Jamie Carragher is not a fan of Ange Postecoglou’s football philosophy but the Tottenham manager is not budging, unmoved by criticism.
Spurs beat Manchester United 4-3 on Thursday night in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup on a chaotic night in north London.
The home team were flying as they took a 3-0 lead, but awful mistakes from goalkeeper Fraser Forster with his feet allowed the visitors back into the game.
Son Heung-min scored directly from a corner 88 minutes in to continue the bizarre scenes and Jonny Evans kept things spicy by making it 4-3 in injury time but Spurs held on for the win.
Carragher was baffled that Tottenham continued to play out from the back with Forster when they were 3-0 up and cruising when the goalkeeper is not at his best with his feet.
‘My criticism over Tottenham under the manager is they never change how they play no matter what the game state is,’ Carragher said on Sky Sports. ‘I don’t think football should be played the same from minute 1-90.
Ange Postecoglou tells them no matter if its the 1st minute, 90th minute, winning, losing or drawing, we play the same way, For me I can’t have that. That is not right.
‘What we’ve created now is robots on the pitch. I wasn’t a great player technically or physically, but I understood the game. Some of the things I saw tonight I wouldn’t have allowed to happen. The manager has told you to play a certain way but someone has to get a grip and say ‘no, we are changing for the next five or 10 minutes’.
‘It frustrates me when players can’t see how the game state changes and recognise they have to change their approach to suit it.’
Postecoglou, in contrast, absolutely loved what he saw from his players, not in the mistakes from Forster, but their mindset and commitment.
‘I like the whole bit mate. Are you not entertained? Do you want a scrambling 1-0?’ Postecoglou said on Sky Sports.
‘I know the studio’s probably going into meltdown over my lack of tactics, but I love the fact we go out there and take it to opposition even though we’ve got so many absences at the minute. I really like the way we played tonight.
‘I love football and I love watching teams that go out there and entertain. Obviously we want to be successful as well and we won’t be if we make things difficult for ourselves like we did tonight.
‘We’re keeping all you folks entertained, creating plenty of discussion and I can’t see how that’s a bad thing.’
Asked if he wants to cut out the mistakes, he said: ‘Of course, but your asking for perfection in human beings and that doesn’t exist, sometimes they stuff up just like I do and you do.’
Carragher said after hearing those comments: ‘That interview was brilliant. We were laughing all the way through. He’s never going to change.’
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