Kevin will play. Whether he starts or not, we will have a look because we have another game in three days,” said Postecoglou, who was quick to emphasise the signings hadn’t been made as panic buys in the face of the team’s ongoing injury crisis.
“We wouldn’t be signing 19 and 20-year-olds reactively. If it was reactive, I would be signing 35-year-olds. The nature of the players we have signed shows they are not just about now. They are about us continuing to build.”
Liverpool also have a key absentee through injury with manager Arne Slot revealing Trent Alexander-Arnold was still struggling with a thigh injury.
“He left the pitch with a bit of a pain in his leg at Bournemouth. He is already back on the pitch with the rehab coach so let’s see how long it is going to take,” said the Dutchman.
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