Overpowering the opposition was the approach at the club last year but now the focus is on preventing goals at the other end of the field.
The recent one-nil win over Villarreal in the team's European debut was the fourth clean sheet they had achieved in their opening five games to date.
By comparison, they had managed just one solitary at the same stage of last term, when the more attack-minded their previous manager was in charge.
“We discussed a lot about 'defensive mentality' this year because we let in a lot last year,” the club midfielder Lucas Bergvall stated.
Star defender Van de Ven noted: “I think we are a challenging team to play against, definitely. Organisationally we are standing really good and we all know what to do, so we're a hard team to beat.”
The approach of Tottenham against Villarreal was in stark contrast to the free-flowing football played with Postecoglou.
They were much more cautious, even after being gifted a fourth-minute opener thanks to a costly mistake by their rivals goalkeeper Luiz Junior.
Stronger Backline but at an Attacking Cost?
Spurs have allowed a single goal to date - in the narrow loss to their Premier League rivals.
That is a big improvement on how they started the prior campaign, when they conceded multiple goals in their first five games.
In the English top flight they have kept three clean sheets already - meaning they are just a couple short from equalling their total for the entire of last season.
The more solid platform is perhaps coming at a cost, however, with their sole attempt on target against their European foes the another instance in their last three games they had recorded very limited efforts on goal.
The boss acknowledges this is an area that has to improve.
“We have a very good base to stand on in terms of our defensive structure and I think it's solid and we gave very little away,” he said.
“We're playing in the UCL against a strong team. Additionally, I knew we took a stride against the Hammers, in attack is the area we need to get better.”
