ffs
Shambles
So, the Spurs circus continues to entertain fans the world over with eye-catching displays of rank incompetence, hubris, and unparalleled stupidity. Just when we were worried we might manage to get it together with an uncharacteristically attacking line up, we were at it again. Setting ourselves on fire on and off the pitch. Soon, it’s a wonder there will be anything left to burn.
Where to even begin? Little has surprised me this season, but I actually thought the negativity which enveloped our pre-match preparations was a little overblown. Sure, we’re falling to pieces, but we’re not that bad, are we?
Yes. Yes, was the answer. We are that bad. We’re devoid of structure, confidence, and basic ability. This current incarnation of Tottenham are a horrifying case study in what happens to a club when you continue to employ risk-averse, reactive coaches. The players aimlessly move the ball between themselves as if tossing a live hand-grenade. They want nothing more than to be rid of the thing as soon as it comes near them, which makes it pretty darn tricky to carve out meaningful opportunities.
We are hideously undercoached, which meant switching systems amounted to footballing Seppuku. The first twenty minutes were the worst I’d ever seen from a Premier League side, and I mean that with all sincerity.
Once Conte was out of the picture, we had the opportunity to at least do something a little fun until the end of the season. Perhaps Mason and Defoe? Or even an arm-around-the-shoulder Redknapp type to free the players from the Conte murderball shackles. We could have at least attempted to freshen things up. Instead, we were given Stellini, Conte 2.0 and a man with all the charisma of an underripe tangerine.
I’m probably being a bit harsh, because it isn’t Stellini’s fault. He should never have been given the job in the first place. Horribly out of his depth and now taking a whimsical, avant-garde approach to our defensive set up, his thousand-yard state is becoming a fun new feature of the fan’s match day experience. He looks a broken man.
It’s surely unprecedented for a coach to be sacked, only for the club to place his entire coaching staff in charge, but it’s a decision indicative of the board’s horrendous judgement over the past few years. For too long Levy has mistaken inactivity for stability, and now we are where we are. Rotten to the core.
I must caveat every discussion of Levy with the acceptance he’s catapulted Tottenham into an entirely new financial stratosphere. We are a genuine European heavyweight, and we have a world-class infrastructure. It’s taken a long time to get here, but we finally sit at the top table, precariously balancing on our chair. The trouble is, we’re about to fall backwards.
Ever since the sacking of Pochettino, the club’s status has slowly declined. The highlight of last Saturday’s similarly bleak afternoon was probably the crowd once again calling for our cuddly Argentine dad. Unfortunately, all reports suggest those chants are falling on deaf ears, and I feel the louder we sing, the further away a potential reunion with Poch becomes. His deserving popularity would grant him a huge amount of leeway with the Spurs faithful. He would be insulated from failure, and any disappointments would put Levy and the board firmly in the spotlight.
This appears exactly what Levy is trying to avoid with the hiring of Scott Munn a couple of weeks ago. Is that his name? I think it is, and to be honest I can’t be bothered to check. He’s a Chief Executive or something like that, isn’t he? Who cares. Boring. His underwhelming CV made for a classic Tottenham appointment. Once again, he seems a weird choice and its another example of the board’s erratic decision making. I think he is an attempt to further erode Levy’s accountability.
This seemed to be part of the reasoning in bringing in Paratici, but from the very beginning he looked a risky choice. He was known to prefer a conservative footballing style that was at odds with the demands of Tottenham fans. His Juventus side was built from a solid defensive base and the signings of Barzagli, Bonucci, and our best mate Giorgio Chiellini allowed Juve to play in a typically Italian, Conte fashion.
Sure, he’s made a couple of decent signings, but we should have jettisoned the crook immediately once he was implicated in the Capital Gains investigation. It was embarrassing that we stood by meekly and acted surprised when his ban was extended worldwide. If was another example of Levy’s paralysing and naïve indecisiveness having damaging implications.
Football is a brutal industry, and you have to keep moving forward. The Tottenham board failed to capitalise on the gold they struck with the appointment of Pochettino, and now, we’re exactly where we were two years ago. Without a manager, without a direction, and without a semblance of a plan.
More than anything, I think we desperately need a DNA. A style of play and a culture which can be engrained in the club from top to bottom. Like any massive organisation, we should have entrenched values which everyone adheres to and buys into. Only from this point can be build a successful and stable football club.
Tottenham Hotspur are at a crossroads, and unless we get our act together quickly, we’ll be sailing unhappily around the doldrums for many years to come.
All views and opinions expressed in this article are the views and opinions of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of The Fighting Cock. We offer a platform for fans to commit their views to text and voice their thoughts. Football is a passionate game and as long as the views stay within the parameters of what is acceptable, we encourage people to write, get involved and share their thoughts on the mighty Tottenham Hotspur.
6 Comments
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24/04/2023 @ 12:53 pm
Good and well balanced article. Yes, we really need a new plan / direction. A build from the top. An overhaul……but if we did get a upcoming young manager (kompany, nagglesman?) and we did overhaul the staff and playing squad, you know it`s not going to be instant success right? ….I fear our fans (and all fans of any club really) just don`t have the patience for a re-build. Don`t forget most Arsenal fans wanted Arteta strung up at the end of last season!
We MUST get this manager appointment right and rebuild the squad, but expect a season or two mid table before we get our DNA back
24/04/2023 @ 12:58 pm
The reason Stellini was kept on board was that during Conte’s absence we won a couple of games, its very clear to see that if we were to gain fourth spot he would be our coach next season.Just Levy’s type-another Nuno,grateful for the chance, not demanding and prepared to tolerate a bit of interference.We have been duped by the stadium, we need bigger attendances to compete with the rich clubs.Except we are a rich club that doesn’t compete.Conte called out Levy and the players and was right in what he said, the players downed tools yesterday and have no confidence in Stellini.But when all is said and done they still get paid, where us supporters and fans save our hard earned money to pay the highest ticket prices in the Premier league and the third highest this season in Europe (behind PSG & Lazio).We are being totally ripped off and who cares? Certainly not Levy and clearly not the players
24/04/2023 @ 4:08 pm
Conte was NOT right to call out the players and lay the blame entirely on them. Whatever we think of Levy (and we all know he`s made shocking decisions with manager appointments, recruitment and keeping faith in players too long) yesterdays performance was down to coaching and management. We had some decent players out there who were brilliant at the end of last season (2 world cup winners, our all time record goal scorer and the Golden Boot winner to start with!) yet as soon as N/castle score the first goal, all belief and confidence drained away …that`s down to training and management to install those things. Too many players hiding, not looking for the ball, and too much negativity, scared to try anything creative (like playing a forward pass) and always going for the easy (sideways or backwards) pass …..that has to be down to management. Anyone who knows anything about football must have known we would struggle yesterday with those 2 wing backs who cannot defend (and have shown that all season) playing in a flat back 4, what were they doing in training all week?..again down to the management and coaching staff.
24/04/2023 @ 1:00 pm
Spot on. We are Glory…not waiting for the other team to die of boredom. Levy: good with finance but cowardly with football. It goes a long way back. When Hoddle took over he knew we had no money but identified two too European players that could be had for little outlay. Levy bungled it so no players. This pattern repeats: Jol, Europe for the first time in years, up a level…Poch, Champs league regularly, 2nd place in league, Champs league final…conclusion…Levy and the board are responsible for the unacceptable state we are now in.
24/04/2023 @ 10:48 pm
It has been a dark 24 hours for all Spurs fans, another difficult season but I think now is the time for some perspective and I will try to give some and retain a degree of hope and positivity.
I am 61 years of age, I was born into a Spurs family, went to my first game aged 6 in 1967 and have been a die hard loyal fan since then. I went to School in Chigwell, played for the School every Saturday morning and watched Spurs home games with my mates from the age of 13. I have a long history, home and away, European trips, I was at White Hart Lane the day we were relegated in May 77 and at Southampton the day we were promoted back in May 1978. I followed us home and away in Division 2 and risked life and limb as a young man when football violence was at its worst.
I was at Forest away for Ossie and Rickys debuts, Hillsborough, Highbury and Wembley twice in 81, UEFA Cup Final in 84, FA Cup Final in 91 and every Final, Semi and key match since. I have been an Executive Box Shareholder, Season Ticket holder for 25 plus years despite living and working abroad for much of that time. From my Cape Town base I am still a Season Ticket holder and travel regularly to support the team and never miss a game here on TV. WHL Finale, UCL at Wembley, New Stadium Debut, Madrid 2019, I was at every game. I feel that I have been a loyal fan for more than 50 years and have been there and done it.
How do I feel today, surprisingly melancholy and a calm philosophical outlook. Why you may ask? Well first of all and as every Spurs fan knows it is the hope that kills you so when things get really bad, the hope dissipates and the pressure eases. Secondly I have seen worse teams, experienced worse defeats and felt much lower than I feel today. I also believe that in football as in life there are periods when things don’t go right, when it seems that however hard you try, everything keeps going wrong. We are at one of those moments now and just like a period of bad weather I know it will pass, the sun will rise again ( hopefully Son will rise again) and smiles, excitement, joy and happiness will return to our faces.
At difficult moments in life it is important to keep strong, don’t over react, keep a cool head and remain positive. After 61 years of life, 3 grown up children, 40 years working, 25 years running my own businesses as an ‘entrepreneur’, I believe that things are never as good as you sometimes think they are and never as bad as you sometimes think they are. That is a succinct view on supporting Spurs.
Why am I a fan, what does it mean to me ? I understand that I am fortunate enough to have witnessed and enjoyed us winning trophies but I can genuinely say that this is not the reason I support Spurs. When I look back of course I remember the good days, the wins and last minute goals, the excitement the atmosphere but more than that it has and continues to be a journey that runs parallel to my own life, a journey of good days and not so good days, of highs and lows, ups and downs and most of all camaraderie, of being part of something bigger than your own life, shared experiences and memories, laughter, family, an escape, a distraction, friends, enemies, and entertainment. I can honestly say that if we never win a trophy again before I leave this world but I continue to enjoy the journey then I will be happy.
I watched Spurs with my Father over many of those 50 years until he died recently. Jimmy Greaves was his hero, Glenn Hoddle mine. My son Charlie never had the privilege to see them play live but has enjoyed witnessing Harry blossom as one of our own, from Academy player to Club Legend. My Brother has his Season Ticket next to mine and other good mates alongside us. My daughters join us sometimes, old School mates from 50 years ago meet for a beer before and after games as they are also STH’s. Those moments are not about winning trophies but about sharing experiences. I love going to home games but I love going to away games more. The raw camaraderie of being together with fellow Spurs fans, outnumbered but rarely out sung.
In the old days, pre Internet it was all so much easier. We won some games, we drew some games, we lost some games. We discussed on the way home or at School, read the papers and went to the next game. There were no instant reaction live podcasts, Twitter polls, video broadcasts, and fans talking themselves into an early grave. We moved on, kept positive and shouted louder at the next game. Many in our fan base seem to have very short memories . The darker days in our history have been airbrushed out. I love Poch but the 7-2 defeat to Bayern, the 6-0 v City and many other bad days at the office are conveniently forgotten after our humbling at St James ( even the 5-1 defeat in 2016 which I attended and which for me was a worse performance and result is barely mentioned )
So where do I stand in everything. Well first of all I hated Mourinho Ball and have hated Conte Ball equally. Neither represent how I feel Tottenham Hotspur FC should play. We are entertainers, we are Glory Hunters, we are Go Getters. I don’t blame the players as much as the Managers. Levy recruited 2 top Managers, spent significant sums of money on new players ( we can always argue about who we bought, whom we missed) and they have both failed spectacularly to develop teams. I genuinely don’t believe that the Newcastle Team from yesterday or Woolwich are man for man any better than us, they are just better coached, better prepared and that is our failing.
Kane, Son, Lloris, Dier, Romero, Davies, Bentacur, Kulu, Hjolberg, Richarlison,Perisic, the list goes on, all top players, proven internationals, regarded and revered around the world but they are badly coached and forced to play a style of football which is alien to them, which is alien to Spurs, archaic formations, scared to be positive. The ball is not their friend and the joy of playing has been drained out of them. It has not been a fun few years but perspective is required.
This World Cup Season is like no other. Most top teams have been at best erratic here and abroad. Liverpool and Chelsea, have had seasons to forget. United have been either brilliant or awful and have actually had worse results than us. Bayern, PSG, Barcelona and Madrid have all failed to consistently deliver. Only City have really maintained standards and form consistently across all competitions so fair play to them. Woolwich have after years of underperforming in the league delivered but fallen short in other competitions. Almost every top team have had a day or 2 to forget. In general terms teams with less World Cup representation have done better and I believe that this has affected us in particular. We had more than 30 starting games from our players in the World Cup, Woolwich much less, Newcastle, Brighton, Villa less again. They also had no European matches so no surprise that right now their energy levels are higher. Interestingly Italian teams have had the best season in Europe for a very long time and Italy did not qualify for the World Cup.
Kane and Son in particular have been expected to play week in and week out for club and country as ambassadors and star performers year after year and not surprisingly it has finally caught up with them.
I think that yesterday was a freak 20 minutes, clearly Newcastle deserved to win and were quite brilliant at times but it was almost the perfect 20 minutes of football, aided and abetted by Spurs but on another day every touch, every pass, every shot every run would not be so perfect. As Toon mates admitted to me they wish that they had found that Midas touch and perfect run of the ball v United in the League Cup Final. Alas for them, they didn’t.
I actually think that considering the position that we were in after 20 minutes that we reorganised, fronted up and played ok for 70 minutes, too little too late but some character was shown and in particular I would single out Davidson who stood up and was counted in what must have been a really difficult situation for him.
So what of Levy and the Board, I must admit as a businessman I am incredibly impressed with what Daniel Levy has achieved with the Stadium, Training ground etc…. We have remarkable facilities and he has done it with some style and has really tried to support the community and regenerate one of the poorest parts of London so I can only congratulate him for that. The commercialisation of the club is significant and will I believe prove to be very important and gives us long term security and that is incredibly important. I am happy that we have achieved this without resorting to an Oligarchs Billions, State Investments or become an American plaything.
It is like being an entrepreneur who creates a successful business from scratch using their energy, creativity and pure hard work rather than being given everything on a plate through inheritance etc… That success tastes sweeter but the journey is riskier and takes longer.
Clearly bad decisions have been made along the way and communications could always have been better but in truth the players and managers are the voice pieces for clubs not the Chariman. I would like to hear more from Chairmen, Board members and referees but that is not how things are.
What we do hear from all the time is fans through social media, twitter, podcasts etc…, I understand that we don’t have to listen and more and more I am not because it starts to become draining and tiresome.
Fortunately the Fighting Cock manages to strike the right balance between analysis and humour
Few of us run companies that turn over hundreds of millions and are in the daily spotlight and I am sure that if we did we might be a little more forgiving and less negative.
I remain positive, the good news about a spell of bad weather is that when the sun shines again it feels even better.
As I write this piece, the news has broken that Stellini has been sacked and Mason installed on an interim basis. I support this decision and I hope that he tries to put a smile back on the faces of the players and the fans in the next few weeks. I am not over worried about the results, I just want to see us play with some attacking intent and some discipline at the back. Lets try to put some joy back into our game. Football is not a matter of life and death, it is a professional sport in the entertainment industry. Newcastle fans were entertained on Sunday ( and after 40 years without success who can begrudge them those moments).
It looks like Poch is off to Chelsea and good luck to him there !!! Clearly we have decided that he is not going to be our new Manager and probably this is the right decision. It rarely makes sense to go back. We had 5 marvellous years together and we will always remember them fondly. They might prove to be the pinnacle of his career as well.
I am not convinced about Nagelsmann but maybe he will prove inspirational. Kompany is an interesting option, Slot as well and maybe even Potter. The important thing for me is to bring in a coach that wants to manage us, who shares our vision and who wants to coach and develop our players to go out on the front foot and play attacking, entertaining football, to excite the crowds and inspire the next generation of fans.
Sunday was not the nadir for me, that was on the 4th February 2021 when under Jose we played Chelsea at home, a London derby in a full stadium when we did the unthinkable and after 2 minute, sat back and invited them to attack us. In 50 years of supporting Spurs I had never seen us take such a negative stance in a home derby against one of our fiercest rivals. That is not the Tottenham way and was totally unacceptable and worse than yesterday in my opinion. We lost 1 nil, it sounds like a close game but it was much worse than that.
I am not Enic and Levy out, why because I appreciate what they have achieved and the security that their investments have given. I think that Levy needs better advisors around him and I would definitely cull the board and bring in some fresh blood. I think that we need fan representation on the board as well and there needs to be a clear separation between the football side of the club and the commercial side.
The commercial side must exist purely to support the football side and bring value to the local community. It is easy to shout Enic and Levy out but the grass is rarely greener so be careful what you wish for.
I would consult with Kane, get his support for a new manager that he will commit to, sign him up for 5 more years and give him a 5% stake in the club and a job for life and a seat on the board if he wishes. He is more than just a fantastic player for us, he is one of our own, a symbol of what any of us can achieve through hard work, and dedication.
There are no easy answers, all teams in the Premiership are capable of beating one another on any given day. Newcastle could easily have lost 5 nil to Villa 8 days ago, that did not make them a bad team. United lost 7 nil to Liverpool but beat Barcelona, Liverpool lost 5-2 to Madrid and 3 nil to Brighton. I am not trying to make excuses but I do feel that some perspective is needed.
I am happy that Conte/Stellini Ball is now behind us and that we can look forward to a better and more entertaining future. It will not be easy ,there will be good and bad days days but hopefully we can start to enjoy the football, get some reconnection with the club and enjoy watching us play the Spurs way, with some swagger, with some glory and with a ‘To Dare is to Do’ attitude. Come on you Spurs
25/04/2023 @ 7:15 pm
I’m new to this blog but I must say this is one of the best comments I have ever read on Spurs. As a relative newcomer (13 years and counting) to supporting Spurs, it is genuinely refreshing to hear from someone with experience and perspective far beyond 99% of the rest of us.
I agree that each club has a distinct culture, usually born out of the local community from which it originated, and whilst no supporter wants to watch their team lose every week, having that identity for fans to latch on to is crucial in my opinion. Spurs as a force for entertaining, unapologetic football is what I signed up for. I don’t believe that ‘winning’ is only about the tin pots (although with a strong culture and finances that is likely to come), but about being true to an identity that excites the fans, the players and brings authentic, competitive entertainment.
I wish that Levy, ENIC and Co would make this a priority. We need a manager who believes in the historic values of the club, is forward thinking and is prepared to infuse the whole organisation with a new sense of pride and positivity… And no, I’m not talking about Ted Lasso.