Ange Postecoglou sack verdict given to Tottenham chief Daniel Levy after Europa League win

For all the challenges that the past nine months have brought, will now forever . And , chastised and ridiculed for weeks in the build-up to the final, has his vindication. Because he always wins a trophy in his second season, in case you didn't know.

Brennan Johnson's priceless scuffed winner in San Mames helped Tottenham bag a golden ticket to the and the riches that come with it as Postecoglou's men hit the jackpot at Manchester United's - literal - expense.

But what next for Tottenham and Postecoglou? Yes, he has landed the club's first major trophy in 17 years but is that enough to atone for a calamitous campaign which could see the Londoners finish in 17th place?

There has already been and how the outcome of the final may or may not affect things. In the wake of Tottenham's victory, we asked the Mirror Football team whether Spurs should sack or back their boss...

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Ryan Taylor

Ange deserves the chance to stay. We know made a mistake last summer when they kept Erik ten Hag on after winning the but ultimately, the Aussie has succeeded where , and failed.

Additionally, you can see there's something there with Postecoglou, he has lost way too many games but there have been mitigating circumstances. I think the majority of the fan base is behind him and he's earned qualification back into the Champions League and that represents the chance to turn over a new leaf.

Now is the time to back him, get behind him and we'll see how it plays out but given the club have stood by him through thick and thin this season, I don't see why they'd now pull the trigger because their faith has now been vindicated.

I've been on the receiving end of Ange's hair dryer but I think he's a breath of fresh air, he's unique, a brilliant leader and I'm absolutely delighted to see him get Spurs over the line as Europa League winners. The man has earned the right to stay on.

Andy Dunn

Ange Postecoglou would not be the first to be sent packing after winning a trophy and would not be the last. And let’s face it, the only reason Daniel Levy would leave him in his post is as a reward for that first trophy in 17 years and for the massive Champions League windfall that is coming the club’s way.

Because in the cold light of day, there was not actually much in the performance in Bilbao - as defensively decent as it was - to suggest this is a Spurs team that can make any sort of impact in the Premier League next season.

Domestically, Postecoglou has got into a severe losing rut and the triumph in Bilbao - over a very poor Manchester United side - would seem an appropriate time to call an end to the liaison. The likeable Aussie will get a decent pay-off and a nice gig when he wants one and Spurs are now a more attractive proposition for an ambitious manager.

Nathan Ridley

I'm a big fan of Ange Postecoglou. Early last season when Erik ten Hag was on the ropes, I thought Manchester United should've gone for him. He's a leader, seems to have all the right principles and he's a winner. But his time at Tottenham is up. I can't see Daniel Levy making the same mistake as Sir Jim Ratcliffe did with Ten Hag and keeping a manager based on a cup final win.

Yes, they've been blighted by injuries and he evidently prioritised the Europa League, but the results over the last 18 months haven't been good enough and his refusal to compromise his approach in the Premier League has been Spurs' undoing. As put it in December, we all want to wear our summer clothes every day, but when it's raining, you've gotta get your coat on.

Tottenham don't have the most talented squad or are blessed with much experience, which is exactly why I don't think such a front-foot style of play is sustainable. A more pragmatic manager like Thomas Frank or Marco Silva makes sense.

As for Postecoglou, I actually think he'd stand a good chance of succeeding at a big club in Europe. Could he turn AC Milan around? Or what about RB Leipzig? Ajax would also be a good fit. He's got the strength of character to handle the pressure. Just look at the way he transformed Celtic. He can leave Spurs with huge pride and both parties can start afresh.

James Whaling

I've actually changed my mind on this in the last 24 hours. Tottenham have been hopeless in the Premier League season and, despite their injuries, finishing 17th for a club of their stature, with a points total that would have seen them relegated in multiple previous top-flight seasons, is far from good enough.

Ange Postecoglou's reaction in interviews and press conferences when being asked perfectly legitimate questions in the aftermath of some of those defeats has left a lot to be desired. And yet. And yet.

He's done what he said he would. He always wins trophies in his second season. We laughed. We scoffed. Who's laughing now? It was far from pretty, but Postecoglou set his side up with a plan and it worked to perfection.

made a point that, if you don't finish in the European spots, it doesn't really matter whether it's 8th or 17th. I'm not sure I fully subscribe to that, but the sentiment is undeniable. Spurs are in the Champions League next season and finally have a trophy to their name.

The thing that may work in Ange's favour here is the backing from the players. They were desperate for him to be involved in the celebrations. And I think he's probably earned a shot at adding to his young squad with the quality an extra £100million of transfer money and the lure of Europe's top table will bring.

Tom Victor

In each of the two seasons before this, we’ve seen Premier League clubs told to dismiss their manager after a cup final victory helped paper over some cracks. In both cases they decided against it, and in both cases the manager’s time was soon up anyway.

had more reason for wanting to stick instead of twist, perhaps feeling they couldn’t lose and in one summer. By the end of the following season, though, things had gone stale - even if getting the next appointment wrong has led to some Moyes revisionism in the year since.

Manchester United’s cup win was domestic rather than European, but that too earned their manager more time. Erik ten Hag was backed by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, but that soon looked like a mistake and the Dutchman was gone by the end of October.

Sentimentality can rule after a result like this, and that’s understandable. For Spurs, though, a clean break and a chance for them and Ange Postecoglou to each start a new project could be the answer.

Mike Walters

Big Ange must stay. What are the other options? After waiting 17 years for a trophy, the great Aussie growler and Billy Joel fan has ended the longest time Spurs have had to wait for a pot since the Second World War (the piano man's fans will get that one).

And more to the point, he proved he can adapt to be a winner. Where Ruben Amorim stuck doggedly and fatally to his sacrosanct 3-4-3 shape and came a dismal cropper, Rocky Bilbao was smart enough to change his approach.

Instead of maintaining a suicidally high defensive line and getting picked off, as Spurs have been almost every week in the Premier League, Postecoglou ordered his side to sit deep, give United no space to run in behind the full-backs, and their smothering operation worked a treat.

My giddy aunt, it was tedious to watch. An absolute dog's dinner to set before the whole of Europe. But Big Ange proved he's a winner after all. If he chooses to walk, good luck to him - but who would be daft enough to sack the manager who actually won a trophy for Tottenham Hotspur? Are you there, Daniel? Daniel? Dan? Dan??!! DAN!!!!

Mark Jones

The great thing about being a football fan is that you get to be as fickle as you want to be. Great isn't it?

There are several times this season when I've thought Tottenham should sack Ange Postecoglou, stick him on a flight back to and change the locks to ensure he never comes back, but can a scrappy win in Bilbao courtesy of something that resembled a try more than a goal - not that Welshmen get many of those at the moment - really change all that? Yes.

Call it overly emotional if you want, or recency bias from looking at pictures of Big Ange's big happy face over the last 12 hours, but I think I'd keep him now. That 17-year wait was an enormous burden around Tottenham's necks, and he deserves to sample N17 life with a post-trophy glow.

Don't get me wrong I'd still keep an eye on manager movements - Andoni Iraola would be a great fit for Spurs, as would - but the players clearly respect Ange, and he deserves a stay of execution.

Jeremy Cross

Ange Postecoglou is only heading in - out of Tottenham. He’s done his job in one sense, by winning a first trophy for the club in 17 years. But he’s failed in another, spectacularly.

Tottenham have lost 21 league games this season, and no Europa League triumph should be allowed to mask this. But it’s a win-win scenario.

Tottenham get the silverware they’ve craved so long, and Big Ange gets a pay off with the prospect of landing another top job.

David McDonnell

Winning the Europa League should not alter the Tottenham hierarchy’s thinking when it comes to jettisoning Ange Postecoglou at the end of the season. Manchester United made that mistake last summer, keeping Erik ten Hag after his unlikely FA Cup final win over , only to sack him a couple of months into the new season.

Despite the momentous and historic win over United in Bilbao, there is no getting away from the fact this has been a calamitous season on the domestic front for Spurs. A whopping 21 defeats has left them languishing one place above the relegation zone and a European trophy cannot make up for such an abject failure, however memorable for Spurs fans and profitable for the club.

So it is the right decision to part ways with Postecoglou, who can leave with his bruised reputation somewhat restored, having left his successor - whoever that may be - a squad in need of an overhaul, but one with a Champions League campaign, with the revenue from that to help fund the rebuild.

Alex Richards

If this was the end, then what a way to go out. And certainly, after Brennan Johnson's comment about a 'mic drop' and the tears in the big Aussie's eyes, it seemed like the Europa League final was Ange Postecoglou's final hurrah as Spurs boss. But he continued to insist that he wants to keep building and keep working with his young side.

We can take his claims about prioritising the Europa League since January with a pinch of salt - that should not be a reason for them being so bad in the Premier league - yet at the end of the day, he's given Spurs fans the silverware they crave and taken the club back into the Champions League, the place Daniel Levy hired him to take them. So it's fair to say he's pretty much given everyone associated with the club what they had been hoping for.

The Premier League campaign has been dismal, he knows that, the players know that, everyone knows that. But that, coupled with European success, may just make this group stronger, tougher, harder in the coming years.

Spurs have hired and fired 'winners' before. The problem was, while many flattered to deceive, none actually won anything in North London. Now Postecoglou has. If he wants it, Levy should now come out, back him emphatically in public, and let's see if Spurs can kick on under him.

Sack him, and it's just a case of going back to the drawing board.

Daniel Marsh

It feels like we've been here before, doesn't it? Only last time it was Manchester United with that dilemma after winning the FA Cup with the beleaguered Erik ten Hag. He was given the grace to go on and well, things did not end well.

So is that worth bearing in mind with Ange Postecoglou? Yes and no. He's looked completely broken at times this season and there is no getting away from the fact that Spurs have been a shambles in the Premier League, to the extent that if there three more half decent teams in the league then they and United could be heading into this weekend with top-flight safety on the line.

But alas, they are not. And he has delivered the thing Spurs fans have craved above anything else: a trophy. I'm on the fence; if Postecoglou wants to stay, he should be backed with the riches that Champions League qualification brings. If he wants to leave with his head held high, then that would also make sense.

But given the main criticism of Postecoglou has been the lack of a Plan B, after watching him forgo his principles in order to clinch a priceless if ugly victory in Bilbao, I would be leaning towards the former if I was Mr.Levy.

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