Hugo Lloris has expressed surprise at Tottenham Hotspur sacking Ange Postecoglou after their triumph in the Europa League.
The former Spurs captain praised Postecoglou for an “amazing achievement” and said he was delighted to see his old team end their 17-year wait for a trophy when they beat Manchester United in Bilbao last month. But the Los Angeles FC goalkeeper, speaking before facing Chelsea in the Club World Cup on Monday, was not expecting victory in the final against United to be followed by a managerial change.
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Asked whether he was surprised when Spurs decided that European glory was not enough to keep Postecoglou after a dreadful Premier League campaign, Lloris said: “Yes but nothing can surprise you any more. I think he deserves a lot of credit for what he achieved as a coach and I think we all have to be thankful and grateful for what he brought, especially with this trophy.”
Lloris spent 12 years at Spurs before joining LAFC in December 2023. He had several near misses in north London and knows better than most how much silverware means to Spurs.
“I think they had a really hard season,” Lloris said. “They had a lot of injuries as well that affected the team and performances. In the second part of the season it looks like they decided to go all-in for the Europa League. They made it and you just have to congratulate them because it is another way to go to the Champions League.
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“If you finish 10th, 14th, 15th, 16th and if you get a chance to win a trophy on the other hand, it is just an amazing achievement. I was part of a really competitive team for many years and the target was to reach the top four but at which price? We could not find a way to win a cup, a League Cup or even a Europa League cup but we managed to go and get the top four for many years. I don’t know, it is all about the optics of the club.”
Lloris hopes that winning the Europa League will have a liberating effect on Spurs. “I am really happy for the club. We ran many years after this trophy and finally they got it and I think they deserve it. Hopefully it will make their shoulders a little bit lighter for the future and I think it is also the moment to build on this success for Spurs. Even if I am not a Spurs player, I still follow the news, the team and the results.”