Article by Joel SamuelsClick here to follow e-Spurs on Twitter!
So another pre-season and another new manager. He’s young, ambitious, non-British and he has a dedicated style of football that he will require the team to stick to. Sound familiar? It should do as we’ve been here before – and we all know how that turned out. Enough has been said about the demise of AVB and we can read enough into Mr Levy’s end of season comments about “the kind of performances that we associate with our great Club,” to know that part of what got him sacked was the miserable lack of attacking desire and skill on show. As well as the lack of a plan B when a defensive 4-2-3-1 wasn’t working.
Most Spurs fans I know were happy to see Andre and then Tim go. Many were happy to see the back of ‘Arry as well: he had ‘no tactics’ as we saw it. And now Mauricio is in. And I can’t help but feel sorry for him. There. I’ve said it. He has left a mid-table club casually eyeing further up the league for a team whose fans are already calling his appointment an embarrassing lack of ambition or not ‘proven’ enough for Tottenham. Not proven enough for Tottenham? What are we expecting? Sir Alex out of retirement? Van Gaal to genuinely prefer the Lane over Old Trafford when the expectations from both boards will be the same but the money to spend will be three times as much at United?
Of course it is easy to say that all this starts in the boardroom: Levy and Lewis need to realise that constantly talking about the top-four effects the expectations of the fans. But, for me, some fans are wilfully forgetting how far we have come since 2005. At the end of the 2004/5 season we finished 9th. Our joint-highest placed finish in nine years. Since we had finished 8th in ’96. Not a lot to get excited about (barring League cup success in ’99). So why the great expectations? What has happened in the last decade? Well we’ve finished 5th four times, 4th twice and won the league cup again. A definite, exciting, improvement. But it doesn’t mean that we are a top team. It just doesn’t. We are expecting far too much. Our demand and hunger for Spurs success has started to make the Lane feel like a negative place to be on match days. Ask any Spurs away fan the difference between the Lane and other grounds and they will tell you in no uncertain terms that the away days aren’t just better for the normal fanatical reasons: they’re more relaxed, expectations are much lower and the fans, and the team, feel less pressure.
But it isn’t all about results for Spurs is it? Levy alludes to it above and we all know it to be true; Spurs play football. We just do. So a feature of our game must be exciting and daring football. But that expectation has become just as much of a cross to bear as the expectation to win. We want the team to win and win playing attractive football? Surely we can’t expect a team that have only just got to know each other after being so expensively and dramatically assembled post-Bale to do both. Maybe one out of two isn’t bad? Win ugly a la Mourinho and Mancini or play beautifully and with daring passion only to come up short? I know which I would prefer. But as fans our expectations are to achieve both: something we simply cannot justify at this point in the team’s development.
So what do we need to do to manage our great expectations? Firstly the board need to shut up, commit to Pochettino’s contract whatever the results after six months of the first season, back him with some cash and focus on the new stadium and regeneration for Tottenham. But we can do our bit as well. Yes we want Spurs to play a certain way – to dare is to do and the game is about glory – and yes we have a squad of internationals who have the potential to break into the coveted Champions League. But let’s relax a bit here and be more realistic. Let’s remember how far the team has come since the miserable fifteen year period between FA Cup success in ’91 and Martin Jol’s first 5th place finish in 2006. And then let’s remember how far we’ve come since then. After all in January 2005 when Michael Dawson joined alongside Andy Reid, Goran Bunjevčević was still in the squad. Nine years from Goran Bunjevčević to 4th placed contenders. Think about how much better this is.
Think about how much better this is than Paulo Tramazzini, Clive Wilson and Milenko Acimovic. Than Jose Dominguez, Helder Postiga, Sergei Rebrov and Christian Gross. Than finishing in the top half of the table twice in ten years. Come on, let’s lower those expectations a bit and just enjoy being Spurs fans again shall we? COYS!
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My word!! One of the most balanced and well reasoned articles related to spurs I have ever read. I agree wholeheartedly.
ReplyDeleteSPOT ON !! but our fans wont listen, they'll still demand the world while expecting to do it on a fraction of the resources the other clubs have.
ReplyDeleteUnrealistic fans are much more of a problem at our club than the owners or manager, but they wont change and until they do neither will spurs. on and on it goes ........
it is refreshing that increasingly we are getting more balanced and realistic assessments of what is possible in the modern game. Without a new stadium Spurs generate about the sixth highest revenues in the EPL. The correlation of finishing position in the EPL to revenues is VERY VERY strong we should expect 6th basically every year until new stadium .Anything like 5th or particularly 4th would be an incredible achievement (and need one of the richer clubs to self destruct) why do fans not acknowledge this fact? The Spurs board do realise this but in public have to pretend otherwise in order to have any chance what so ever of signing CL quality players
ReplyDeletei totally agree, this should be handed out at all pre-season games to get the message out there. people need to understand this and support the team.
ReplyDeletehowever saying this come kick off in august ill probably wish, desire, dream then somehow expect a top four finish. Why? Because all reason goes out the window, daring to do better and the excitement of the potential all cause irrational thought. the people that cannot allow that to happen are the board, so your right they should set up regular slots that they are availble for Pot to talk to them but not the other way round. ie we are here to support, not to judge...
I agree with everything you have said. Having said that,if everyone's ambitions and expectations dropped would the club stop progressing as it has done over the past few years? Would the fans be happy for spurs to play entertaining football and finish in a mid table comfort zone every year?Unfortunately financial considerations dictate we must go forward ,the biggest casualties being managers and young potential first team players.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant article. For once someone has written a well reasoned, optimistic and balanced evaluation of where the club is at in its development. More of the same please!
ReplyDeleteI agree.
ReplyDeleteBut, I would have to say, most Spurs fans of my acquaintance are quite excited by The Poch appointment. The big/huge difference between his brand of football and AVB's is that The Poch has already shown it operating successfully in the EPL. And while many (including myself) were quick to assign AVB's Chelsea problems to the poisoned atmosphere at The Bridge (and for doing what Abrahmocivh told him to do - phase out the veterans), it would seem that AVB really did have some 'issues' - I have heard there were big problems with his attitude and behaviour behind the scenes. By contrast, I have also heard that Joe Lewis has had glowing character references for The Poch from mutual friends (i.e. very wealthy people who Lewis trusts) and that this was influential in the appointment.
Also, Levy has often commented that appointments, stadium/transfer funds, etc., are 'not' dependent on a top four finish. Problem is, people prefer to listen to media headlines screaming that 'Levy DEMANDS top four finish' rather than what the man himself has said on the matter. Of course top four is a target. And, perhaps, the reason it crops up so much is that top line players want to appear in the CL. The club 'has to' project itself as one with the ambition and aim of performing in the CL> Indeed, does anyone believe that Hugo Lloris would have penned a new five year deal if he hadn't been shown the club's ambition to compete in the CL?