Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou has batted away rumours linking him with a move to this summer and insists he is only focused on delivering the treble.
The north London club have been looking for a new manager since sacking two months ago, though they have been – who signed a new contract with Feyenoord on Friday – and also distanced themselves from a move for .
Fresh from sealing a second successive Scottish Premiership title, Postecoglou is the new frontrunner to take over at Spurs but the Australian says he is paying no attention to the speculation.
Asked specifically about the growing rumours linking him with Spurs, Postecoglou told : ‘And yet I’m still here!
‘It doesn’t [come onto my radar]. I think anyone who knows me – and I’ve been asked about these kind of things plenty of times – knows that what’s important for me is the here and now.
‘I’ve never planned anything in my football career. My ambition right now is to enjoy tomorrow [against Aberdeen], have a good game and then try and win a Cup final and make it a special year.
‘It’s not every year you get the opportunity to win a treble and if anyone thinks I’m thinking about anything other than that, they don’t know me.’
Asked if he has a message to Celtic fans who are worried he might leave once the season is over, he replied: ‘Again, I’ve said before, I think what the Celtic fans want is their manager to be concentrating on what’s important to them now.
‘I’d hate to think our supporters want me thinking about anything else other than having a great game tomorrow, having a great day, and then winning the Cup final and making it a treble. I think that’s where they want my responsibility to lie.’
Tottenham interim boss Ryan Mason gave a bullish response when asked if Spurs are still an attractive proposition given Slot’s snub, replying: ‘Absolutely. Yes. It’s the history, it’s Tottenham Hotspur, it’s a big club.
‘Not just for managers, for coaches, staff members, players. Anyone here should feel the privilege and the honour to represent this badge and if they don’t then they shouldn’t be here. It’s really as simple as that.’
On whether the protracted managerial hunt has affected the team, Mason added: ‘Possibly, I mean, the results before he [Conte] left weren’t amazing so I don’t think the results have dipped a huge amount. Obviously we were in a different position but I think you could feel it, you could feel it in the weeks leading up to it that there was uncertainty and it’s never great to have that.
‘I think we’ve been in that situation for the last eight weeks where there’s a lot of uncertainty, that’s why one of my main things when I came in with my team of people was to try and create a togetherness and make us feel part of something towards the end of the season.’
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