‘Not a big club’ – Ange Postecoglou reveals Tottenham blocked four Premier League transfers worth £207.5m

Ange Postecoglou says Tottenham are not a big club and named four players he was blocked from signing.

The Australian was sacked as Tottenham boss in June, just 16 days after leading them to Europa League glory – the club’s first trophy in 17 years.

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That followed a fifth-placed finish in his first season, however it was Spurs’ dismal Premier League form last season that cost him his job.

Eight months on from his departure, Postecoglou’s successor Thomas Frank has also been dismissed with the north London club 16th in the table and five points above the relegation zone.

Postecoglou was a guest on this week’s edition of The Overlap and provided a fascinating insight into his tenure at the club.

The 60-year-old claims that had he been given the green light to bring in the players he wanted, his final season at the club would have had a different outcome.

Instead of landing Premier League-ready players, Postecoglou was given licence to bring in young stars such as Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray.

“What are they trying to build? They’ve built an unbelievable stadium, unbelievable training facilities,” Postecoglou said.

“But when you look at the expenditure particularly in their wages structure, they’re not a big club.

“I saw that because when we were trying to sign players we weren’t in the market for those players.

“At the end of my first year when we finished fifth and, for me, how do you go from fifth to really challenging?

“We had to sign Premier League ready players, but finishing fifth that year didn’t get us Champions League. We didn’t have the money.

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“So we end up signing Dom Solanke, I was really keen on him and I really like him, and three teenagers.”

Postecoglou then revealed the four Premier League ready-made stars he wanted to bolster his squad.

“I was looking at Pedro Neto, [Bryan] Mbeumo, [Antoine] Semenyo and Marc Guehi because I said we need them if we’re going to go from fifth to third.

“That’s what the other big clubs would do in that moment.

“Those three teenagers are outstanding and brilliant young players and I think they’ll be great players for Tottenham.

“But they’re not going to get you from fifth to fourth and third. But what was coming out from the club was that ‘no, we’re a club that can compete on all fronts’.”

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Had Postecoglou been successful in landing his targets, it would have seen Tottenham splash a whopping £207.5million on the quartet if their recent transfer fees were combined.

Semenyo completed a £62.5m move to Manchester City last month which was quickly followed by Guehi’s switch to the Etihad Stadium in a £20m deal.

Meanwhile, Mbeumo joined Manchester United last summer for £71m and Pedro Neto swapped Wolves for Chelsea in 2024 in a £54m deal.

The Australian also took aim at Tottenham’s standing as one of the Premier League’s ‘big six’ and even made a comparison to bitter rivals Arsenal when claiming the club does not operate in the way a big club should.

“Tottenham as a club was saying we’re one of the big boys and the reality is I don’t think they are in terms of my experience over the last two years of how they act,” he said.

“When Arsenal need players they’ll spend £100 million on Declan Rice. I don’t see Tottenham doing that, ever.

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“Not just in my history, even predating me and again, a lot of that was they were building a stadium so obviously finances were a challenge.

“I guess the bit I didn’t realise was just how much Champions League football makes a difference.

“I think that’s why there was always this desperation because that provided the kitty. In my first year they finished eighth.

“The year before we lost Harry [Kane] two days before we played Brentford in the first game.

“That’s a tall order. It’s a tough one. We almost got there, we finished fifth.”

Thomas Frank’s exit

Postecoglou was then quizzed on the recent departure of Thomas Frank and likened it to his recent exits from Spurs and Nottingham Forest.

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However, he believes that Frank’s poor run of results culminating in Tuesday’s 2-1 defeat to Newcastle, made his sacking inevitable.

“Look, having been in that position now twice in the last sort of six months, it’s tough,” he added.

“You know that he can’t be the only issue at the club, right? That’s probably for every manager, but ultimately that’s what we get judged on.

“It’s a curious club, Tottenham. They made a major pivot at the end of last year, not just with me, but with Daniel [Levy] leaving as well.

“You’ve created this whole environment of uncertainty because there are no guarantees.

“It doesn’t matter which manager you bring in. They’ve had world-class managers there; they haven’t had success.”

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“Thomas is walking in what’s his objective? What’s the club’s objective? At the start of the year, they said compete on all fronts,” added the former Spurs boss.

“Well, the club hasn’t competed on all fronts for a very long time, and you also the most influential person at the club for the last 20 years is also going.

“If you’re going to do such a major pivot, then you’ve got to understand there’s going to be some instability there.

“Did Thomas know he was walking into that? I don’t know. It’s a fair departure for me. Anyone who studies the game will know that it wasn’t like it was a progression for me.

“I built that sort of squad to play a certain way over the last couple of years he’s sort of coming in. So, it’s a curious club, Tottenham, mate.”