Ange Postecoglou: Newcastle struggles are ‘cautionary tale’ for CL chasing Spurs

Ange Postecoglou feels Newcastle should serve as a cautionary tale for Tottenham about what can happen if a club do not have the squad depth to cope with Champions League football.

Spurs travel to St James’ Park on Saturday in pole position to return to Europe’s elite competition after they moved ahead of Aston Villa in the race for fourth last weekend.

It was a different story last season, with Newcastle able to clinch Champions League qualification and they finished 11 points ahead of Tottenham, but it has failed to translate into a period of dominance for Eddie Howe’s Saudi-backed club.

The challenge of competing on four fronts has contributed towards injuries decimating the eighth-placed Magpies, which has often led to Postecoglou citing them as an example over why a top-four finish should not be seen as a guarantee for progression in the long run.

Postecoglou reflected: “Certainly there is a cautionary tale there that getting into Champions League also means greater demands.

“Demands on players, demands on the squad and you have to be geared up for it or else it can affect all parts of your season.

“It has been tough on Newcastle this year because the progress last year was fantastic, the reward for that was Champions League and this year for whatever reason it has made it a really challenging season on all fronts for them.”

This is Tottenham’s first return to St James’ Park since last season’s 6-1 hammering, which proved to be the nadir of a sorry campaign.

Postecoglou did not feel any need to watch that fixture back but he did reflect on the importance of the 4-1 victory over Newcastle in December.

Spurs entered that match with a lengthy list of absentees and after they had lost four of their past five matches.

“I think it