Ange Postecoglou has rejected the idea that Tottenham need to be patient and build a long-term project, insisting that he wants the club to compete for the big prize next season.

Some might feel that Spurs could learn a thing or two from Mikel Arteta’s project at Arsenal, with the Gunners hierarchy showing faith in the Spaniard despite his successive eight-place finishes in his first couple of seasons in charge at the Emirates.

Arteta has certainly repaid that faith, turning Arsenal into title contenders but Postecoglou rejected the idea that Tottenham need a few years to get to the level.

When asked if Spurs can learn from the patience that Arsenal have shown with their manager, the Australian told Football.London: “I’m reticent to say there has to be patience, I’ve never felt there has to be patience. What there has to be is belief in something.
“I think the reason Arsenal were probably patient is they saw they had an outstanding manager, this was his first job and he was going to get better and if they supported him they could see beyond just the obvious, which is the results and the table, and think ‘actually we’ve got a chance here if we stick to this process.

“But I don’t think you should do it blindly and say ‘let’s just wait two years and see’. If I’d said at the start of the year, some of our key players would be a first-year goalkeeper, a central defender who only had...