
Son hails sacked Postecoglou as 'a Spurs legend'
Postecoglou guided Tottenham to a 1-0 victory over Manchester United in the Europa League final last month to clinch the club's first European prize in 41 years and secure a place in next season's Champions League.
But the 59-year-old Australian paid the price for Tottenham's worst domestic season since they were relegated from the top flight in 1976-77.
Tottenham lost 22 of their 38 Premier League games to finish 17th in the table, above only relegated trio Leicester, Ipswich and Southampton.
Son, though, in an effusive tribute on Instagram said Postecoglou had transformed the club.
"Gaffer. You've changed the trajectory of this club," wrote Son.
"You believed in yourself, and us, since day one and never wavered for a second. Even when others did.
"You knew what we were capable of all along. You did it your way. And your way brought this club the best night it's had in decades. We will have those memories for life."
Son, who has seen five managers sacked in the past six years by chairman Daniel Levy, said he had formed a close relationship with Postecoglou during his two year tenure.
"You trusted me with the captaincy," said the 32-year-old Korean star.
"One of the highest honours of my career. It's been an incredible privilege to learn from your leadership up close.
"I am a better player and a better person because of you.
"Ange Postecoglou, you are a Tottenham Hotspur legend forever. Thank you, mate."
Tottenham were ravaged by injuries and in the latter stages of the campaign Postecoglou focused on keeping his key players fit and fresh for the Europa League.
The gamble paid off but even securing Tottenham's first trophy since the 2008 League Cup was not enough to save the former Celtic handler.
Brentford boss Thomas Frank, Fulham manager Marco Silva, Crystal Palace's FA Cup winning handler Oliver Glasner and Bournemouth's Andoni Iraola are reportedly the leading candidates to replace Postecoglou.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
Cheika to bow out as Leicester boss with Premiership final
The Tigers will now take on Bath in a Twickenham showpiece on June 14 in a final that sees the two fallen giants of the English game looking to recapture former glories. Leicester will be chasing a record-extending 12th league title against six-time champions Bath, bidding for a trophy treble after already winning the Premiership Rugby Cup and European Challenge Cup this season. Veteran coach Cheika signed a one-year deal with Leicester before the start of the current campaign but the 58-year-old Australian said in January that talks about his future had been pushed back following a humiliating 80-12 defeat by Toulouse in the European Champions Cup. And it was in January that Leicester confirmed the former Wallabies and Argentina coach would not be extending his stay at Welford Road. But he now has the chance to finish his time with the Midlands side on a high after an ideal home send-off for retiring club greats Dan Cole and Ben Youngs, as well as the departing Handre Pollard and Julian Montoya. 'Hung strong' "You get nervous but you do enjoy it," Cheika told TNT Sports. "There's part of you inside that loves that tight battle. "I thought we played really good today and we still couldn't get away from them (Sale), which shows how good they were. "They lifted their game, we didn't drop, but we didn't lift our game to go with them -- but we hung strong at the end." Radwan struck twice in the first half as Leicester surged into a 13-3 lead. Sale fought back to draw level before replacement Izaia Perese sprinted over to secure Leicester's place in the final against table-toppers Bath, who defeated southwest rivals Bristol 34-20 in Friday's first semi-final. Leicester opened the scoring on Saturday in the 20th minute when Jack van Poortvliet's long pass found dashing right wing Radwan, who stepped inside three covering defenders before sprinting clear and scoring with an acrobatic dive. Eight minutes later, Radwan had his second try when the two-cap England back's speed and agility made amends for a rare over-hit by Springbok star Pollard for a fine score. Sale reduced their 10-point interval deficit thanks to a George Ford penalty before Pollard missed his third shot at goal in four attempts before landing his fifth. Rob du Preez's try and a long-range penalty from England veteran Ford helped Sale level the scores at 16-16 with 14 minutes left. But a powerful driving maul saw the ball released to Perese, whose clever running line and sheer speed swept him over Sale's try-line. Sale, with the Curry twins Tom and Ben impressing before leaving the field, pressed hard for another try but Leicester's defence held firm.


France 24
5 hours ago
- France 24
Spain-Portugal final more than just Cristiano vs Yamal says Ronaldo
The final in Munich has been framed as a showdown between veteran Ronaldo, 40, one of the game's biggest names, and 17-year-old Yamal, the most exciting young talent in world football. Ronaldo scored the winner to send Portugal past Germany into the final and Yamal was named man-of-the-match after bagging a brace in Spain's wild 5-4 semi-final win over France. Ronaldo however said the focus on the two individuals was overblown, calling Spain "maybe the best national team in the world". "There are different generations, one is coming in and another is exiting the stage. If you want to see me as another generation, then that's OK. "When you talk about a clash between Cristiano and someone else, that's not how it works. The media always try to hype things up, which is a normal thing, but it's one team versus another team." "You've been talking about Lamine a lot and you're right to do so because he's very good," Ronaldo told journalists, adding "but I'd like to talk about the team. "They've got Nico Williams, great midfielders like Pedri and their coach (Luis) de la Fuente is very good, very strong, very disciplined." 'Funny hair' Portugal last beat their Iberian neighbours in a competitive fixture in 21 years ago at Euro 2024, a match which Ronaldo started. Like Yamal, Ronaldo burst onto the scene at a young age. Aged just 18, Ronaldo impressed so much for boyhood side Sporting in a 3-1 win over Manchester United in a friendly in Lisbon that the English club decided to buy him, bringing him to Old Trafford less than a week later. Like a young Ronaldo, Yamal has consistently impressed since bursting onto the scene, winning a league and cup double with Barcelona this season after lifting the Euro 2024 title in Germany last summer. The Portuguese veteran asked media to allow the teenager to grow and improve without pressure, reminding them the Spanish star "with funny hair" was just "three years older than my son". "The kid has been doing very well, but what I ask is for you to let him grow, not put him under pressure. For the good of football, we need to let him grow in his own way and enjoy the talent he has." Both Spain and Portugal have already won the Nations League. Spain are the current champions from their win in 2023, while Portugal won the inaugural tournament back in 2019.


France 24
6 hours ago
- France 24
Luis Henrique joins Inter Milan ahead of Club World Cup
"A new Inter player joins the family, welcome Luis," this season's Italian Serie A and Champions League runners-up said on Saturday. The Brazilian, who arrived in Marseille in 2020, made 108 appearances and scored 11 goals for the French club in all competitions. He went on loan to Botafogo in 2022, returning to Ligue 1 in January 2024, scoring seven goals and providing eight assists in the league last term. According to the Italian press, Inter will pay 23 million euros ($26 million) for the 23-year-old. Inter also signed Croatian midfielder Petar Sucic last week for 14 million euros from Dinamo Zagreb, with the Club World Cup kicking off on June 14 in the United States. "I am very happy to have signed for such a big club. I think it will be a huge jump in quality in my career," said the Brazilian. "I have known this league very well since a young age. "There have many important Brazilians that have played here at Inter. I also want to make history here, just like they did." He added: "I hope we will make it as far as possible and that we will manage to win this competition that is starting soon." The northern Italian giants are also expected to formalise the arrival of Cristian Chivu early next week as the replacement for coach Simone Inzaghi, who left to join Saudi club Al Hilal.