Tottenham’s 2023 chief scout says they made a mistake with Ange Postecoglou
Tottenham’s former chief scout Leonardo Gabbanini has now given an extraordinary interview in which he has criticised the club for hiring Ange Postecoglou as well as for the recruitment decisions they made last summer.
Gabbanini joined as Tottenham Hotspur’s chief scout in 2022 – one of Fabio Paratici’s hires – and he left the club at the start of the 2023-24 season, just as Ange Postecoglou, Scott Munn and Johan Lange were arriving through the door.
However, according to reports, Gabbanini continued working as a consultant for Spurs until earlier this year, helping the Lilywhites identify targets who are undervalued by the market.
Now that the Italian has cut ties with the Premier League side, he has given a candid interview in which he has criticised some of the big decisions the Spurs hierarchy made.
Leonardo Gabbanini makes an admission about Ange Postecoglou’s appointment
The 45-year-old has admitted that he was involved in the decision to hire Postecoglou two years ago, explaining that the Tottenham hierarchy wanted someone who could deliver attractive football. However, Gabbanini hints that the Australians’ lack of experience at the highest level was an issue.
He told FirenzeViola about Tottenham’s march to the Europa League final: “The final is the completion of an unfinished journey in the sense that it began two years ago, which coincided with my departure, but in which we chose the coach.
“First, there was Conte, who maximised the results, but then the owners decided to take a coach who would make people play and have fun, and we chose him, and a team was created for him, but in the Premier League, he was a rookie.”
Gabbanini says Postecoglou did not get the right players
The former Spurs chief scout suggested that recruitment under Postecoglou was initially very effective, but suggested that the Lilywhites made some errors in the transfer market last summer.
Gabbanini claimed that Tottenham signed players who were not particularly well suited to the 59-year-old’s system.
He added: “Very good young players were taken (signed by Spurs). Then last year, they started well, but then they took players who were not suited to his game.
“This year, there is a coach with a game idea who has reached this final. But it is a final among the dissatisfied ones involving Premier League clubs.”
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