ANGE POSTECOGLOU is preparing for a red-hot welcome in the Europa League on Thursday – and NOT from Tottenham fans.
After personal abuse at Bournemouth last Thursday and more booing after Chelsea's capitulation on Sunday, the big Australian now returns to Glasgow.
Postecoglou remains beloved by Celtic fans after winning FIVE trophies in two years and catching the eye of Daniel Levy.
But having lifted the Premiership title from Rangers in two glory-laden years in Scotland, he knows exactly what to expect when Spurs arrive at Ibrox for the Battle of Britain.
Celtic legend Frank McAvennie told SunSport: “The Rangers fans will give him pelters.
“He'll know that and he'll know there's a bit of humor in it too.
“He'll hear the old 'You're getting fired in the morning' chants. Ange will take it and he will understand why he is getting it.
“Spurs were great in 20-minute spells but then lost the games.
“The players let him down. They have been guilty of not concentrating for 90 minutes and leaking goals.
“But Ange will enjoy returning to Ibrox for a big game – and one he will have to win. I don't see the Tottenham fans having it if they don't beat Rangers.”
After the 4-3 home defeat to Chelsea – when they were 2-0 up – Postecoglou was reduced to 4/1 to become the next Premier League manager to be sacked.
It's all a far cry from his two-year spell at Celtic, when we won the Double in his first season and the Treble in 2022/2023.
Those triumphs – and previous title wins in Australia and Japan – convinced Levy he was the right choice for north London.
But his journey to the East End of Glasgow was a much more complicated route full of twists and turns.
With Neil Lennon gone and Steven Gerrard having ended Hoops' hopes of a tenth consecutive title, the Celtic hierarchy wanted a big-name boss in the summer of 2021.
They doggedly pursued Eddie Howe, who had left Bournemouth and had yet to join the Saudi revolution at Newcastle United.
A deal for Howe seemed close but it collapsed at the last minute, leaving Celtic looking elsewhere for a savior.
Postecoglou was in the J-League with Yokohama F Marinos, one of the clubs in the City Group.
Ange's Celtic success
He had worked closely with City Group recruitment guru Mark Lawwell, son of Peter – then Celts CEO and now chairman.
And Postecoglou's dynamic playing style ticked several boxes for the Celtic board and their fans.
McAvennie recalled: “I was really happy with everything Ange did at Celtic.
“Yes, we have Brendan Rodgers now, but I still think about Ange from time to time.
'And I'm sure Ange is thinking about his time at Celtic too. It did him the world of good.
“The pressure of having to win every game at Celtic has probably prepared him for the pressure he is now under at Tottenham.
Rough start
“People talk about him being in trouble if he loses this game, but the same can be said for Rangers manager Philippe Clement.
“If he loses to Tottenham and then loses to Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup final at Hampden on Sunday, the heat will be on him.”
Postecoglou faced three Rangers bosses in Glasgow in two years, with Gerrard quitting for Aston Villa, Giovanni van Bronckhorst quitting despite winning a Scottish Cup and reaching a Europa League final, and then Michael Beale was appointed.
Ironically, he did not enjoy the same reckless start as he did at Spurs 16 months ago.
He was knocked out of the Champions League qualifiers by a mediocre Midtjylland team before losing his league opener at Hearts.
He lost his first trip to Ibrox, although he won there later in the season as Celts moved closer to the title – his only win in four trips to Glasgow.
'We never stop'
By then he had returned to the J-League to inject pace and purpose into the squad, with Kyogo Furuhashi, Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda all signing.
Cameron Carter-Vickers had joined from Spurs, initially on loan, to strengthen the defense for Joe Hart.
Portuguese winger Jota and Danish midfielder Matt O'Riley were bought for £8 million and later sold to Al-Ittihad and Brighton for £50 million.
Postecoglou's mantra 'We Never Stop' was adopted by the Hoops faithful and became a slogan that underlined every success.
McAvennie added: “Ange has completely changed the team. He signed players who achieved their goals.
“He got together with Peter Lawwell at the beginning and everything clicked.
“Without Ange we would never have known about Kyogo, Hatate or Maeda.
“The same can probably be said about Jota, who was in Benfica's B team. He changed everything about Celtic for the better.”
Unfortunately, things have now gone from bad to worse for the big Aussie at Spurs.
Defeat in Glasgow would be harder to come to terms with than the rocky reception he receives from Rangers fans.
But as McAvennie says: “Being a West Ham man myself, I couldn't care less about Tottenham…”
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