Tottenham Hotspur defender Micky van de Ven has described the decision to sack manager Ange Postecoglou as “strange” in light of him ending the club’s 17-year trophy drought, adding that it was the “club’s choice.”

Postecoglou made good on his long-standing record that he would win a trophy in his second season at the club by lifting the Europa League last month. However, it was not enough to save him his job, with the board looking unfavourably on Spurs finishing 17th in the Premier League.

“That was ultimately a choice from the club,” he told Voetbal Zone. “We, as players, have little to say about that. Of course, he is the first coach in a long time who has won a trophy and had success at Spurs. So if you look at it that way, it is of course a strange choice.

“It is a choice from the club about which we have little to say, so we will see what happens now. Of course, we see some rumours about the Brentford head coach [Thomas Frank], who it will probably be. So yes, a choice from the club about which we have little to say.”

Van de Ven is not the only player to have wished Postecoglou well on his way out. Son Heung-Min, Yves Bissouma, Pedro Porro, Guglielmo Vicario and Dominic Solanke are among the players to have shown their appreciation for the Australian coach.

“I think many of the players got along with [Postecoglou] well. And of course, what I say, he is the first coach who has brought success to Spurs in a long time,” Van de Ven added. “That also shows that he has a certain quality. That also means that he has a winning mentality, 100%.

“From that, you would of course say that it is strange that he was fired. What we have shown in the Premier League is, of course, unacceptable. That would, of course, have multiple factors, but that would not only have been the coach.”