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The Spurs Injury Crisis: Why do Ange Postecoglou's Players Keep Getting Injured?

The Spurs Injury Crisis: Why do Ange Postecoglou's Players Keep Getting Injured?

When Ange Postecoglou burst onto the scene at Spurs, he was hailed by many fans as a breath of fresh air. His commitment to open, attack-minded football, his candid, no-nonsense appearances in the media, and his clear identification of Tottenham fans' favoured style of play quickly endeared him to the club's supporters. However, after a mixed first season in which his side showed plenty of promise, results have fallen off a cliff in 2024/25.

At the time of writing, Spurs sit just eight points above the relegation zone after a shocking run of games that has seen them win just one in 10, losing eight of those matches. The fact that their only victory in this period came against a Southampton side doomed to relegation only compounds the team's misery.

Multiple factors have led to this downturn. Postecoglou has consistently blamed the team's poor performances and results on an injury crisis that has ravaged the squad throughout the season, having a particular impact on his defensive line-up. And it's true that Spurs have suffered greatly when it comes to injuries this season; but why exactly is that? In this article we'll be diving into why Postecoglou's team has sustained so many injuries this season, exploring his track record when it comes to injuries and sharing the knowledge of experts who have worked with the Australian tactician.

How bad is the Spurs injury crisis?

Spurs' coaching staff are currently contending with a seriously problematic injury list. Their recent 3-2 Europa League victory over Hoffenheim — which confirmed the team's entry into at least the knockout play-off round — was secured despite the absence of Guglielmo Vicario, Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Destiny Udogie, Pape Matar Sarr, Yves Bissouma, Brennan Johnson, Timo Werner, Wilson Odobert and Dominic Solanke. It's not the only match this season in which Postecoglou has had to cope with having numerous first-team players out of action.

Recent statistics published by The Athletic stated that Spurs players had missed 655 days of the 2024/25 Premier League season through injury, with only Brighton & Hove Albion seeing more days missed (with a whopping 914). The reason Spurs' crisis is getting so much attention is that it has consistently hit their defence, arguably the most crucial area of the pitch when it comes to maintaining consistency, stability and leadership. Over the course of the season they have already used 15 different players across the defence and in goal, which is the joint-most in the league alongside Bournemouth, Leicester, and Southampton. Perhaps what is most intriguing about the crisis is the type of injuries hitting Spurs players most often. Examining this can help explain the current situation.

What kind of injuries are Spurs getting most often?

While Spurs players have sustained a variety of different injuries in the last two seasons, hamstring problems have been far more of an issue than anything else. There was a point during the 2023/24 season where Ben Davies, Dane Scarlett, Giovani Lo Celso, Ryan Sessegnon, Micky van de ven, Cristian Romero, Destiny Udogie, Brennan Johnson and Pape Sarr were all missing with hamstring injuries.  And there's a reason for this: Postecoglou's favoured playing style demands a heavy increase in sprints per game, and players are expected to match this in-game output on the training field. 

According to The Athletic, "Postecoglou's unique philosophy places a significant strain on defenders. They are expected to push high up the pitch and then cover large distances at top speed when Spurs lose the ball… [Postecoglou] likes his squad to train with the same intensity they play games. Training sessions are shorter compared to under previous head coaches but the squad's physical output is greater." The increased use of high-intensity pressing structures in elite football has led to hamstring injuries becoming more common in recent years, but Postecoglou takes this to the extreme, and at Spurs his defenders have suffered immensely as a result.

Postecoglou faced similar criticism while in charge of Celtic from 2021-2023. By mid-December in his first season, six players (including Kyogo Furuhashi and Albian Ajeti) had been sidelined with hamstring injuries due to the increased physical demands they were contending with. At the time, the Celtic boss explained: "We play differently and train differently and it takes players time to adjust to that… along the way we obviously pay a price."

Speaking to the BBC, sports scientist Anton McElhone (who worked with Postecoglou at Celtic and was previously at Spurs between 2011 and 2017) said: "Ange is very clear: 'This is how I do it at each club.' In year one at Celtic, Kyogo Furuhashi was injured going into the Scottish Cup final: a grade 2B hamstring injury. The manager asked 'Can we get the player available for the game? Is it a big risk?' The player wanted to play, we took the risk, we did the right strategies to try and get the player there, but it was the manager's choice." This bring us to an interesting point — does Postecoglou rush players back too quickly? 

Does Postecoglou Take Unnecessary Risks on Recovering Players?

Spurs fans have levelled criticism at their manager this season on many occasions, but one of the coach's most controversial decisions came on 9th December, when he started first-choice centre-backs Christian Romero and Micky Van de Ven despite both players not being expected back from injury in time. Both centre-backs were substituted after re-injuring themselves, and a similar issue occurred on Sunday 26th January when still-recovering midfielder Pape Sarr started against Leicester despite Postecoglou later admitting after the game that "he obviously wasn't fit". This speaks to the risks the Spurs boss seems willing to take when it comes to getting players back on the field, risks he could perhaps get away with taking at previous clubs. In the Premier League, not so much.

"At Celtic after six months Postecoglou could rotate the front five at 60 or 65 minutes to keep the freshness for the 60-game season," McElhone told the BBC. "At Tottenham he's probably found that a lot more difficult because I don't think the strength in depth is the same as other Premier League clubs like Manchester City and Chelsea."

"Look at the evolution at Celtic under Postecoglou, we had a three-month period of sustaining injuries every week, mostly hamstring injuries," he added. "We had to get to the winter break to reset. As the players adapted to the demands of the system, the game fluctuation changed rather than that constant 'basketball' up and down the pitch, the team was able to control one half of the pitch more. So that stopped the centre-backs having to run in behind as often."

Are behind-the-scenes changes responsible for the crisis?

Many people have joined the dots between the current issues Spurs are facing and the departure of long-standing Head of Medicine Geoff Scott last summer. Scott had been part of Tottenham's staff for 20 years, and enjoyed great working relationships with a host of different managers whose playing styles and personalities varied massively. But according to reports, he struggled to get along with Ange Postecoglou.

According to The Athletic, "sources with knowledge of the situation, who asked to remain anonymous to protect relationships, say that the pair fell out over how to manage the first-team squad's workload and the recovery of injured players. However, the club insists that Scott's departure did not involve Postecoglou and was instead a result of the review and restructure of the department."

This restructuring of Spurs' football operations was a wide-sweeping one, with Scott replaced by Adam Brett, who now oversees sports science, medical, nutrition and psychology at the club as director of performance services. This position was created following an overhaul of operations by chief football officer Scott Munn. While Spurs clearly want to portray Scott's exit as simply a byproduct of these changes, his disagreements with Postecoglou and longevity at the club prior to the Australian's arrival suggest that medical experts like Scott are not happy with the loads being placed on Spurs' players right now.

It's worth noting here that it's pretty common for players to struggle with injury when adjusting to managerial changes (it's not just Postecoglou). According to Newcastle United's former head of sports science Callum Walsh, "there is some research that shows clubs who change managers see a slight increase in injury." Speaking to The Athletic, he explained: "as a player, your physiology is adapted to the way you train and play, so if for instance you play for an Antonio Conte team and it's slightly more structured and you don't look to press so heavily all around the pitch, you might find you do less high-speed running. Then, suddenly, you're playing in a different system with different physiological demands."

Will Spurs' players be able to adapt to Postecoglou's methods?

It's worrying that the injuries are continuing well into the Australian manager's second season, because this hasn't happened before. By the time Postecoglou's second season at a club rolls around, his players tend to have adapted to the intensity of his style of play and their fitness and durability will be improved. But that doesn't seem to happening right now.

There are examples of coaches coming to the Premier League with an intense new playing style and getting their players to adapt. While Jurgen Klopp's 'gegenpressing' system led to several injuries in his first season at Liverpool, players then got used to his style of play and the German coach was able to turn things around, leading his team on numerous title charges, winning the 2019/20 Premier League and seizing the UEFA Champions League trophy in 2018/19. 

Another interesting example is Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds. When the well-respected Argentine coach was brought in, players struggled to get used to the intensity of his sessions, but after his style was bedded in the team punched well above their weight in the Premier League, finishing 9th in the 2020/21 season. However, the following season Bielsa was sacked after a string of poor results in which the players consistently looked exhausted and unable to live up to his physical demands.

Some people may draw parallels with this situation and the crisis currently seizing Spurs, while others believe Postecoglou just needs patience. "Boards need to understand that this sort of thing can take a while — look at Liverpool with Klopp," says Walsh. "You have to sign players aligned with what you need. And you'll have some, and sign some, who just won't be durable enough." For this reason, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy has faced a huge amount of criticism for his failure to bolster Postecoglou's first team and ensure the squad has the depth required to deal with regular injuries. Until this kind of investment comes, it's hard to see a way out of this crisis for Tottenham.

Want to find out more about where Postecoglou puts his players to work? Check out our in-depth guide to the Tottenham Hotspur training ground.