Ange Postecoglou is adamant his European coaching career is not over despite his “brutal” sacking from Nottingham Forest in October.
The Europa League winning manager believes the lessons learnt from his two years at Tottenham Hotspur and his 39-day stint at Forest have left him fired up for a new role although where he could land remains unclear.
Postecoglou is certain that he won’t take a mid-season role again as his style requires a pre-season to implement.
“I don’t really know what it looks like,” Postecogou told SEN’s Gerard Whateley on Wednesday.
“I’ve got an idea and I think part of it is going to be making sure that the people I work with are ready for what I’m going to deliver and that they understand me as a person and the kind of football [I coach], and I see the ambition in them.
“I know whatever it is going to be, I have this thing in my head that this will be the best one I’ve done yet, because the recent experiences, maybe I needed them.
“You can’t always be flying high and successful. Sometimes you need to cop a couple of whacks.
“I still feel like what I do still has an impact at this level.
“I’m not done yet, mate! There’s still a bit to do.”
The former Socceroos, South Melbourne and Melbourne Victory boss also revealed the details of his post-match sacking as Forest boss in October, when he was fired immediately after a 3-0 loss to Chelsea.
“I haven’t told the story, but it was brutal. I was sacked straight after the game,” Postecoglou told SEN.
“I was in the coaches’ room, I knew it was coming, I knew it could come any day, but they sacked me straight after the game. I hadn’t done the presser yet, but the press knew.
“I was walking into the corridors, I wanted to leave; otherwise, I was going to do something I’d regret. I hadn’t spoken to the assistant coaches, who I knew were also probably going to be sacked, and I needed to talk to them.
“I’m doing this while walking through press and people who are all looking at me. I wanted to get out of there. All the roads were blocked.
“I spoke to [wife] Georgia for a bit, and after half an hour, the roads opened. I got stuck at the traffic lights for 15 minutes, I had Chelsea fans giving it to me, Forest fans weren’t much kinder, and then I had little kids coming up and asking for a selfie.
“I paid my penance. I paid a heavy price.
“It may have affected me at a different stage of my life, but I’ve had 28 unbelievable years. Things I could never have dreamed of as a kid. I had a bad couple of months, really, who cares?”
Spurs have fallen on hard times since firing Postecoglou and they are just one point above the relegation zone amid rumours current coach Igor Tudor could follow Postecoglou’s replacement Thomas Frank in being fired from the role.
“I still have a really strong attachment to the club,” Postecoglou told SEN.
“It was two years and they were by no means easy years, but we invested a lot into them. Second last game we won a European trophy, which was an incredible high.
“The connection there will be there forever. To watch them struggle has not been easy and it’s not the way I thought it would go. They’re in a hell of a fight, relegation is massive for any club but for Tottenham, it’s a pretty big deal.
“They have some fighting to do and they have the quality to get out. They need a circuit-breaker for sure.”
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