NORMAN GILLER'S SPURS ODYSSEY BLOG No 496
Submitted by Norman Giller

Ange Postecoglou bravely faces his firing squad and tells them he will continue to do things HIS way. That's his message as Spurs emerge from the wreckage of yesterday's demoralising 4-3 defeat by Chelsea.

How long chief executioner Daniel Levy and his board are prepared to give the tough-talking Aussie remains to be seen, but let's hope the turning point comes as Ange returns to his old Scottish hunting ground on Thursday.

Spurs go to Ibrox for a Euro Cup date against Rangers, and you can almost smell the end approaching for Ange if he cannot come away with a win where he used to lead Celtic to vital triumphs.

Our Spurs guru Paul H. Smith gives his eye-witness account of Tottenham's at-times breathless battle with Chelsea HERE, but in the clear light of Monday morning we can all sense the walls closing in on Ange.

Tottenham were gifted a two-goal start thanks to the wrong boot choice of stumbling defender Marc Cucurella. Many managers would then have shut up shop to prevent Chelsea's gifted players being allowed back into the match, but that negativity has never been part of the Postecoglou policy.

It meant that Chelsea were given time and space to find a way back into the helter-skelter game, eventually pinching all three points with a performance that stamped them as definite championship challengers in this odd-ball season.

We were all particularly taken by the individual brilliance of Cole Palmer, who reminded veterans like me of the impudence a young Jimmy Greaves used to show in the days when he wore Chelsea blue.

Now Ange, with a squad ravaged by injuries, must quickly pick up the pieces if he is to avoid getting the sack for Christmas. And it won't come from Santa.

COYS!

Heads up: Christmas post deadline galloping up. Get your order in for a signed copy of our 'Sir Bill' Nicholson biography direct from my writing partner Steve Perryman at https://steveperryman.com/product/sir-bill-the-book/.

If you want to hear me talking about the book with Steve, please tap into his immensely popular pod-cast at www.youtube.com/watch?v=kP44UZwbDv8.

Week 16 of our eleventh season of the Spurs Odyssey Quiz League, and the question is:

Which defender has won 127 international caps, scored eight Premier League goals for Spurs and from which club did he join Tottenham in 2015?

Please email your answer to me at soqleague@gmail.com and make the subject heading Quiz Week 16. Deadline: midnight this Friday. I will do my best to respond to all who take part.

The rules are the same as in the previous ten seasons. I ask a two-pronged question with three points at stake - two for identifying the player and one for the supplementary question. In the closing weeks of the competition I break the logjam of all-knowing Spurs-history experts with a real stinker of a tie-breaking poser that is based on opinion rather than fact.

This year's main prize will be a framed certificate announcing the winner as SOQL champion 2025, plus three signed books to be revealed at a later date.

Last week's question: Who won 43 caps for his country, signed for Spurs from Chelsea and which club did he join from Tottenham in 1993?

Answer: Gordon Durie/Rangers

See you back here on Monday. COYS!

Follow @spursodyssey