Tottenham Hotspur have to get right back on the horse on Thursday night, travelling to take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
This was always going to be a huge period for Ange Postecoglou.
Arsenal at home, Chelsea away, Liverpool away; it’s the kind of run that can test any Premier League manager.
Sunday’s 3-2 defeat to Arsenal was, of course, hard to take.
North London derbies are crucial games in the calendar and losing Sunday’s game means fans are expecting a response.
Tottenham at least have a chance to put it right quickly, heading to West London to take on Chelsea on Thursday night.
Arsenal remain the biggest rivals but the games against Chelsea tend to be very heated and have generated major drama over the years.
Tottenham were beaten 4-1 at home by Chelsea earlier in the season and Postecoglou will be desperate to get Spurs back on track and avenge that defeat in the process.
Mauricio Pochettino on Ange Postecoglou
That game saw Mauricio Pochettino return to face Tottenham for the first time since his sacking back in 2019.
The Argentinian left with all three points after a simply bonkers game of football and Pochettino will now lock horns with Postecoglou once again.
Postecoglou was brought in to try and bring back the feeling from the Pochettino era; primarily providing attractive football once again.
The eras of Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte left Tottenham playing fairly conservative football.
Postecoglou is bringing attacking play back to Tottenham again and we will now see him challenge Pochettino again.
Speaking to Football London ahead of Thursday’s clash, Pochettino had offered praise to Postecoglou.
Pochettino accepts that life in a new country is difficult, but feels that Postecoglou is doing a ‘great job’ at Tottenham right now.
“I think he recovered the hope for the club and the fans,” said Pochettino. “They are playing very good football. It is always difficult when you arrive to a new country and the challenge is massive, but I think he is doing a great job,” he added.
READ MORE: A timeline of all Tottenham Hotspur captains in the Premier League era
Pochettino yet to prove Tottenham wrong
When Tottenham were in the market for another manager last summer, many Tottenham fans wanted Pochettino to come back.
Out of work for a year after leaving Paris Saint-Germain, Pochettino was wanted for an emotional return by some supporters.
Tottenham avoided the temptation to go for Pochettino, preferring to look forward rather than go back to an old manager.
Postecoglou has done some great work at Tottenham this season; Spurs aren’t perfect, but have at least been back in the top four race.
Pochettino now sits 12 points behind Tottenham and Postecoglou despite the enormous investment in his Chelsea side.
Blues fans remain unconvinced by Pochettino and it’s fair to say that he has yet to really prove that he should have been the man in the Spurs dugout.
Postecoglou will be looking to beat Pochettino on Thursday, and show that Spurs got the right man for the job.
READ MORE: All seven Ange Postecoglou player exits as Tottenham manager and where they are now
Receive a digest of our best Spurs content each week direct to your mailbox
