Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou says it was important for his side to give it their all for the benefit of the fans in Melbourne after they took on Newcastle in a friendly.
The match was played just days after the final Premier League matchday of the season, with both sides jetting off to Australia hours after they had finished playing.
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Nevertheless, it was a good showing from Spurs and the Magpies at Melbourne Cricket Ground.
They played out a 1-1 draw, although most of the stars people had come to watch were withdrawn well before full-time.
Newcastle then went on to win a penalty shootout and officially end their campaign ahead of a busy summer of international football.
🎙️ “I thought the boys were good, it was important because 80,000 people turned up and we wanted to deliver a Premier League team.”
Ange reflects on our post-season fixture in Melbourne 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/XxCuXRdwyq
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) May 22, 2024
It has been a long trip for Postecoglou and his men, but the Australian manager was always determined to try and please the spectators Down Under.
He said: “It was important because 80,000 people turned up. They come here with the expectation of seeing a Premier League side play and it’s important we deliver that.
“Second half we made a lot of changes, gave some young boys a little bit of the experience and then unfortunately we lost on the surprise penalties, I didn’t know they were coming!
“The main thing to take out of it is that we’re representing one of the biggest clubs in the world and I would hate to think anything was thinking we weren’t taking it seriously for everyone that came out tonight.
“For a lot of them it’s their only chance to ever see our team play. I think we represented the club well which is the most important thing.
“I’ve been on the other side of the fence and sometimes you get disappointed when overseas clubs come and are going through the motions and I just wanted to make sure we didn’t do that tonight.”
