Ange Postecoglou has given a wide-ranging interview to FourFourTwo for their latest edition of the magazine and naturally Celtic was a big topic.
Postecoglou enjoyed two success-filled seasons at the Bhoys, culminating in a superb treble win last season. He’s since joined Tottenham Hotspur and is taking the English Premier League by storm.
In the right environment, the Australian doesn’t mind reflecting on his successes and failures throughout his career, so he had plenty to say about Celtic – how his arrival came about, delivering trophies and engaging with the support.
Did Guardiola recommend Postecoglou to Celtic?
One rumour that has popped up regarding his appointment at the Bhoys concerns Pep Guardiola. It was reported by The Daily Record earlier this year that a chance meeting between Guardiola and Dermot Desmond in 2021 resulted in the Man City boss recommending Postecoglou to be Neil Lennon’s successor.
Asked directly about Guardiola’s intervention, Postecoglou was non-committal, but he has confirmed that Desmond made up his mind quickly about offering him the job.
Ange said [FourFourTwo, November print edition, page 41]: “I’m not sure. You know what it’s like – success has a million fathers, so who knows what the actual story was. But it was Desmond who reached out to me.
“I chatted to him and literally straight after that conversation, he made his decision. What other background work they did, I’m not really sure, but I was delighted he saw something in me to give me the opportunity.”
Ange loved being the Celtic manager
Postecoglou goes on to talk about proving his doubters in Glasgow wrong, as well as living up to the pressure of delivering silverware. And he had a special mention for the fans who roared his teams on to victory after victory.
He continued: “I didn’t want the club to go through another year without winning something. We had a slowish start, we lost three out of our first six games, and then we were almost perfect after that.
“It was just brilliant that after a really tough season, you could tell the supporters suddenly had their club back to where they wanted it to be. It was a great group of lads and over the two years there, I thought we played superb football. Again, it was the manner in which we did it that made the biggest impact.
“It means everything, because even in the tough beginning, the fans were the ones who stuck by us, and me personally. The only way you can repay that is to give them a side that excites them and gives them great memories, an experience that will stay with them forever. It was an unbelievable two years for me. I loved being the manager of that football club.”
Despite leaving for the Premier League, Postecoglou will be fondly remembered by many Celtic supporters – especially as time thaws the feelings around his departure.
History will be very kind to his Celtic stint. He came, delivered exactly what he said he would and left a hero of the city. Well, one half of it anyway.
In other news, Brendan Rodgers provides an update on Marco Tilio’s ‘hard’ situation at Celtic.
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