Ange Postecoglou says one Tottenham star didn't look ready against Southampton

Ange Postecoglou didn’t mince his words after the final whistle, openly admitting that one Tottenham player didn’t look up to speed when he came on against Southampton.

Tottenham Hotspur’s growing list of available players has given Ange Postecoglou the kind of selection headache managers usually welcome.

With the majority of his key names now back from injury, there’s more depth on the bench, which should come in handy during the crucial run-in.

Sunday’s clash against bottom-of-the-table Southampton looked like the perfect chance to rest some of Spurs’ biggest names, especially with a huge Europa League tie on the horizon.

But Postecoglou surprised a few supporters by going full strength, sticking with the core of his regular starters from the off.

Even with that strong starting XI, he did eventually turn to his bench, mixing things up as the game wore on and giving minutes to several squad players.

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Ange Postecoglou delivers blunt verdict on Wilson Odobert after Southampton cameo

One of those players was Wilson Odobert, who was introduced in the 57th minute for Heung-min Son. It was a decent chance for the youngster to make an impact with Spurs 2-0 up and cruising — at least on the scoreboard.

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However, what followed was a flat second-half display. Tottenham looked lethargic and lacked urgency, failing to build on their first-half dominance, and instead drifting through the motions.

Postecoglou was honest in his post-match reflections, highlighting Odobert’s slow start after coming on.

He told football.london: “It was good for him [Mathys Tel] to get a goal. The guys coming on are really important.

“I thought Wilson today didn’t look ready when he came on and only came to life the last 10-15 minutes but sometimes these guys coming on are going to be really vital for us in Europe because you know the ties are going to be really intense and you’re going to have to make changes, not just because players are not performing, but because we need that extra energy.

“Guys like Mathys and Wilson are young guys and we’re going to need them. They have the quality for sure. I thought Archie and Biss came on and helped us a bit in terms of getting a bit more control of the game. For all those guys now that we’ve got a healthy squad that they’re ready to play.”

Postecoglou not satisfied with Tottenham’s second-half display

Spurs‘ second-half performance felt like a real missed chance. The three points were vital, not just to edge away from the drop zone, but to build some confidence and rhythm ahead of Thursday night’s European quarter-final.

There was definitely a chance to put four or five past Southampton, and really send out a message. But instead, the side seemed to play within themselves after the break, seemingly happy to see the game out without expending too much energy.

That approach might have been intentional — with one eye on Thursday — but based on Postecoglou’s post-match tone, it’s clear he wasn’t entirely satisfied.

He said: “To a certain extent. I was really happy with the first half. First half I thought we were really disciplined, well organised and sort of limited them to one chance.

“Every time we went forward we looked dangerous and as threatening as we’ve looked for quite a while, really fluent, obviously scored two goals, one disallowed and Aaron [Ramsdale] has pulled off some good saves. Really pleased.

“Second half not so much as I thought we became way too passive without the ball. We allowed Southampton to get a little bit of rhythm, we were really sloppy with ball and the substitutions we made didn’t really make the impact I wanted.

“As you said, that allows them to get a goal at the end which was disappointing and something we need to improve on. Overall the important thing is we got the win, scored three goals and everyone got through unscathed and ready for a big night on Thursday.”

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