Ange Postecoglou has again demonstrated his famous defiance, pointing to achievements with his previous clubs as he continues to seek a first win since becoming Nottingham Forest's head coach on 5 September.
The Australian was answering some awkward questions in a pre-match press conference for Saturday lunchtime's home Premier League meeting with Chelsea, his eighth match in charge of Forest in all competitions.
So far, Postecoglou has overseen two draws and five defeats — his last victory as a manager was therefore in May, when he led Tottenham Hotspur to glory in the UEFA Europa League final in his final match at their helm.
"Maybe I'm not a failed manager who was lucky to get this job," Postecoglou told reporters on Friday afternoon, "but maybe I'm a manager where, if given time, the story always ends the same.
"At all my previous clubs it ends the same - me with a trophy."
Managerial success
Before his Europa League triumph with Spurs, Postecoglou won Scotland's domestic treble with Celtic and led South Melbourne and Brisbane Roar in his native Australia, plus Yokohama F. Marinos in Japan, to their respective league titles.
"If you look at it through the prism of: I'm a failed manager who is lucky to get this job - I know you're smirking at me and that's what's being said and I can find the print where that's being said - then of course it looks like this manager is under pressure," said Postecoglou.
"There is an alternative story. I came to the Premier League two years ago, I took over Tottenham, 'Spursy Tottenham'. I was told by the chairman at the time: 'This club has to win a trophy. We've tried to bring winners in, Jose [Mourinho] and Antonio [Conte] and it hasn't worked, we need something different.'
"I was slightly offended by that as I see myself as a winner. I took over Spurs who had finished eighth. No European football. A massive club who can't have two years without European football. We finished fifth in my first year."
Postecoglou guided Spurs to that top-five finish in 2023/24, despite the club's all-time top goalscorer, Harry Kane, leaving to join Bayern Munich at the start of the season.
"Every time Harry Kane scores a goal, I just wish he'd stayed one more year," he admitted. "He'd have been handy to have.
"Somehow [my first] year has disappeared from the record books. In fact, it was used as a reason for me losing my job because even Spurs decided to exclude the first 10 games [eight wins, two draws] because they were an anomaly apparently.
"All I've heard since I finished at Spurs is I finished 17th last year. So if you look at it from that prism of we finished 17th, then yeah, I'm a failed manager who is lucky to get another opportunity.
"But if I have to explain why we finished 17th, it doesn't have to be too in-depth. Just look at the last five or six different team sheets in the league last year to see who I prioritised, who was on the bench and who I was playing.
"The last game against Brighton [& Hove Albion], the players were out for two days partying - which I sanctioned because I felt they deserved to.
"So we finished 17th. If people think that's a reflection of me and my coaching, then people are looking at it through the prism of: I just don't fit."
Making his mark at Forest
Reflecting on his time with Forest so far, Postecoglou continued: "You can look at these first five weeks and say 'he is under pressure because he was lucky to get this job'.
"Or you can look at it and say there has been a major change. I am trying to change the way we play. The players are adapting but there's been inconsistency in there for sure. But some will look at the weeds, I will look at what's growing.
"The flip side is I'm really still excited about the opportunity here. That's how I'm embracing it. I have a group of young players who are willing to change, that's the first thing. I'm heading down that road."
Chelsea next up
On the subject of Saturday's game against Chelsea, Postecoglou said: "It's always important to win the next game irrespective of what's happened previously. It's no different tomorrow.
"We're facing a very good opponent but we're here at home which is good and we're looking forward to the challenge.
"We've had a good couple of weeks training with the guys who were with us here. We had a few on international duty but they came back in good condition and they are ready to play."