Ange Postecoglou and Tottenham travel to Perth, Australia for the very first game of what the incumbent Spurs manager describes as “a new era” for the Premier League club.
When Ange Postecoglou signed a four-year contract as Tottenham Hotspur head coach, he might have cracked a smile at the sight of the first fixture on his 2023-24 agenda: a pre-season friendly against West Ham United in Perth, Western Australia in July.
“I don’t think it was by design,” he told Tottenham Hotspur media. “But it’s worked out pretty well that my first official game will be back home.”
Tottenham travel Down Under to face London rivals West Ham United at Optus Stadium in Perth on July 18.
It will be Postecoglou’s first official fixture at the helm of the North London club; the Australian manager, who has coached abroad since late-2017, admits any trip home is always exciting on a personal level – but this particular journey takes on the added weight of launching his first job in the Premier League.
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After his unveiling as Tottenham boss, Postecoglou paused his summer holidays for a one-day trip to Hotspur Way, where he met with various club staff including chairman Daniel Levy, and performed media duties for the club.
Amid his first messages as Spurs head coach was a message to the club’s Australian-based fans, and the insistence that the tour of Perth would be vital to launching “a new era for the football club.”
“It’s a trip home – so that’s brilliant,” he said.
“But it’s really exciting, because I do know how passionate people are for football in Australia, and obviously the Premier League and more importantly our football club.
“Every trip I’ve done back home is always exciting for me. But i just think for the whole group, our football club, the players, we’ll enjoy it. A very good opposition as well.
“It’s a great stadium. I’ve visited the stadium, it’s a fantastic football stadium. I’m really looking forward to it.”
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“I’m sure i’ll have plenty of family and friends there,” he added. “Like I said, it’s a great way to start this new era for the football club. For everyone, ultimately from a footballing perspective, it’s a great place for us to begin our program.
“But more importantly, I think it will give everyone an indication of the kind of football team we want to be.
“With myself coming in, that gives me the time with the players – and there will be new staff in as well where we’ll all start to begin to embed the values and way of football we want to play. And also, we get to spend a lot of time together, which I think is a good thing because as much as anything else, we’ll get to know each other as people. It’s vital to our season ahead.”
Postecoglou’s contract begins on July 1. Tottenham will face West Ham at Optus Stadium on Tuesday, July 18, just three days after West Ham take on Isuzu UTE A-League club Perth Glory at the same venue on July 15.
ANGE TO TOTTENHAM
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