Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou delivered a harsh critique of Timo Werner’s performance following the team’s 1-1 Europa League draw with Rangers at Ibrox. Postecoglou was particularly critical of Werner, who has spent two seasons on loan at Spurs from RB Leipzig. After a lackluster first half, Werner was substituted for Dejan Kulusevski, and Postecoglou explained that the change was made due to Werner’s performance not meeting the required standard. “Yeah, he wasn’t paying anywhere near the level he should,” Postecoglou said bluntly.
Despite Kulusevski’s substitution, Spurs conceded almost immediately, with Rangers scoring just minutes after the Sweden international entered the game. However, Kulusevski later scored the equalizer, keeping Spurs in the game. After the match, he acknowledged the team’s struggles, saying, “We haven’t won in a couple of weeks. Everybody needs to do a little bit more than we’re doing right now.”
Postecoglou also took time to praise the performances of two 18-year-olds, Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray. With Spurs missing key defenders due to injury—Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, and Ben Davies—Gray was forced to step in as a central defender. His performance earned high praise from Postecoglou, who called him “outstanding.” Bergvall, who came on as part of a triple substitution in the 75th minute, played a key role in helping Spurs secure the draw.
Amid a series of disappointing results, Postecoglou’s comments reflected growing pressure on his position. He emphasized the need for senior players like Werner to contribute more, especially given the involvement of young players. He remarked, “When I’m asking younger guys to do massive jobs, I expect the level of performance from some of the senior guys and today wasn’t that.”
The draw left Spurs in ninth place in their Europa League group, just below Rangers, who occupy the last automatic qualification spot for the knockout rounds.
