Tottenham Can Still Qualify For Champions League Football, Says Ange Postecoglu

Ange Postecoglou remains determined to secure a top-four finish to secure Champions League football but acknowledges that Tottenham must make improvements before they can truly compete with the top teams in Europe.

Tottenham will host Burnley on Saturday as Postecoglou’s team looks to halt a streak of four consecutive defeats that have overshadowed what had been a promising first season under their Australian manager.

Tottenham, currently in fifth place, trail fourth-placed Aston Villa by seven points but have a game in hand over Unai Emery’s team.

Aston Villa have faced difficulties in their recent matches, but the 1982 European Cup champions could secure a spot in the Champions League in the upcoming days.

Postecoglou asked if he had given up on a top-four finish, told a pre-match press conference on Friday: “That’s a harsh term, ‘give up’. “What does that mean, I come in here at noon, have a latte, go home, and just let the guys train?”

The former Celtic boss added: “I don’t give up on anything. I’m here fighting tooth and nail every single day for everything I can get for this football club because that’s my responsibility. I would not give up on any cause, even the most lost of causes, because then I’d be abstaining from my responsibilities. I want us to finish the season strong. I want us to try and win three games of football and see where that takes us.”

“I never said I didn’t care about finishing top four. What I said was finishing top four does not mean we’re going to be the team I want us to be next year. That’s not what will define us.” He said

Postecoglou, explaining why there was more to competing in the Champions League than coming fourth in the Premier League, said: “Finishing fourth and getting into the Champions League does not make you a Champions League club, in my opinion. It just allows you to be in there. To me, to be a Champions League club and to be at that level requires more than finishing fourth in one year.”

He continued, “Do I believe right now we’re a Champions League club? No, we’re not. That’s my belief. We’ve still got work to do. That doesn’t mean I don’t want us to reach the Champions League.”