Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou did not hold back on his thoughts regarding Timo Werner after subbing him off at half-time of the Europa League draw against Rangers. Dejan Kulusevski came on in his place and bagged the equaliser after Hamza Igamane put the Scottish side in front.

As Dominic Solanke was rested, Captain Son Heung-min was pushed up top which saw Werner come in on the left with Postecoglou brutally explaining why he only lasted 45 minutes. "He wasn’t playing anywhere near the level he should," the Spurs boss replied when asked if the change was tactical.

His response to that question made it quite clear he was far from impressed by Werner's display which saw him again asked about the 28-year-old.

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"When you’ve got 18-year-olds it’s not acceptable to me," he admitted in a press conference. "I said that to Timo. He’s a senior international, he’s a German international. In the moment we’re in right now, it’s not like we’ve got many options.

"I need everyone to at least be going out there trying to give the best of themselves. His performance in the first half wasn’t acceptable." On how he took the decision, Postecoglou added: "Don’t really know. It’s not really of great concern.

"We need everybody including him to be contributing. because we don’t have the depth to leave people out if they’re performing poorly. We need them to play their part. Especially the senior guys. When I’m asking younger guys to do massive jobs. I expect a level of performance from some of the senior guys and today wasn’t that."

Such a public admission is rare in this era of football, but it is quite clear Postecoglou wants so much more from Werner going forward. With that being said, football.london's writers have offered their thoughts on whether it was the right thing to do and potentially what happens next.

Kieran Horn

I am torn on what to think of Postecoglou's brutally honest verdict on Werner. On one hand, he is absolutely right and perhaps making that clear in the public domain will result in him starting to up his effort levels in training and upcoming games.

However, Postecoglou doing what he criticised Cristian Romero for just a few days ago is somewhat hypocritical. Of course the two topics are very different but at the same time, how both have gone about expressing their views is very similar.

Maybe their respective positions in the squad could have something to do with it as Romero cost Spurs £42.5million and is one of the vice-captains, whereas Werner is not even contracted permanently to the Lilywhites.

It was a huge surprise for many that he returned to north London on another loan spell after mostly struggling during his temporary stint in the first half of 2024.

Though injury issues made his return worthwhile, he has again found it difficult to contribute with just one goal and three assists to his name from 19 appearances which makes a third loan spell highly unlikely.

The Tottenham boss quite clearly is demanding more from Werner and has seemingly taken the next step in making that clear by essentially calling him out in a press conference. Only time will tell whether it was the right decision to do so but considering how Werner is very much a confidence player, those comments are unlikely to help him.

Tom Coley

Postecoglou was never going to back down from this situation, was he? His methods are relentless and demanding of players. It's just a shame because all of this was so predictable, especially with Werner.

He largely failed during his first spell in England, lost all confidence and never came close to replicating his pre-Chelsea levels when back at RB Leipzig only to be called upon again. At the time it felt like Tottenham would be better off giving minutes to young forwards rather than Werner and it seems to have played out like that.

Maybe as a short-term addition at the end of last season there was more sense. Extending his loan for this year never felt like a true solution. Werner is shot to bits and Postecoglou cannot afford to carry passengers.

This is brutal and may well be used as a true point to remember when looking back in a few months. Werner and his teammates can't say it hasn't been coming. He'll be dropped now and probably deservedly so.

Amie Wilson

Ultimately, I think time will show if Postecoglou has done the right thing with his public criticism of Werner. Sometimes it can evoke a response from a player, who steps up to the challenge, but for others it sends them into their shell and their performances stay at the level or even get worse.

It can sometimes also lead to a public falling out between the player and manager. That’s the last thing Spurs need in the current situation.

I think it’s down to the manager knowing how to respond to each individual player, Postecoglou may think that it’s the best way to get a performance from his player. But it is a risky strategy and one that could maybe show signs of pressure.

It will certainly be interesting to see how Werner responds to the comments when he is next in action. If it has the desired effect then it will be hailed as a really clever move from the Spurs boss, but it could also go the other way.

James Quinlan

I think this feeds into the wider debate of Tottenham and their strategy. I for one was sceptical when Werner was signed - if he is not good enough for Chelsea, why should he be for Spurs?

It's a difficult one to assess when a manager publicly criticises a player. On the one hand you like to see it when it is warranted, and last night it was, but on the other players like Werner might not respond in the correct manner due to their simple lack of confidence.

Tensions are high within the club given recent form and I understand why Postecoglou has done it. Whatever happens, I just hope the club stick with him and allow him to oversee a project because it is going to take time, he does need to rebuild this team to an extent and getting better players than Werner will be a good start.

Jack Flintham

From experience, there are only two occasions when a manager may choose to publicly lambast a player. When he holds a strong backing from the remainder of the squad or if he has come to the end of his tether and there are no options left for him.

In the first scenario, the player in question can be rallied by the manager's criticism. In the latter scenario, the manager can form a rift in the squad with even those agreeing with him feeling that a public outburst is unwarranted.

Postecoglou most likely sits in the latter camp at the moment and while he certainly seems more popular than Erik ten Hag was at the end, this risky strategy could backfire. It can become a slippery slope using press conferences to criticise your squad and Werner may feel hard done by.

But, any self-respecting professional should realise that performance against Rangers was not good enough. The worry for Postecoglou is whether he is now being perceived as losing the dressing room after resorting to these tactics.

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