Ange Postecoglou: I knew Tottenham axe was coming before Europa League final

Ange Postecoglou said he knew he was going to be sacked at Tottenham even before they won the Europa League.

The Australian is back in work after replacing Nuno Espirito Santo at Nottingham Forest, less than three months after leaving Spurs.

He was sacked by the north London club just 16 days after finally ending their trophy drought when they beat Manchester United in the Europa League final.

That success came at the expense of their league form as a 17th-placed finish is their worst in Premier League history.

“It wasn’t great, I knew it was coming so it wasn’t a surprise,” he said. “I knew it was coming a fair way before the final.

“But we won it and had the parade and had a great three days and I didn’t want to tarnish that, but I knew it was done.

“From my perspective, I had the chance to process it. Whether I feel it was unjust, other people make those decisions, they make those determinations.

“That’s up to them, you have to ask them their own reasoning for it.

“What I do know is I had two years where it was very, very challenging but we were with some fantastic people in the football department.

“The supporters, we’ve put through some tough times, but there isn’t a Spurs supporter that I come across now that doesn’t want to hug me and take me home for dinner.

“So I must have done something right. I think ultimately that’s what we do it for.

“I’m very proud of what we achieved there. It will always take a special place in my heart.

“How it ended, I don’t really think about it a lot. To be fair, I’ve done it a couple of times myself.

“I left Celtic and I’m sure that they were disappointed when I left. You understand that’s part of the business we’re in.

“But that’s okay. It’s allowed me now to move into this (Forest) and maybe that’s happened for a reason.”

Tottenham have a new look following the exit of chairman Daniel Levy, who was the man who made the decision to fire Postecoglou.

The new Forest boss was diplomatic when asked about Levy’s Spurs exit.

“I don’t think it’s the kind of forum for me to speak about that at length,” he said.

“Again, I didn’t have a great deal of interaction with Daniel Levy. I tend to get on with my daily business and do what I need to do.

“He was there for a very long time. He invested a hell of a lot in the football club in terms of building it up to where it was.

“Obviously, he appointed me so I’ve got to be thankful for that. Hopefully I’ll repay him with money and try to keep it there for a very long time.”