Tottenham coach Ange Postecoglou expressed confidence that 100 percent of his club’s fans would be happy to beat Manchester City, even if it helps Arsenal.
Ahead of Tuesday night’s home match against City, Tottenham are facing a dilemma. If Spurs manage to avoid defeat, then the initiative in the Premier League title race will go to their neighbors from Arsenal.
There is talk among Tottenham fans that it might be better to lose and let City defend the title than to help Arsenal, but Postecoglou does not believe this.
“If you turn to social media, you might get the impression that somewhere 99 percent of our fans don’t want us to win.”
“Personally, I don’t understand this and I will never understand it. I understand what competition means. For the past couple of years, I’ve been part of one of the biggest rivalries in the world between Celtic and Rangers.
“That’s why I understand what rivalry means, but I’ll never understand if someone wants their team to lose. Sport implies something else. I don’t like this aspect of the game.”
“What I like most about the game is the feeling of competition and the fact that you can challenge yourself to beat someone and then achieve success. Any deviation from this has nothing to do with sports, nothing to do with me.”
“If some people take pleasure in other people’s misfortune, then it’s not mine. This is not how I live my life and perceive my role in a different way.”
“My role is to ensure the success of this football club, and no matter what other people say, I know that 100 percent of our fans want us to win, be successful and win trophies.”
“I say this without a shadow of a doubt, and if we win tomorrow, it will please 100 percent of Tottenham fans,” Postecoglou was quoted as saying by The Independent.