The current head coach of the Tottenham Hotspurs officially said, “We are the back,” with boldness due to their upcoming match with…

The current head coach of the Tottenham Hotspurs officially said, “We are the back,” with boldness due to their upcoming match with…

Tottenham Hotspurs‘ current head coach boldly stated, “We are the back,” in preparation for their forthcoming match.

Ange Postecoglou has revealed that Tottenham will recruit a new centre-back this summer, and he has defended those labeled ‘tourist’ or ‘plastic fans’.

Spurs bought Radu Dragusin from Genoa in January to improve the squad’s centre-back situation, which featured just Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven as natural centre-backs, with full-backs Ben Davies and Emerson Royal filling in when both were out.

Dragusin, 22, will start against Fulham on Saturday at Craven Cottage after Van de Ven sustained a minor hamstring injury. Postecoglou was questioned if, with only 18-year-old Ashley Phillips, who is now on loan at Plymouth, as another natural centre-back and out-on-loan Joe Rodon and Japhet Tanganga expected to depart the club, Spurs could try to sign another defender this summer.

“If you’re saying, ‘is it an area we can strengthen?’, yes, it’s an area we will probably look at,” he went on to remark. “With all of these activities, the goal is to strengthen the group more than anything else. When I originally joined the club, there were probably six or seven centre-backs. So it’s not all numbers. It’s more about those guys’ ability to play the type of football we want and fit into the culture we’re trying to create here.

“I believe this is an area of the park that we will want to strengthen, but I believe we will look to strengthen all aspects of the park before the end of the season. That’s been planned, and other people are in charge of it right now.”

Tottenham fans were dissatisfied by the club’s decision to raise season ticket prices by 6% next season, abolish senior concession season tickets for new applicants after the next campaign, and reduce the discount for those over the age of 66 who already own one.

“I want Spurs supporters in the stands, mate, not just anybody. I’m looking for people who are passionate about the football club. When asked what type of fans he wanted in the stands, Postecoglou replied, “I want the stadium to reflect the attachment that they have.”

“Supporters have a voice, and they can utilize it to convey their feelings. They can use it at the stadium or in other ways. I’m not going to tell them how to act or what rules they should follow.”

Some Tottenham Hotspur fans have also complained on social media about the number of day-trippers or ‘tourist fans’ who receive one-time tickets to matches at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Postecoglou was asked if the simplest method for Premier League clubs currently was to sell expensive matchday tickets to such tourist followers, known as “plastic fans.”

It’s fair to say that neither name appealed to the Australian, who grew up admiring the Premier League from a distance.

“That’s really harsh, and I’ll tell you why, because I’m probably plastic and touristy because I was coming from the other side of the world, really passionate about football, and if I could get access to see a Premier League game, that was the world to me,” he was quoted as saying.

“I don’t think it’s fair to characterize individuals as ‘plastic’ or ‘tourists’ simply because they live on the other side of the world. This football team has fans all across the world. It has supporters from all around the UK who don’t always have access to the games, and I believe we should always be able to accommodate them.

“It makes them no less passionate, and it’s quite unfair to refer to supporters who are willing to travel halfway around the world as such. You don’t realize how enthusiastic people are about their football club. Maybe they only started supporting it in the last two years, but that doesn’t change who they are.

When questioned if ticket sales were a balancing act, he replied, “It is a balancing act only if your end goal is not to grow your football club in every way. It’s why we go on tours throughout the world: to take this team to locations where I know they’re enthusiastic. I know there are devoted Spurs fans in Australia, just like here. They do not live here, so they cannot attend games or get season tickets.

“In fact, I have friends in Australia who purchased season tickets and could only visit here a few times a year because they are so devoted. As long as your overall goal is to build your football club, you will discover the balance you require.

Postecoglou is attempting to develop a new Tottenham for the future amidst the club’s ridiculing labels such as ‘Spursy’, and he confesses that the most diverse range of opinions occurred when he was originally appointed head coach at the north London side.

“I think that (spursy term) is OK, but that’s an external viewpoint; it doesn’t help me, and that’s my way of thinking my way through the process of going into a new environment and turning it into something that I believe can be successful,” he went on to say.

“I’ll give you an example: what do you think happened initially after I was appointed? It was that I received approximately a million different comments on what needed to change here, and if I had placed them all on a spreadsheet, I would have had to get rid of all the players and all of the staff, which I balanced by maintaining all of the players and staff. Almost everyone was either outstanding or not great.

“It’s not like people start with a blank slate because that doesn’t exist either; everyone has a history, but you have to look beyond the apparent—and the obvious was that the club wants change, and very few individuals are willing to commit to true change. Real change entails people, attitudes, and behaviors, as well as making solid decisions based on those factors—not simply hiring new management and expecting everything to go smoothly. It does not operate that way.”