Presser points | Forest vs Spurs | Ange Postecoglou

Ange Postecoglou spoke to the media at Hotspur Way on Christmas Eve, ahead of our Premier League clash against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Boxing Day (3pm UK).

Here's what he had to say...

Ange on our latest team news...

"From the Liverpool game, as far as I’m aware, no issues. Destiny was on the bench, obviously wasn’t 100%, but should be right for the next game. Bentancur is available after his suspension. That’s kind of it at the moment."

On stats vs position in the Premier League - have we been unlucky?

"No, I don’t think you feel unlucky. Over the course of a season, you’d like to think it all evens out. There are circumstances to where we’re at in terms of position in the table. A lot of that is down to inconsistency in performances, sometimes inconsistency in games, but also inconsistency in the kind of team we can put out there. All those things have damaged our ability to get into a stronger position in the league but, as you said, and I’ve said all along, I still think there’s growth in the team. I still think there’s positive things within what we’re doing. Notwithstanding that, we need to improve our position."

On January's transfer window...

"Like I said a while ago, we've been planning. A lot of it was going to be around where we're at around this time. Fair to say, we're still a little bit short in a couple of areas and we need to reinforce. January's trickier in terms of what sort of players you can bring in. For us, ideally, for any club, I guess, you want to bring in people who are going to make you stronger. I think the fact that, obviously, we're still in the Carabao Cup semi-final, still got Europe, FA Cup, we're in all the competitions, it's not like our schedule's going to ease up at any stage. So, I think it makes sense. We will try and reinforce, where and what number we'll have to wait and see."

On Rodrigo Bentancur's return from suspension...

"It's good to have him back. He's been working hard at training. In terms of Boxing Day, we'll see, but certainly just to have an extra body... I think what the players have had to deal with, the core group of players over the last sort of three weeks or so, has been very, very demanding on them. Most of them have got through it pretty well, in terms of not getting any more injuries, thankfully for us. It'll be nice to have just some ability to rotate some players and even make substitutions in games that hopefully will help us."

On a reaction after Sunday's loss to Liverpool...

"I still feel like the players, and I see that they have still got real belief in what we are doing. It is difficult because it is a tough day for the supporters, the players and for all the people who work so hard at the club. From my perspective, I take responsibility for that, because I am the one charting this course for us. It’s all hopefully for a greater purpose. What I try to reiterate is that it's all hopefully for a greater purpose. And, again, that's my ultimate responsibility, to try and bring success to the club. In the meantime, it's not nice seeing the players out there doing everything in their power to try and get a result, but obviously with the situation we're in, there are limits to what they can do. So, you feel, I certainly feel, that responsibility. As disappointed as they are, they're still very, very determined to continue."

On Forest...

"I think when they went up to the Premier League, it seemed like there was a lot of transfer activity at Nottingham, I think there needed to be, but within that you could tell they had recruited some quality. It was just a matter of allowing that to sort of settle in and I guess finding the right way forward in terms of how they play, and since Nuno's got in from the back end last year, you could tell that, you know, they were all sort of now playing in a way I think that suited them. The team's growing all the time. They've got some quality players in there and they're having a really good season, particularly at their place, it's going to be a great challenge for us."

On being 'angry' after Sunday's loss?

"No, I wasn't angry. I was kind of, like I said, you know, you've just had a heavy defeat, and I said I take responsibility for that because I see what effect that has on everyone involved with the football club. That sort of weighs heavily on you. I don't think many managers bounce into interviews after being beaten and sort of feel cheery about it. Yeah, I mean, fair to say I'm getting tired of the same questions and answering the same way. I just think it's almost like people want to sort of poke the bear to see if I react. Obviously, after a loss, it's a lot easier for people to get a reaction out of me."

On injuries and the schedule...

"I think I've said before that's something that authorities need to look at. As you said, I think it's across the board. Apart from maybe Liverpool, everyone else has had fairly significant injuries, us more than most, but most clubs have been affected. I think it's why the Premier League is pretty tight apart from Liverpool, to be honest. I think it comes down to either the fixturing at some point needs to ease, whether that happens or not. I'm not too optimistic about it because it seems like every year we're adding more tournaments. So, I don't think that's really making an impact. It's either that or you increase squads and give opportunities to clubs that have bigger squads, because certainly the current workload for players is becoming increasingly difficult to manage."

On the balance of praise for effort and criticism...

"You're never critical of mistakes because mistakes are part of being a human being and being a footballer. So, I'm not critical of mistakes at all. To me, it's about intent. It's about endeavour. If players are trying to do the right thing and it's not working out, you've just got to keep helping them. I can't be critical of this group of players at the moment in any sense. I think it would be unfair for anyone to because what they're doing is they're giving absolute maximum effort. That's backed up by the physical parameters you put against what they're doing. They're trying to do it in the way that I'm asking them to. How can I be critical of that? I think that would be hypocritical of me. The players are doing their part. They're doing it to the maximum of their ability and it's a credit to them. I still think in the long term that's going to hold us in good stead with the growth they're going to have because if they can maintain belief through this tough period, then we'll hit smoother waters, we'll get to a better place and I think it's going to make them better equipped to handle what's ahead."

On Destiny's injury...

"He had a bit of a quad issue after the Southampton game. He trained but wasn’t feeling 100 per cent and we can’t afford any more injuries. In a normal situation, you might have risked him and said he felt pretty good, but if I get one more player down, we’re at bare bones anyway, so it just felt it was more prudent to not use him if not required."

On Archie Gray - could centre-back be his position?

"It depends. It will depend on Archie and how he develops. He is growing all the time and again what he is doing at the age of 18 in the Premier League, toughest league in the world, like I said that is why I am really proud of the players and the efforts they’re putting in. They are not seeking or wanting excuses. They are disappointed with the way things went on the weekend, but for us, the growth we’re going to get from players like Archie and others is enormous."

On Brennan Johnson...

"He has to just keep doing what he is doing. Obviously, we have the balance of the team and we’ve had Deki there and Deki has done really well, scored in the last five games. It is just the balance of the team. Part of it is again, we don’t have a lot of options up there and it is about managing that load. We’re already overburdening a couple of players in that area, so it is good to have Brennan who we are managing through this period and he’ll play significant minutes."

On how Christmas Day looks for him...

"It’s a family tradition that I’m on my own. The family is in a warmer climate in Australia with family and we have a couple of young boys so it’s important they are around family at this time. I will give them a call in the morning and then get on about my day."