An Australia international has recalled the time he sat next to Ange Postecoglou on a long-haul flight, describing it as the worst 16 hours of his life.
talkSPORT understands Celtic boss Postecoglou has told the Scottish champions that he wants to join Tottenham, and the Premier League club are poised to announce his appointment with personal terms already being agreed.
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The 57-year-old has previous managerial experience at international level with Australia’s national team, guiding them to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
St. Johnstone defender Ryan McGowan was a part of that squad and worked under Postecoglou during his four-year stint.
Although the 22-time Australia international appreciates his former boss’ tactical nous, McGowan admits to being very intimidated when he discovered he was sitting next to Postecoglou.
Speaking to the BBC on their Sacked in the Morning podcast in December, he said: “I’d been up to a bit of mischief with some of the senior boys beforehand, which I now seriously regret.
“I was at Hearts on my 100 quid a week and I used to put all my coffees on the senior boys’ rooms because they could obviously afford it.
“But I didn’t know they could pick the seats when we were flying from Sydney to Dubai.
“It was the worst 16 hours of my life.
“I got my ticket and it was 1A, business class up the front. I get on the flight, all set up and the next thing Ange comes and he’s sitting right next to me.”
McGowan was also too scared to disrupt his boss despite needing to visit the toilet, admitting: “I held it in the whole way. No way was I waking him up.
“Some of the boys were ordering wine. I was like, ‘just water, thank you’. When we got there, he just up and left.”
The 33-year-old’s experience under Postecoglou as a manager could give Spurs fans hope that their next appointment will be successful.
“He’s the best coach I’ve worked with,” said McGowan. “He is so distant and so scary, you are petrified of him – I still am. He’d have certain rules that were just non-negotiable.
“As an average player, I liked that. He just told you what to do and you tried to do it as best you could. He was very good at that.
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“There are certain managers who are like, ‘go and express yourself’. I can’t express myself at all. Just tell me what to do and I’ll try to do it!”
Postecoglou will be Spurs’ fourth permanent appointment since they sacked fan favourite Mauricio Pochettino, who is now at Chelsea.
He will replace Antonio Conte in north London, with the club heading into the summer off the back of a disappointing campaign in which they finished eighth in the Premier League.