POST HASTE

WHEN the anti-Daniel Levy noise cranks up, it usually leads to change at Tottenham.

The change that fans are demanding right now is in the boardroom − but usually that ends up coming in the dugout.

And, yet, the chairman with one of the itchiest trigger-fingers in football appears to be bucking the trend of a lifetime by sticking by manager Ange Postecoglou.

That is despite Spurs slumping to 15th and being in danger of getting sucked into a relegation battle.

Although the Aussie reacted snappily to a fan accusing him of just that as he walked down the tunnel after Sunday’s 2-1 defeat to Leicester.

And this despite the ‘Levy Out’ chants during, and after, that miserable home defeat to the Foxes − who had lost their previous seven on the spin − reaching new decibel levels.

As well as the chants, banners were unfurled in the stands which included one saying: “24 years, 16 managers, 1 trophy . . . TIME FOR CHANGE.”

The question is, why is Levy sticking by Postecoglou right now?

It is baffling the football world and is multi-faceted in its answer.

First of all, the dismissals Levy has presided over − and there have been 12 permanent ones during his near-quarter of a century at the helm − have normally been preceded by a relationship breakdown between himself and the manager.

That was the case with Harry Redknapp and later with Mauricio Pochettino, whose comments to the media towards the end of his reign irked Levy.­

But that fracturing does not appear to have happened with Postecoglou, who has resisted every opportunity to criticise the Spurs higher-ups publicly.

In this painfully quiet transfer window, staggeringly, Spurs have recruited no outfield players despite their injury crisis.

Yet the nearest that Postecoglou has come to a pointed comment has been to say the club would be “playing with fire” by not signing anyone.

Player power has had an influence, too. Nuno Espirito Santo − now flying high with Nottingham Forest − was sacked after just ten Prem games in part after losing the dressing room.

Italian firecracker Antonio Conte castigated his players to the point of no return in that amazing press-conference meltdown at Southampton in March 2023… and was gone soon after.

Yet Postecoglou’s crocked squad, by all accounts, are just about still behind him.

Then there is the fact Levy has tried chopping and changing managers before − the average tenure of a boss during his reign has been 23 months − to little effect.

And Pochettino’s five-plus years in charge heavily skews that figure.

So the supremo, who celebrates his 63rd birthday next month, has tried a different tack in recent years. It used to be that he was involved in just about everything.

Harry Kane would go on to become the greatest player in the club’s history but back when he was a teenager, you would not expect the chairman to be as heavily involved in an academy player’s contract negotiations as Levy was back then.

Yet that has eased off of late, to a certain extent, with the likes of Rebecca Caplehorn − director of football administration and governance − technical director Johan Lange and Scott Munn, chief football officer and de facto No 2 to Levy, taking more prominent responsibilities.

These are among the individuals Levy is understood to consult when weighing up big calls.

Along with external individuals like Leon Angel, head of leading sports agency CAA Base, former managing director of football Fabio Paratici and, in years gone by, David Pleat.

The new approach does not mean patience with Postecoglou will last forever at Spurs.

But there is considerable sympathy for his crock crisis, with ten senior players out injured against Leicester.

While there is also cause for hope from the cup competitions and Europe.

Victory over Elfsborg tomorrow night will secure a last-16 spot in the Europa League.

And winning the competition outright would not only end the club’s 17-year trophy drought but also get them back into the Champions League.

Spurs are joint-favourites to win that competition and should have some senior players back for the knockout stages − Sun.