Postecoglu on the North London Derby, fitness concerns and Bentancur's FA Charge (Full Presser)
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglu on the North London Derby against Arsenal and Rodrigo Bentancur's FA charge for alleged racist remarks
Tottenham training ground, London, UK
Tottenham training ground, London, UK
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00How are you doing Andrew?
00:01Good Mark.
00:02Just got the team news pretty positive isn't it?
00:05Yeah, so I guess internationals all came back OK, Biss is the only one that's obviously got an issue,
00:14it's not serious but he's getting treatment today, we'll see if he can train tomorrow and make a decision there.
00:21Out of the other guys, Mickie Vandervin is all good, he's trained pretty fully through the international break
00:28and Dom back half of this week, sort of joined with the first team, trained today so again we've got training tomorrow,
00:35if they get through alright I guess we'll be available.
00:39Richie, Will Lancashire are the only two that are in rehab.
00:43You addressed it earlier in the summer but Rodrigo Bentecourt has now been charged by the FA,
00:48potential hefty ban, can I just get your reaction to the charge please?
00:53Yeah, not I guess unexpected from our perspective, we kind of knew that it's something that the league would look at
01:02and it's kind of, we need to let the process sort of play out now and you know,
01:09Rodrigo's well aware of the ramifications of any outcome from the panel but we'll just wait and see what they come out with.
01:18Special game Sunday, I was listening to you a few weeks ago talking about potential new cycles here
01:24and Mikko Arteta probably went through a similar one, do you see similarities of what he's building there
01:30to what you're trying to do at Tottenham Hotspur?
01:33It's hard to say because I guess every sort of situation is kind of unique in itself because they're different clubs
01:42and I guess different environments but obviously before there's obviously a way to sort of build a team and a club
01:58and sort of go in a certain direction and that always for the most part takes time,
02:04it's about finding the right people in the key positions and all those things are club decisions
02:09and as you go along I guess clubs decide whether they want to continue down that road or not,
02:13the results aren't always there immediately which is not surprising in this league
02:19but I think for the most part clubs that have sort of stuck to a certain direction
02:24because they believe they're heading in the right way,
02:28eventually sort of get to a place where their team is competitive for a sustained period of time.
02:35They're considered Manchester City's main title challengers but I know you're ultra ambitious as well
02:41and there's a lot of between the clubs, who finishes above who,
02:44do you think this current squad you've got now is capable of challenging Arsenal this season?
02:49Well not specifically Arsenal but we want to be a club that can challenge everyone
02:56so that's what we're trying to aim to become and to do that you've got to perform at a certain level on a consistent basis,
03:03you've got to have a squad strong enough to do that,
03:06to withstand the challenges that inevitably come during the course of a season
03:11but we've started the season fairly solidly from a performance perspective,
03:15obviously the results haven't reflected that but I think we're in a good place to really push on from last year
03:23and improve in all areas of our game and if we do that,
03:26I mean we got close to challenging last year, there's no reason why we can't this year.
03:32Thanks mate.
03:33Hi Andrew.
03:34Hi.
03:35After what you've experienced in this huge fixture so far in your time here,
03:38how would you try and sum up the rivalry in north London?
03:42Yeah I guess every sort of derby involves a bit different,
03:46obviously this one, yeah you can tell that it's fairly intense between the two clubs,
03:52obviously geographically sort of situated in the same part of town,
03:57they're trying to defend the same turf and there's always a little bit of an edge.
04:02I thought both games last year were very entertaining,
04:06I thought we played well at their place and really matched it with them
04:11and could have even won them the day.
04:14Here we're kind of at our place, we got blown away in the first half,
04:17sort of trying to make game of it in the second half so plenty of goals and exciting
04:21and we know what it means to our supporters and what it means to the club
04:26but I said for us what's really important is we've got to go out there and perform,
04:30we've got to play our football, play well because irrespective of the rivalry,
04:34they're a top side so you need to do that.
04:37What kind of impact could a win have on the rest of Tottenham's season?
04:42Look, hard to say, I've never felt like there's an easy way to success,
04:47I don't think one thing determines or can change a trajectory to a great effect
04:53but it helps because it's not just a win in a big game in a derby
04:58but it's a win against one of the top sides so that gives you small belief and confidence
05:04and potentially that could inject some real momentum into our season.
05:11I've never been one to think that just a win on the weekend is enough for us to say
05:16that we're on the right course and alternatively if things don't go our way
05:21then somehow we need to change course.
05:25They will be without some big players but what is it about this Arsenal side
05:29that makes them so hard to play against?
05:32I think consistency in approach and mentality.
05:35You've seen them in the last two years in particular,
05:39they've just had a real relentlessness about them.
05:42They haven't had to change their team too much,
05:45there's a solid core there that have carried them through the last two years
05:50and I think that gives you belief over time.
05:52In every game they feel like they can win,
05:55they have this confidence in themselves now that they can challenge
06:00over a course of a Premier League season.
06:03I think that more than anything else allows you to build momentum season to season
06:10where you can do it over a whole course of a season.
06:12They have the last two years, their form over the last two years in totality
06:16has been outstanding.
06:19They're going to be a tough nut to crack but a great opportunity for us to do that.
06:27Be it in Scotland when you were involved in the big derby up there
06:30or this derby here, how do you manage the expectations of the fans
06:34while wanting to tell them,
06:36yeah we're going to go out there on the front foot
06:38and we want to win this game and do this, that and the other.
06:40How do you also in a derby match manage the expectations or don't you?
06:46I don't think I ever have and I hate to think that I went into any game
06:51trying to get people to manage expectations
06:56because ultimately what's the point of doing what we do?
07:00You go into every game hoping to conquer and win and play well
07:05and do all the things that we love about the game.
07:07I don't think you should walk into a stadium fearing anything
07:11or having trepidation about anything or scared to dream
07:16or hope that you can be successful.
07:19I've never done that in the past and I wouldn't do that
07:23because it's not the way I coach or live my life.
07:26It's not the mindset I have.
07:28I think every game you have is an opportunity to do something special
07:31and that's the way you should approach it.
07:34These are special games.
07:36It's come very early in the season.
07:38That's not down to you, it's down to the fixture computer.
07:41In a way, would you prefer to be more up and running
07:44and have maybe 10 or 15 games behind you
07:47before the first of these derby matches?
07:49No, not really.
07:51If you're not ready, the league's started.
07:55You don't start a race and then think you're going to start sprinting
07:58after 10 metres.
07:59You've got to go from the start.
08:00You've got to be ready.
08:01We were ready at the start of the season and whenever the games come along
08:04you've got to be ready for it.
08:06We're three games into a season.
08:07Obviously the international break kind of puts a pause on things.
08:10But no, whenever it comes we need to be ready and we will be.
08:14Final one on Benton Core, if I may.
08:16Firstly, how are things in the dressing room between him and Hamid Son?
08:20And secondly, how do you tell footballers that in the real world
08:25you can't behave like this and therefore your behaviour,
08:29your discipline while you're wearing the club badge
08:33or even while you're under the employment of the club
08:35has to be absolutely top-notch?
08:37Because we saw how upset and angry you were a couple of weeks ago
08:40with Id Bissouma.
08:42Yeah, in terms of Sonny and Rodri, I think they had their kind of discussion
08:51about the whole incident.
08:52I think both players understand and respect each other's position
08:57and Rodri's already apologised for what he said and Sonny has accepted that
09:04and accepted the fact that one of his teammates
09:07and a person he's close to has made a mistake.
09:11Beyond that, I don't know what you mean by the real world.
09:14We all live in the same world, whether you're a footballer
09:17or you're anyone down the street.
09:19We all live in the same world and we all kind of understand
09:22the ramifications of our actions irrespective of who we represent.
09:26Ultimately we represent ourselves as people.
09:30You're trying along the way.
09:33As human beings we try and do the right thing all the time
09:36but it doesn't always happen.
09:37We all make mistakes.
09:38I've said before that for me it's not just about punishment,
09:45it's the opportunity for people to atone, to learn.
09:50Because if we're talking about having a society that's kind of understanding
09:56and tolerant of everything, we also must show that to people who make mistakes
10:01as Rodri has made in his time.
10:06We kind of know him very well, a lot better than most
10:09because we spend every day with him and we understand the kind of person he is
10:13and we understand that even though he's a great guy
10:17and a fantastic teammate, he's made a big error this time
10:20and he's got to take the punishment but also we need to make sure
10:24that we're giving the opportunity to atone for it and learn from it
10:27and hopefully others learn from it as well.
10:33You've had three good performances this season
10:35but the results haven't always married up.
10:37How close do you feel the team are to clicking
10:40and putting in a real 90-minute performance consistently?
10:45It's hard to say but I've always felt that if you're consistent
10:50in those underlying things we're looking for in our game
10:55that the results do come sooner rather than later
10:59and we've just got to stay really disciplined and consistent
11:02in our approach from our football because I think our football
11:05has been really good in all three games.
11:07We've dominated all three games.
11:09We've limited the opposition to very little and created a lot for ourselves.
11:14We've played in the manner we wanted to but the results haven't come.
11:19If we maintain that over 38 games I think we'll be in a really good position
11:23but it doesn't guarantee it.
11:25You can't just expect it to happen or try and pick a moment
11:29when it's going to happen.
11:30You've just got to keep at it, stay really focused
11:35on the important elements of our game and the results will follow.
11:40It feels like a while ago now but you had to select the Europa League squad
11:44and the 23-man squad.
11:46Jed Spence was left out.
11:48How difficult a decision was that and how has he taken that news?
11:52I'm disappointed.
11:54Ali's not here because this was his baby.
11:56But it was always going to be a difficult decision
12:01obviously with the make-up of our squad currently
12:03and the lack of club-trained players.
12:07We're always going to have to leave somebody out
12:09and Jed was the unfortunate one but at the same time
12:12Jed's already played in the Premier League
12:15and if you ask him at the start of the year where he sees himself
12:18I think the fact that he's part of our squad
12:20will obviously play a huge part in our year because he has already.
12:24I don't think you should take too much disappointment.
12:26Obviously everyone wants to play but in the end it was about team balance for us
12:30and we just feel that with the squad we've got some cover on the right side
12:36and we've got some players who can cover on the left side.
12:39I always tend to go for more attacking players in those kind of scenarios.
12:45So Jed misses out but as I said he's already played in a couple of games in the Premier League
12:49and there's plenty of football for him if he keeps going like he is.