Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou praises ‘constant goal threat’ Brennan Johnson
By George Sessions, PA
Ange Postecoglou was pleased to see Brennan Johnson back in the goals to provide a welcome selection headache following Tottenham’s 3-1 win over Southampton.
Johnson scored for the first time at home in 2025 with two smart first-half strikes against Saints to take his tally for the campaign to 16 for Spurs, with 12 of those goals registered in victories.
Postecoglou has recently preferred Wilson Odobert on the right wing, but Johnson’s timely brace, having been hooked at half-time twice in March, served as a reminder of the Wales attacker’s ability before the visit of Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday.
“I was really pleased for him, not just goals but his general (play) was really good. He’s important for us. As a wide player, there aren’t many around that are a constant goal threat like he is,” Postecoglou reflected.
“With Brennan, he’s always in the areas we need him to be. He’s probably one of the most disciplined players we have in terms of making sure he’s always in the right positions and that’s why he gets his goals.
“There have been times this season when his form has suffered because of the team more than anything else.
“I think like we played in the first half, Brennan becomes a really important player for us as we’re a constant threat, breaking lines, making half-space runs, we were getting balls into the box in the areas we need to and every time we went forward we looked like scoring.
“If we do that then I think it’s not a matter of confidence for Brennan, it just gives you more opportunities as the one thing about him is that he will always be in those positions so it’s up to us to match his discipline in that.”
Johnson missed out on a hat-trick after he won a stoppage-time spot-kick as Mathys Tel was given the ball by vice-captain Cristian Romero, but Spurs’ much-needed three points helped Postecoglou enjoy a rare drama-free day as Tottenham boss.
The 59-year-old was even able to keep Micky van de Ven “on ice” before Thursday’s last-eight first-leg tie where Richarlison – following a two-month injury lay-off – will be available after being an unused substitute against Southampton.
Postecoglou added: “Yeah, Destiny (Udogie) and Micky are fine. They have missed a lot of football this year so it made sense to put them on ice today.
“Richy is good. He’ll get a few more days in training and play a part from now on.”
Southampton goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale produced a string of fine saves at Tottenham, but it was not enough to prevent relegation and he is determined to help Saints past Derby’s record-low total of 11 points.
“It is a sad day and one that this group of players will learn from,” Ramsdale said.
“We want to get as many points as we can until the end of the season. No-one wants that record and we will do what we can to get more points on the board.”
