Presser points | Spurs vs City, Carabao Cup | Ange Postecoglou

Ange Postecoglou spoke to the media at Hotspur Way ahead of our Carabao Cup, fourth round clash against Manchester City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Wednesday evening (8.15pm).

Here's what he had to say...

Reaction to Palace

After fielding questions on Erik ten Hag's departure from United, and the pressure on Premier League managers, Ange was asked if he'd seen a reaction from the players in training to Sunday's loss at Palace...

Ange: "I don't think it is about a reaction. It's fairly understandable that the players and everyone was disappointed with the way things went for us at Palace, both performance and outcome, but we've got to get away from this 'reactions' and trying to atone for something. Part of the process for us is making sure every game we stick to our principles irrespective of what has happened in the past. If you wait for reactions for good performances you're actually anticipating another challenge when you should just be trying to focus on consistency in performance and consistency in mentality of how we approach every game."

Pep and City

It was put to Ange, 'Pep said they would waste no energy, do you care who wears the shirt or just want to beat this team in front of you?'

Ange: "I think it's fair to say most clubs rotate through the Carabao Cup, but you just have to look at Man City's record in this competition and and they are a fantastic football club. They have had success for a very long time and sometimes people take that for granted because it's City, but it's very difficult in this league and in this country to maintain that excellence over the time they have. They do that because irrespective of who they play, there is a level of performance they continually deliver whether they've rotated the team or not, or whatever the competition. And very few competitions they drop out of at an early stage."

Team news

Ange was asked if Heung-Min Son was fit to face City...

Ange: "Sonny, no. Well, he is almost fit, but we will probably from our perspective aim him for the weekend (Villa at home in the Premier League on Sunday). We're quite confident he will be right for the weekend. The only one missing out, which is a bit of a disappointment, is Wilson (Odobert). He's had a setback during the week and it seems like it's a serious one, so we're waiting for more information. From the weekend, everyone else is okay and Djed's (Spence) back training."

Ange was asked if Wilson's was the same injury...

Ange "Not exactly the same, but the same area."

Changes?

It was put to Ange that City made nine changes when they played Fulham in the Carabao Cup, we made eight at Coventry - would we see the same again?

Ange: "Obviously, City played on Saturday, so we've got to make sure the players we put out there tomorrow are able to compete physically with what's going to be on the other side of the pitch from us. The good thing is just about the whole squad's had some kind of football so that means whatever changes we make, the players coming in are at a good physical level."

Dejan Kulusevski

Ange was asked how much of a growth he'd seen in Deki's leadership qualities...

Ange: "I think Deki is growing, but I think that's kind of where we are as a group. A lot of them are growing and growing through experiences. I think for Deki, at the weekend, was another growth period because he got hurt pretty early and wasn't happy with it. In many respects, he lost a bit of his composure after that and that's another growth for him. To understand it is part of it and focus your energy on helping the team on the day, rather than being personally aggrieved, but that's where we are as a group and that's where we get our growth, by going through experiences like we did at the weekend and understanding how to deal with it better next time. Deki has been fantastic for us this year in both his output and his attitude and mentality. I think there is more to come..."

Richarlison

Ange was asked if Richarlison was an option for the left side for this game...

"Richy has played a lot of his football on the left and he's definitely an option there for us. He's an option through the middle as well. Again, he's getting some good match minutes now and hopefully with the next couple of weeks, with a good game schedule, he is only just getting his season started and the more we can expose him without over burdening him in these early stages, he'll be able to contribute even more."

False nine?

It was put to Ange that he lined-up with Pape Sarr in a false nine position last season, so was that down to Richarlison being out, or a tactic to counter City?

Ange: "I don't think we had a striker available if I remember correctly, so Pape won't be a false nine tomorrow!"

Is that something you could use throughout season?

Ange: "Well, I think with the way we play, whether it's Dom (Solanke) or Richy and we've played Sonny through there, we try to play with a fixed position there but it depends on the opposition and what they do. Obviously, City will pose some different challenges this week than we had in the last game and within that context it is about adjusting some of our play for that."

Biggest game of a big week?

Ange was asked, 'some fans would look at this week and see this game as the biggest game of the week, do you get any sense from staff, players that they don't know the significance of this game?'

Ange: "I'm not a supporter of this club, I'm the manager of this football club & I'd hate to think that any supporter of this football club thinks that I try harder in one game than another. Supporters can feel what they like, which is the most important game. But it would be the biggest injustice for me as a manager if I said, 'We're going to try harder tomorrow than we do at the weekend or we did last weekend'. It doesn't work that way. You need to separate supporters of a football club with people who have the responsibility of representing it. Our responsibility lies in trying to be the best we can be everyday for our supporters, for everyone who's part of this football club. It's not about trying to gain brownie points. That's not what our role is."