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You're probably right.
Yeah, no way they will even respond let alone address 50 specific points.
I’m not really criticizing the group or the supporters organizing or asking the questions, but the board is dismissive of the Supporter’s Trust and aren’t going to placate this now too. Not only do they not care, that letter is way too long and varied in topics.
A rival to the Trust?
Dear The Board of Tottenham Hotspur,
Firstly, by way of introduction, Change For Tottenham (CFT) is an independent fan-lead group with key members consisting of season ticket holders and Spurs fans that have followed Tottenham home and away for many years.
We are a recently formed group and have been gaining support in recent months in the hope to create change for Tottenham. We represent thousands of fans from around the world and regularly gather opinions on a range of issues concerning the club such as direction of the football club, the matchday experience and common concerns felt by supporters such as a perceived lack of ambition.
We seek to canvas the opinions of fans that attend games by interacting with many around the pubs and grounds up and down the country and also connect and listen to sentiments across all social media platforms. From our preliminary canvassing, both online and in person, there is no doubt that, currently, fan morale is at one of the lowest it’s ever been and a large portion of the fan base feels disconnected from the club at present.
We would like to state that the commercial success experienced by the club over the last few years can only be commended and has resulted in the construction of the best football stadium in Europe – something that all the fans can be proud of. However, we feel that the wider Spurs fan base has also contributed to this success through it’s unwavering support and continuous injection of funds over the 22 years of ENIC tenure, which has allowed for the current platform to be built – that element should never be forgotten.
We appreciate that CFT do not speak on behalf of every single Spurs fan in the world. However, we feel we represent a significant part of the fan base who share the same concerns around not only what is happening with the football club at present, but the strategy of the board that has only yielded one trophy in 22 years. The group have taken on board the comments of the chairman that no club has a God-given right to win trophies and despite near misses. We believe the club has regressed since the days of Pochettino – with no clear direction and plan for us to be competing beyond just qualifying for Europe.
Currently, the club are facing a number of concerning issues that will no-doubt have a significant impact on the future of the football team. These include:
The group would like to present some questions to the board in the hope that you can reassure the fans that the board have a clear strategy and plan to make Tottenham Hotspur competitive towards winning trophies and challenging at the top – especially now it is one of the most successful clubs in the world commercially. These questions were in part generated by canvassing fan opinion from a wide range of sources and we feel they cover queries and concerns that apply to many fans across the world.
- The frequent chopping and changing of managers (we will make our 18th appointment, including interim managers in 22 years)
- The uncertainty surrounding the now vacant DoF position.
- The recruitment issue – with a significant number of players on loan, star players coming to the end of their contract and a bloated squad of players.
We also fully understand that, as a private company, the club is under no obligation to answer the questions. However, as custodians of a football club with deep traditions and a loyal fan base, we are asking you to take the time to reassure the people that have contributed to the club’s success.
MANAGERIAL SUCCESSION PLAN
Aside from Harry Redknapp, Martin Jol and of course, Mauricio Pochettino, the last 22 years of managerial appointments have been disappointing and seem to contradict a strategy against the board’s transfer policies or even the tradition of Spurs’ attacking football DNA (referenced in the past in interviews by our chairman).
While we are not seeking names, we would like some clarification on the manager recruitment process:
- Does the board have a clear succession plan for Conte in place?
- Will the board take into consideration the type of football the manager will play?
- Will the next appointment be one that the board will back over a longer period, even if European football is not achieved or will the board require a manager that will have to get European football each year?
TRANSFER POLICY AND SQUAD MANAGEMENT
With a bloated squad of first-team members and a significant number of players on loan, the playing squad is an area of major concern to many fans. Player recruitment has been poor in recent years and the disposal of players has been equally poor as it affects who the club can bring in. While we acknowledge there were some good signings under Paratici, many of the summer signings were not given much playing time under Conte and few can be classed as a success at this time.
- Will the club seek a manager that can work with the current players before new incoming transfers are considered?
- Will the club review their transfer policy and refresh the squad to the point where those that have not been successful have been moved on, rather than loaned or retained to take up a first team place?
- Much has been made of the gross transfer spend since 2019 being one of the highest in the league – however the fees are made up of around 30 players bought with an average spend per player of around £18m. A large portion of those players can be viewed as unsuccessful signings. Will the board consider changing this policy and being more ambitious by spending more on proven players but buying less players that only create issues with squad numbers.
- Would the board be prepared to let the fans know who makes decisions on what players to buy and sell? Has this always been solely with the manager or is there a committee of people involved?
- Will there be a clear pathway for academy prospects to integrate into the first team?
- What is the club’s strategy to secure the future of and develop the exciting talents emerging in the U18s and U17s age groups (who have both had successful seasons this year)?
DIRECTOR OF FOOTBALL
Over the ENIC tenure, the club has appointed many different Directors of Football.
- Will the club appoint a new DoF before the manager and transfer decisions?
- If not, who is making these decisions in the absence of a DoF?
- Prior to hiring, what was the extent of the club’s knowledge of Paratici’s Juventus past which has now resulted in a worldwide ban and resignation?
CLUB IDENTITY IN THE STADIUM AND ATMOSPHERE
Many fans now feel that the stadium appears to serve mainly as an entertainment arena with Tottenham Hotspur FC as tenants – this is mainly due to the lack of significant THFC branding around the ground. Would the club consider:
Many fans feel the atmosphere and match game experience could be improved vastly. The club spent a lot of time creating a magnificent South Stand that should be the focal point and hub of all the noise that emanates from the ground.
- Branding on the seats in the stadium?
- Statues erected around the ground of significant icons of Tottenham?
- Erect a tribute to the Bill Nicholson gates somewhere (something the club has previously promised)?
- A dedicated fan zone area around the stadium?
- Will the club consider removing the 1882 hospitality section that runs across the stand?
- Would you make a concerted effort of moving fans into a dedicated singing zone in the South Stand over the summer?
- Would you support and work alongside groups such as ‘THFCFlags’ and ‘ROTS’ to create a much better atmosphere at all games?
HARRY KANE
- Will the club do everything in their power to retain Harry Kane and offer him a new contract?
- If a new contract is signed, will the club be ambitious and build a world class team so that the greatest player in our history has a strong chance of lifting a trophy with Tottenham?
DANIEL LEVY AND BOARD STRUCTURE
We have commended the board for its commercial success but we also note that the commercial success could never have been achieved without the loyal fan base contributing over the last 22 years.
We appreciate the strategy of organic approach to growth but many fans now want to see the success in commercial activities replicated by success on the pitch. During ENIC’s reign, we can point to many near misses but we can also point to the fact that the majority of these near misses have predominantly occurred during Pochettino’s reign- a period where Tottenham assembled the best first 11 in many a year. There is no doubt the team has regressed since that period and we see the player recruitment and poor squad management as a key reason why.
Our groups message has been Change for Tottenham and that means a change to ensure football success is at the forefront of the board’s strategy commensurate to it’s commercial position.
There are other concerns the group have such as the development of the Youth and Women’s team, the Stadium naming rights delay and ticket prices. We will endeavour to seek clarification on these issues at a later date.
- CFT welcomes the recent appointment of Scott Munn at board level as Chief Football Officer. We are encouraged that a highly experienced executive with a strong sporting/Football background will be a key decision maker. Will the new CFO have full responsibility for all key footballing decisions within the commercial framework. Will Daniel Levy step aside from any footballing decisions, communications and focus purely on the commercial development of the club – a move that the group would support?
- It has been well documented that “all revenues are ploughed back into the football club”. Although we believe this to be true, can the board confirm if all property dealings, such as the West High Road project, will not be to the detriment of investment into attracting the best possible players at competitive remuneration?
- We believe that even just a penny of the club’s revenue should not be used for property acquisition outside of the benefit to the club. Would the board consider demerging the property arm of the club and self-fund these development projects?
- We can’t point to any of ENIC’s previous footballing investments coming close to the size and success of Tottenham Hotspur. ENIC are an investment company and would look to eventually crystallise their investment through disposal. Would the board consider a full or part sale now?
- In the club’s financial statement, you are quoted as stating “Revenues to be less reliant on footballing activities”. Could you elaborate on what that means? It could be interpreted that loyal, long serving fans may not be so important to the future development of the club – something that is of concern to the fans.
The popularity of the club’s board and especially it’s Chairman, Daniel Levy, is evidently at an all-time low and one that has been highlighted by a recent petition with over 15,000 signatures, fan opinion polls in The Athletic and an increasingly growing call to remove Daniel Levy as Chairman. The media has also shown several high-profile pundits letting their feelings be known publicly about where the club is right now. We feel change is needed and seek answers from the board about how we can work together to achieve Change For Tottenham.
This letter is not only brought to you by CFT, but by a much wider Tottenham Hotspur fan base who we have asked to present questions to you. Therefore, we will be persistent in our approach to get communication back from you regarding the points raised to assure the fans that the board have a plan to achieve footballing success.
We look forward to your reply
Regards
CFT Team
CFT Letter to the board – Change For Tottenham
changefortottenham.com
Don't know if your trying to be funny or pedantic
B......b....but cost of living , blah blah, fan outrage, blah blah, not performing on the pitch, blah blah.......Fulham have taken over next season.
Angry Fulham fans urge Shahid Khan to revise season-ticket price hikes that are ‘out of touch with reality’
Seats in the new Riverside Stand at Craven Cottage will cost up to £3,000
‘Out of touch!’ Fulham fans urge Khan to revise season-ticket hikes
Seats in the new Riverside Stand at Craven Cottage will cost up to £3,000www.standard.co.uk
Remember that the context is Fulham are rubbing at 98% wages to turnover and that needs to come down to <90% for next year. They clearly feel that reducing wages will be tough so they are trying to j crease revenue to meet Premier League rules for next year.
The issue isn’t my condescension. The issue is people disagreeing with posts en masse, including those that are just questions or facts.
Actually it probably isn’t
This is probably right.
The issue is the clubs creating faux turnover like City.
THE question in this space is whether Newcastle will be allowed to do the same.
Said no ENIC fan ever
changefortottenham.com
