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Ange Postecoglou has criticised Tottenham's transfer strategy while claiming his former side are "not a big club" in the wake of Thomas Frank's sacking.
Frank, who replaced Postecoglou as head coach last summer, was sacked on Wednesday with Spurs five points above the Premier League relegation zone.
Speaking on The Overlap's Stick to Football, external podcast, the Australian praised the club's "unbelievable" facilities but said financial limitations meant they could not sign his main targets, such as Pedro Neto, Bryan Mbeumo, Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi, in 2024.
"When you look at their expenditure and particularly their wages structure, they're not a big club," he said.
"I saw that because, when we were trying to sign players, we weren't in the market for those players."
Portuguese forward Neto joined Chelsea in a £54m deal in 2024, Mbeumo moved to Manchester United for £65m last summer, while Semenyo and Guehi moved to Manchester City for a combined £85m last month.
Postecoglou guided Spurs to fifth in the Premier League during his first season in charge, but he was sacked after a 17th-placed finish the following season.
He did, however, end the club's 17-year wait for silverware by winning the Europa League in 2025.
"I think they didn't realise that, to actually win, you've got to take some risks," he said.
"I felt like Tottenham as a club were saying, 'we're one of the big boys', and the reality is I don't think they are."
Since Mauricio Pochettino's departure in 2019, Spurs have had five different managers.
Jose Mourinho took charge between 2019 and 2021, but was sacked just days before the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City.
Nuno Espirito Santo's tenure lasted only four months, while Antonio Conte criticised the club's board and called his players 'selfish' before he was sacked after 16 months in charge.
His successor Postecoglou was dismissed last summer, while Frank lasted less than a year of his three-year contract.
Postecoglou, who was sacked by Nottingham Forest after just 39 days in charge earlier this season, questioned whether Frank was aware how things would operate when he accepted the job.
"You know that he can't be the only issue at the club," said the 59-year-old.
"It's a curious club, Tottenham.
"It made a major pivot at the end of last year, not just with me but with [executive chairman] Daniel [Levy] leaving as well, and created this environment of uncertainty.
"There's no guarantee whichever manager you bring in. They've had world-class managers there and they haven't had success. And for what reason?
"Thomas is walking in and what's his objective? What's the club's objective?
"If you're going to do such a major pivot, you've got to understand there's going to be some instability there.
"Did Thomas know he was walking into that? I don't know."
