How a Quote Changed a Team
After a loss to rivals Arsenal on September 15th, 2024, Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou was reminded by a reporter of a pre-season interview where he said he “usually wins things in his second season. His reply was that he didn’t “usually” win, he always did:
This was likely a management tactic to take away pressure from his players after a loss. Despite this, the quote was immortalized.
On May 21st, 2025, Tottenham Hotspur won a European trophy; their first in 17 years.
Tottenham have had many successful managers in that 17 year period. They have also had many talented players, and opportunities. Despite that, they weren’t able to win a trophy while similar teams did. What was it about this throwaway quote that contributed to the success that Tottenham saw?
Change starts by finding the difference between what is and what should be. To most Tottenham supporters, this is obvious: no trophies. Trophies are what competitions use to distinguish the winning participants. Without them, Tottenham was stuck in a cycle of participation with nothing to show for it (in recent history).
Then, the problem was reframed. This is an important distinction. It wasn’t “Tottenham doesn’t win trophies”, it was “Ange always does.” Where a challenge seems insurmountable, reframe it as something that isn’t.
Drive home that belief with hard work and a bit of luck. Achieving new outcomes is always going to be difficult. Ange made sure he was as qualified as anyone else in the competition. This is a bit easier in football where you progress through a knockout competition by virtue of beating your opponents. In interviews, auctions, and similar, you may not always have line of sight to the qualification or terms of other competitors. That means you should operate under what your information tells you to do. If your information is good this should roughly equate to the level of the opposition.
The last note here is don’t forget that north star. Where others came close, something prevented them from going all the way. Block out the noise and maintain your position. Despite a record number of defeats in the league, Ange maintained his stance on the quote and therefore the opportunity. In other words, even when the odds seems stacked against you, don’t lose faith. Even if you have to fake the belief at times it is important to do so.