Arne Slot becomes a Tottenham fan - for the Europa League! Liverpool boss praises Ange Postecoglou for making Spurs 'a joy to watch' but wants to end their domestic trophy hopes

Slot lauded the Australian for transforming the north London club into an exciting side, re-establishing their long-lost identity. Despite the positive transformation in style, Postecoglou has faced a tough season with inconsistent results. Before Thursday’s Carabao Cup quarter-final victory over Manchester United, Tottenham had managed just two wins in their previous nine matches. However, Slot believes Postecoglou’s adherence to his footballing philosophy, even in the face of adversity, is commendable.

"I really have to give them credit because if I look at Tottenham, and I do come from Holland but I did watch a lot of Match of the Day and I think about David Ginola, Paul Gascoigne, Glenn Hoddle, Luka Modric, Gareth Bale, they've always been a certain brand and identity for me, and Postecoglou gives them that identity back completely," Slot said on Friday.

"It's every time a joy to watch them. Sometimes results go against them but they are one of the teams who beat Manchester City, like us. Not all of them beat City in the manner that we did and that Tottenham did, which was completely deserved. They dominated the whole game."

Slot, while a clear admirer of Postecoglou’s tactics, humorously made it clear that he doesn’t want Tottenham’s success to come at Liverpool’s expense in the Carabao Cup after they were paired together in the semi-finals.

"It's great work Ange is doing over there," he said. "I hope this is being seen more and I also hope, hope, hope he wins a trophy - not the League Cup! But I'm completely a fan of his team for the Europa League. People always talk about trophies being so important.

"For me, his brand of football is so much more important and if he can combine that with winning something then it would be so good for football in general because then people can stop talking about his style being too attacking. How on earth can you play too attacking football?"

Tottenham will face Liverpool in their highly-anticipated Carabao Cup semi-final clash in January. Before that, however, Postecoglou’s side will host the Premier League leaders at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.