Former Tottenham Hotspur F.C. manager Ange Postecoglou has claimed Spurs are “not a big club” following the sacking of head coach Thomas Frank.

Frank, who replaced Postecoglou in the Tottenham hotseat, was dismissed on Wednesday after failing to halt the club’s slide in the Premier League. Tuesday’s 2-1 home defeat to Newcastle United F.C. left the north London side just five points above the relegation zone.

“Having been in that position now twice in the last six months, it’s tough,” Postecoglou told The Overlap’s Stick to Football podcast. “You know that he can’t be the only issue at the club.

“It’s a curious club, Tottenham. It’s made a major pivot at the end of last year, not just with me but with (executive chairman) Daniel Levy leaving as well, and you’ve created this whole sort of environment of uncertainty.”

Despite their status as part of the traditional ‘Big Six’ and their move into one of the country’s most modern stadiums, Spurs have been crowned champions of England only twice — the same number as Portsmouth F.C.. Their last league title came long before the formation of the Premier League, when Bill Nicholson led the club to the league and FA Cup ‘Double’ in the 1960/61 season.

Over the decades, a series of high-profile managers — including Terry Venables, George Graham, Harry Redknapp, Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte — have tried and failed to restore Spurs to the summit of English football.

“There’s no guarantee whichever manager you bring in — they’ve had world-class managers there and they haven’t had success,” Postecoglou said.

The Australian did guide Spurs to the end of their 17-year wait for major silverware when they defeated Manchester United F.C. in the 2025 Europa League final. However, a poor league campaign ultimately cost him his job.

Postecoglou insisted the club’s struggles stem from a lack of investment in the playing squad.

“They’ve built an unbelievable stadium, unbelievable training facilities but, when you look at their expenditure and particularly their wages structure, they’re not a big club,” he said.

“I saw that because, when we were trying to sign players, we weren’t in the market for those players.”

He also suggested Spurs were failing to live up to their own motto.

“When you walk into Tottenham, what you see everywhere is ‘To Dare Is To Do’, and yet their actions are almost the antithesis of that,” Postecoglou said. “I think they didn’t realise that, to actually win, you’ve got to take some risks.

“I felt like Tottenham as a club were saying, ‘we’re one of the big boys’, and the reality is I don’t think they are.”