Ange Postecoglou’s team talks are so inspirational that you ‘want to run through a bowl of spaghetti’, says Australia star Jackson Irvine – as he claims Spurs boss ‘would have you so hyped players could get sent off’

• Jackson Irvine paid tribute to Ange Postecoglou’s stirring pre-match speeches
• He did his team talks at Australia three hours early as they were so rousing
•  Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast ‘It’s All Coming Up!’

Ange Postecoglou’s team talks are so inspirational that they make players ‘want to run through a bowl of spaghetti and stick your head in it’.

That’s according to Australia player Jackson Irvine, who starred for the Spurs boss while he was at the Socceroos and has praised Postecoglou’s rhetorical gifts. 

Postecoglou has Spurs at the top of the Premier League and has received widespread acclaim for the way he communicates with players and fans. 

Irvine, who plays for bohemian club FC St. Pauli in Germany’s second tier, revealed that he even did his Australia team-talks early because they were so stimulating that they might get players dismissed. 

Irvine told talkSPORT: ‘He used to do his team talks about three hours before the game, before we have even done the pre-match.

Ange Postecoglou’s team talks are so stimulating that players ‘want to run through a bowl of spaghetti and stick their head in it’ for him, said Jackson Irvine

Irvine played under Postecoglou for Australia and revealed that he made his speeches three hours early in case his stars became too hyped and got sent off

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‘Because, honestly, you get so emotional and so hyped up that you want to run through a bowl of spaghetti and stick your head in it.

‘He would have you so hyped, I think it would have been unsafe to send us directly onto the pitch after one of his talks. We’d have been sent off after about 10 seconds!’

The 58-year-old arrived at Spurs with a reputation for verbal prowess when a clip was shared around on social media of him giving a speech to his Australian players. 

Filmed ahead of their 2018 World Cup qualifier against Kyrgyzstan (in 2015), he said: ‘Think about that person in your life … it could be your mum, dad, brother, sister or coach. That person is the one who believed in you more than anyone else.

‘When you go out to play, the opposition will also be looking at the people who made you. You wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for that person who gave you love and belief.’

So admired are his speeches that Australia brought him back to hype up Australia’s players ahead of their recent friendly against England at Wembley. 

Ange Postecoglou surprised the Socceroos ahead of their clash with England at Wembley

Postecoglou won Premier League Manager of the Month for August and September, with Spurs top of the table

He told the players: ‘[It’s] the impact you can have for future generations. You play at a stadium like that, make an impact – it’s not just for you.

‘There’s going to be a little boy or a little girl who are going to look at that and say “one day that’s going to be me”.’

Postecoglou was won countless titles around the world and became immensely popular at Celtic, winning five trophies there including two Scottish Premierships.

Spurs are currently top of the Premier League and Postecoglou has won Manager of the Month twice already, becoming the first ever to win both of the first two available to him.

Irvine added: ‘The identity of the team that he always tried to instil in us was just that belief that we were capable of competing with teams at the highest level. He has brought that everywhere he has gone. The way he communicates is so eloquent.’

One wonders what the odds are of seeing James Maddison emerge from the tunnel in Tottenham’s next match against Fulham with spaghetti on his face. 

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