Tottenham 2023/24 season review: Angeball hits a snag | OneFootball

It started off well and subsequently drifted.

But just how was Tottenham's first season under Ange Postecoglou? Let's find out.

Competition breakdown

Premier League - Fifth

Tottenham were almost the exact inverse of their London rival Chelsea this season.

Whilst the Blues struggled in the opening months, Spurs thrived. New coach Ange Postecoglou cut through the Premier League's bubble of bullshit, offering honest answers to often inane questions.

Spurs would go unbeaten in their opening 10 matches, going into November sitting at the top of the Premier League.

It would be harsh to say that their campaign has been all downhill from there but highlights, in 2024 especially, have been few and far between.

A fifth-place finish seems about right.

FA Cup - Fourth round

Someone has to face Manchester City in each round of the FA Cup and Spurs were unlucky to be drawn against the holders in the fourth round.

Having beaten Burnley in their first cup clash, Spurs hosted Pep Guardiola's side at the end of January and were unfortunate to lose 1-0 thanks to a late Nathan Aké header.

EFL Cup - Second round

As one of the Premier League sides not in European competition this season, Spurs were entered into the EFL Cup at the second round stage.

And it was at the first hurdle that the north London side fell as they lost on penalties to Fulham.

Player of the season: Micky van de Ven

It could be reasonably argued that Micky van de Ven wasn't just Tottenham's signing of the season but the entire Premier League's.

The Netherlands international arrived from Wolfsburg with a big reputation but proved to be worth every penny for Spurs.

A commanding centre-back with genuine electric pace, Van de Ven is now the English top flight's preeminent central defender.

Game of the season: Tottenham 2-1 Liverpool

It seemed like the sky was the limit for Tottenham at the end of September.

Spurs came into their clash with Liverpool having won four and drawn two of their opening six games.

Curtis Jones's early red card really changed the game for the Merseyside outfit, whose misery was compounded when Luis Díaz had a goal wrongly disallowed, before Heung-min Son netted an opener on the half hour mark.

Cody Gakpo then equalised right before the break, only for Liverpool to lose another man in the second half when Diogo Jota was also sent off.

It looked like the nine men would hold on for a precious point, only for Joël Matip's 96th-minute own goal to send Ange's men top of the Premier League.

Top goalscorer: Heung-min Son (17)

With Harry Kane having gone to Bayern Munich, it was left to Heung-min Son to lead Spurs' line in this new era.

It was finally time for the South Korea international to step out of Kane's shadow and he's done exactly that.

It's 17 goals in all competitions for Son including a brilliant hat-trick against Burnley at the start of the season.

Rising star: Destiny Udogie

Destiny Udogie's season was cruelly cut short by injury at the end of April but before that, the Italian full-back had been sensational all campaign long for Spurs.

Having arrived from Udinese in the summer, expectations were that the 21-year-old would play only a small part in proceedings as he took time to get used to the cut and thrust of the Premier League.

Instead, Udogie has become one of the very first names on the team sheet and is only going to improve next season and beyond.

What comes next?

It's going to be a fascinating summer at Tottenham.

After such an impressive start, Angeball has come under fire with plenty of Spurs fans struggling to accept his unwavering philosophy and almost complete lack of tactical compromise.

It's all well and good not having a plan B when you're Manchester City, but if you're Tottenham some concession may need to be taken.

Postecoglou's dogmatic approach served him well at the start of the campaign but has slowly started to crumble the longer he's been in the Premier League.

That should be a huge worry for those making the decisions at White Hart Lane.