I would prefer a good man that I could respect in charge (lucky Wigan fans), but second best is a bastard with the same aims as the fans. Sugar raped the club and left it on the side of the road. ENIC have sat it up, given it some steroids and furnished it with spiky weapons. Not good therapy considering what happened but better than repeating the behavior. ENIC want to build and sell so they can sit on a mountain of money cackling evilly. The key for us is “ENIC want to build”.

The way Martin Jol was undermined and sacked, against the wishes of the fans, was disgusting and should never be forgotten, but the last few weeks we have seen some of those spikes used on Jol throwing up a little protection for fans who would like to see Tottenham succeed again. By the end of the transfer window we will find out just how long and sharp those spikes are. A Cockrel ready for a fight… or a chicken served up for dinner.

It is not just the Modric saga where Levy is playing chicken with a much larger animal, but the stadium saga. I have no problems with West Ham as a club and I wasn’t one of the people cheering when they got relegated, but something always stank in the West Ham bid for the Olympic Stadium. There was no doubt the Spurs offer was a better and more secure one and I was surprised when it was rejected.

Even with the trumped up scandal involving an OPLC member being on retainer at West Ham I am sure the affair will be swept under the carpet and the matter will move on. I think Spurs realise that but they also realise that the bids for the 2017 World Athletics have to be in by September 1st and if they’re still in court, with the future of the Olympic Stadium insecure, London will not be able to bid.

Tottenham were given no offers of help for the White Hart Lane redevelopment scheme. No government money offered to upgrade the surrounding areas as other clubs have been given. No upgrade to transport. No concessions, even, on government fees. All these concessions were made just down the road for the Emirates stadium.

So Levy is playing chicken, I believe. Stump up some help or we break the knees of your World Athletics bid.

I say good luck to him. But I don’t live in London…

Jester

spursfans.co.za

The fact that both Harry Redknapp and our Chairman Daniel Levy have both announched their intent to keep our players. In the meantime, I actually think that we have seen the best from Luka Modric and if Chelsea are willing to pay 22 million pounds then I would let him go. But at the same time, we cant have guys coming in with a bid everytime one of our players does something in a game. The intent showed by Redknapp will hopefully put off the clubs who fancy their chances of signing Gareth Bale based on both his player of the year award and also his showing in the games against Inter Milan.

I think every deal and player should be judged on its merit as far as a bid coming in. Who remembers the flack that Kevin Keegan got when he sold Andy Cole? Then he turned from villian to hero when he completed the signing of Alan Shearer. Probably one of the best moves in Newcastle history and made Keegan the benchmark of any future Newcastle managers.

The talk is of Tottenham trying to sign Croatian wonderkid Ante Vukusic (striker), and if that means we sacrifice Modric to get him then I would take a chance. The one downside of signing such a player is the undoubted attention he will get if the move pans out the way we want it to, thats when the strength to say `we are a big club, we need to complete with the likes on Manchester United and Chelsea and that means retaining our star players` comes in.

Hopefully we will start to realise this ambition of being a true challenge to the title (which we have not seen in years)!

- by anonymous spurs fan

There is an argument that before the late 70s and early 80s there were no truly ‘elite’ teams. Almost anyone could win the league and almost anyone could go down. The fact that a certain team that got promoted from the second tier went on to win the top tire the following year tells you what things were like back in the 1950s.

The 70s and 80s were a boom time for football but few envisioned just how big the 90s would be. Alan Sugar was not one of those few. His Tottenham was a selling club. He was the architect of midtable mediocrity and whereas that was preferable to the joyless conclusion of the Leeds experiment (a club that saw the boom too late and pushed beyond itself to catch up) it also failed to allow Spurs to keep on the heels of what became the genuinely large clubs: Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal.

So the 1980s experiment was to fail. A bit of good luck and decent management took us as far as the door and we saw 3rd. When the choice to take a risk and pay the doorman was put in front of Alan Sugar he declined. It was nut a club he particularily wished to join, at least not enough to pay the entrance fee.

Now we have an new CEO and a new owner and, regardless of how much of a fan you are, the choice is theirs, not yours. We got here partly because of Comolli and, later, Levy’s happiness to play the trading game: spread your money thin, buy a lot of players, hope some become great, try and recoup your money on those that do not make the grade, hopefully you luck out and eventually have a few good players at once.

The net spend on players under Ramos, Jol and Santini was almost nil but with Redknapp Spurs have spent. Yet even with this spend Spurs have always bought potential top talent- not existing top talent. The first signing to arrive with a ready top pedigree was Rafael van der Vaart and we must remember that even he was out of favour and brought in at a bargain price, at the last minute.

To break the glass ceiling and, to mash metaphors horribly, pay the membership to enter the elite club (why would there be a door above a ceiling- architects these days!) our owner will have to delve into his pocket in the middle of a worldwide recession. One that many experts say is only going to get worse, not better. Whether spending now is a Leeds-style gamble or the sensible way forward only the board can really know but we will have their answer come the end of the transfer window.

This is no longer about hedging bets buying relative unknowns like Luka Modric, Giovanni dos Santos, Gareth Bale or Adel Taraabt. It is not about shoring up a squad with Peter Crouch, Niko Krancjar or Wilson Palacios. We are at the big stakes table now and as Harry said on Sky Sports: we need a couple of big players but big players command big fees and big wages. Will Levy pay thirty or forty million for a single player- the right player?

It’s time to shit or get off the pot. Climb through that glass ceiling. Pay the membership. Go through the door. Join the elite. If Daniel Levy is really Indiana Jones maybe he can navigate that. I’ve finished murdering the English language for today.

The 25-year-old appears eager to move to Chelsea, who have made a £22m bid. Redknapp told Sportsweek on BBC Radio 5 live: “He sees the chance to win the league and play Champions League football, but we want that as well. “We have to show him our ambition. If we can add one or two players, we can have another great season.”

Spurs played in the Champions League for the first time last season but narrowly missed out on securing their place again for the forthcoming campaign, finishing fifth in the Premier League. And the Croatian apparently considers playing in football’s biggest club competition to be key to his progression – he told the Daily Mail he wants to leave Spurs but would like to stay in London.

“Chelsea are a big club with an ambitious owner,” he said. “They have great players and they have ambitions to fight for the title and win the Champions League. I want to leave Tottenham as friends. I have enjoyed my time there, but now it is right for me to look at another club. I have an arrangement with the chairman. When I signed my new contract, he said that, if another club came to sign me, they would consider the offer.”

Chairman Daniel Levy said Modric is not for sale “at any price” and Spurs are not prepared to sell him “to Chelsea or any other club. We made our stance on this issue abundantly clear in writing to Chelsea,” Levy added. “They chose to ignore it then made the offer public.”

Redknapp is desperate to keep the creative midfielder at White Hart Lane. He commented: “Chelsea are not the only club that have been in for him. There are other top clubs as well but if Tottenham want to be a top club then we have to keep our top players and he is certainly a fantastic player. If we are looking to go anywhere we can’t be selling Luka. We have to do something about it and keep him happy and keep him at this club. An unhappy player at your club – if his mind is not right he’s not going to be playing well – is a massive problem. Hopefully we can speak with Luka.”

“Any club would want Luka Modric. He could walk into any Premier League team. Daniel has said ‘no, he has not got a price’. We definitely don’t want to sell him. He is worth an awful lot of money. That first offer of £22m was laughable. This is a special player – as good a midfield player as there is anywhere – certainly in this country. Daniel is saying no and if he is saying no he really can’t be seen to go back on that. He has made a very strong statement. We have to improve in the summer, not weaken, so I don’t see Daniel backtracking on that at any price. Tottenham could be a great club for him to stay with for the next few years and that is what we are hoping for.”

Levy said Spurs are “building a team for the future to consistently play at the highest level”, and insisted that none of the club’s key players would be sold this summer.

Modric, who arrived at Spurs from Dinamo Zagreb in 2008 in a £16.6m deal, has scored 12 times in 120 games for the London club. He signed a new six-year deal at the club in 2010. But in an interview with Croatian newspaper Jutarnji List last month, he said: “If an offer comes which is good for Tottenham and for me also, then a transfer is possible.”

Luka Modric
•    Born: 9 September 1985
•    Position: Midfielder
•    Current club: Tottenham Hotspur
•    Debut: 28 July 2008 v Norwich City
•    Goals: 12
•    Appearances: 120
•    Previous clubs: Dinamo Zagreb, Zrinjski Mostar (loan), Inter Zaprešić (loan)

Joe Lazarus

I’m not going to paint Tottenham Hotspur as any Garden of Eden. After all, mugs you ain’t. The first thing we all do during the transfer period is look at our chairman’s grubby little paws and wonder whether his bad obsession with the new stadium will drive him to spend or whether his belief in the future greatness of the club is just double-talkin’ jive.

Personally I would love to take the title of London’s top club back off bitches at the Chelsea and the Arsenal and, never being a Levy fan, I would be perfectly happy to live and let die if he got us there, even for only one season.

Personally I don’t see any bad apples in our squad, pressurising for a move or leaving us in the lurch. No Berbatovs and no Campbells in sight. This squad has belief in itself and I think they will stick with Harry for another year and give the board time to show it’s intentions.

But there is something to remember, and don’t damn me for saying it. First-team ready, Premier League strikers cost 35mil plus and won’t fit into our wage structure. I would bet an arm and a leg (not mine, someone else’s) we will not see a prime-age Premier League striker join our ranks unless the club releasing them agrees to pay some of his wages.

The good news is we actually have 2 quality strikers already. If Defoe can stay fit or Harry gives SuperPav a run of games either can bag 20 goals and, come November, rain pouring down, they’re used to the cold and misery of the English weather and can power through it. A bevvy of new strikers or some primadonna and I could see the axel come off.

So if we don’t make that 35mil land-mark signing, don’t cry. Capturing a strong talent like Damaio combined with a little luck on the injury side and a much shorter playlist I think we will see Spurs come out all guns ablaze.

It’s never a bed of roses for a Spurs supporter but I think it would be no fun if it was.

Jester

In remembrance of a really quite good band and because I was in that sort of mood all the song names from Gun’s and Roses Use Your Illusion (1) were worked, sometimes inelegantly, into this article: Right next door to hell, Dust ‘n Bones, You ain’t the first, Bad Obsession, Back off bitch, Double Talkin Jive, Garden of Eden, Don’t Damn Me, Bad Apples, Perfect Crime, Live and let Die, Don’t Cry, November rain, Dead Horse, Coma.

And, yes, I know the title of the article and the name of the song are different.

Let’s be clear from the beginning. I like Gomes. I think he is an excellent goalkeeper. Yet, not since Paul Robinson and David James, have I seen a goalkeeper get so much stick and have his confidence undermined by the press so much. The crazy thing is, reading reports you would think these ‘keepers don’t even belong in the Premiership, that they are inferior. I think this has more to do with the press enjoying having a whipping boy than anything else.

It’s important to understand that I am not saying that Huerlho Gomes does not make mistakes. He does. That said he also makes saves that I can compare only to the very best in the world. Saves I have not seen since I watched Peter Schmeichel. There can be no doubt that where Gomes has lost Tottenham a point or two he has won them far more with top notch goalkeeping.

I am not going to go through exhaustive examples because we all have lives to get to. So, briefly, the Chelsea incident is only mentionable because he recovered from his mistake, only to have the goal given. This is because Sepp Blatter is an arse who no doubt wishes we could return to the days of the horse and cart, such is his aversion to technology. Moving pictures on a box are obviously unreliable as they are works of the devil himself…

The goal scored in the home leg against Real Madrid by Christiano Ronaldo is mentionable. This is because, without doubt, Gomes should have saved it. If you watch the clip (1) he gets directly behind the flight of the ball but as it dips sharply and moves left just as it is reaching him he should read it and push it away. He misjudges and it ricochets into the net. Yet any other PL goalkeeper would have at least got a “wow that moved a lot in the air” which the replays from behind showed it did. Instead the Gomes narrative kicks in “here goes Gomes again”.

In the “double penalty” Blackpool game Tottenham were on top, playing well. Gomes makes an excellent save (2). Off the subsequent corner Dawson is pushed, he allows his hand to flail and a penalty is given. The penalty take is almost perfect (watch the video link). Right in the bottom corner yet Gomes gets to it and saves. A corner is now quickly taken and almost no-one in the Spurs defence is awake. Gomes has to come for the ball. He parries it but still only one Spurs defender is on the move, (3) he reaches to catch it but is nudged (by the only Spurs defender on the move, oddly enough) and the ball falls for Gary Taylor Fletcher who overhits it and then makes the most of what is minor contact, if contact at all, and takes to the ground.

Somehow the “Gomes is unhinged” narrative kicks in and Gomes is a villain.

It is tiring, especially if you remember where it comes from. Gomes’s earliest days at Spurs were a torrid time. He had a specific achillies heel and that was crosses. For some reason the best keeper in Holland, a country full of really tall people, couldn’t handle them. It was confusing.  Only later revealed that he had been playing whilst carrying an injury. Naturally that is something you do not reveal to PL opposition players, who will do their best to take advantage, but by then the Gomes blunderman narrative had stuck.

That is what papers and news look for now. Narrative is what you need to draw people in to a story and now Gomes will get extra grief for every mistake he makes, like Real Madrid, and many that are not his fault, like Blackpool. Tottenham Hotspur will simply not get a better goalkeeper at the moment. When they are challenging for the title, perhaps, but not now.

Already people forget how valuable he was in securing a top four finish, and how commentators, by the end of that “blunderman season”, were touting him as a front-runner for the best goalkeeper in the Premier League.

Huerelho Gomes is the clean-sheet record holder in Holland. He has incredible reflexes, gets Tottenham Hotspur points where they have not deserved them, sits behind an unstable back four and is uncompromisingly brave, even when injured. From his time in Holland: “Notable was an incident in Rotterdam in the match against Feyenoord, when Gomes injured himself whilst celebrating a goal, scored by his teammate Phillip Cocu. However, he managed to continue and even managed to pull off a wonder save, keeping his side in the game, which they went on to draw.”

I put it to his critics that our problem is not Huerelho Gomes but a solid, settled back four with good cover in front of them and leave you with a compilation of Gaolkeeping howlers that includes the best Goalkeeper I have ever seen, Peter Schmeichel (4). I think we should be getting behind our goalkeeper, not on top of him.

Jester

The post-scripts:

Video references:

(1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2YVTG7VOsY&feature=player_detailpage#t=206s
(2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUuLJwbV1AI&feature=player_detailpage#t=183s
(3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUuLJwbV1AI&feature=player_detailpage#t=249s
(4) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksY9Pll3gDM

This season’s Gomes man-of-the-match performances according to Jim Duggan of Topspurs.com

16 October Fulham 1-2 Tottenham
16 January Tottenham 0-0 Manchester United
05 March Wolverhampton 3-3 Tottenham
23 April Tottenham 2-2 West Brom

Man-of-the-match performances: Modric 8, van der Vaart 6, Bale 4, Gomes 4.

A slightly frustrating player at times, can pull off the most amazing saves one minute and let in a sitter the next, has had a mixed season and hasn’t exactly inspired confidence in me never mind the rest of the team/manager. If the reports in the media are correct then selling him back to PSV is the best idea.

Verdict: Sell And Replace With Shay Given Not Brad Friedel

2)Carlo Cudicini (GK)

A top class keeper, in my opinion should have been our number one for the 2nd half of the season. Glad to hear he has signed a 1 year extension. Will provide excellent cover/competition for a new number 1 or could possibly be our number one.

Verdict: Keep

3)Stipe Pletikosa (GK)

On loan and only played one game, cant be to bad if he is Croatia’s number one, however he wont get to much game time at Spurs and I feel Ben Alnwick is a suitable number three. Also he doesn’t seem remotely happy at Spurs and his loan period is up.

Verdict: Send Back To Parent Club

4)Alan Hutton (RB)

An absolute liability at the back most of the time has got into a nasty tendency of tugging opposing players back lately, most of the time the opposing players are in our BOX. Gets forward well and can deliver a half decent cross; however his attitude in the team plays against him. With the emergence of Kyle Walker I think cashing in on him should be considered

Verdict: Sell To Recoup Outlay

5)Younes Kaboul (CB/LB/RB/DM)

I was very skeptical of him in his first spell as Spurs, but his stint at Pompey turned him into excellent player, unfortunately his versatility across the back four means he won’t be an automatic starter. An excellent luxury player who could even cover for our defensive midfielder.

Verdict: Keep

6)William Gallas (CB)

Before he signed all signs pointed to disaster, too old, bad attitude and crossing the North London divide, however Billy has turned into an inspired free transfer. He always gives his heart and soul when he plays and is the experienced head to play alongside Dawson that was needed, downside are his injuries but still worth the gamble for another season.

Verdict: Keep

7)Kyle Walker (RB)

An emerging talent of the highest order, has done wonders at Villa this season earning him an England call up. Will he be happy playing second fiddle to Vedran is another story, however with a little bit of squad rotation he could be brilliant for Spurs next season.

Verdict: Keep

8)Sebastian Bassong (CB)

Undoubtedly a talented player unfortunately has spent more time on the bench than the pitch this season, provides excellent cover to the center backs, but with a player like Kaboul being able to play across the back four and his statement to the press that he is unhappy,im afraid he will move on.

Verdict: Sell Reluctantly

9)Michael Dawson (CB)

Epitomizes everything that is Spurs, plays his heart out every game and gives nothing but 110%,an excellent leader. Prone to the occasional mistake but generally is a solid center back, has only benefited from playing alongside Gallas and King.

Verdict: Keep

10)Vedran Corluka (RB)

An established player for Spurs, what he lacks in pace he certainly makes up for with his positional play and footballing brain, a lot of people criticize his lack of pace on the right, however we have Lennon on the right for that exact reason. His game will only improve knowing that he has the young talent of Walker challenging for his position.

Verdict: Keep

11)Ledley King (CB)

Yes his knees are made of glass, but what a fantastic player and captain. I say we play him till he breaks, fix him, and play him again. A true Spurs legend and a long future with the club even if it’s not on the pitch.

Verdict: Keep

12)Benoit Assou Ekotto (LB)

One of the most improved players of the season if not the most improved player of the season. Many fans dislike like him but I think he is fantastic, solid at the back, links up well with Bale and can deliver a decent cross. One of  the top 3 left backs in the league.

Verdict: Keep

13)Jonathan Woodgate (CB)

Also made of glass but a fantastic player nonetheless, at risk of becoming a Hargreaves and fading into obscurity, looked like he was coming right when he played against Madrid but it wasn’t to be. To talented to be let go for free so as the reports state a pay as you play deal seems fair.

Verdict: Offer a Pay As You Play Deal

14)Gareth Bale (LM)

What can I say that hasn’t already been said about this Simian Wonderkid.Brilliant player with a very bright future (hopefully at the Lane),unfortunately it has become all to prevalent towards the end of the season that opposing teams would rather hack lumps out of him than defend against him, it’s a sad state of affairs but he is going to struggle to finish games and is at risk of more career ending injuries, still wouldn’t trade him for 3 Messi’s and a Ronaldo though.

Verdict: Keep At All Costs

15)David Bentley (RM)

There’s no doubt he is talented but unfortunately his ego over powers that, needs to stop thinking he is the next David Beckham and concentrate on his football, apparently has a poor attitude in training which can’t be good for the team. Thanks for the wonder goal against Arsenal but a new challenge awaits elsewhere for him.

Verdict: Sell

16)Tom Huddlestone (CM)

Thudd has unfortunately missed a substantial part of the season due to injury which hampered our top 4 finish, when he returned it was like he never left, an instrumental midfielder with a range of passing like no other and has an almighty thunderous shot to boot as well.

Verdict: Keep at all costs

17)Aaron Lennon (RM)

An electrifying little winger, his crossing has improved ever so slightly but still not quite at the standard we all hope for. Creates havoc down the right with his pace, I just wish he would take on the opposing defenders a little more often.

Verdict: Keep

18)Jermaine Jenas (CM)

Unfortunately a has been for the Spurs team, doesn’t offer much anymore and is often caught out against superior opposititon,would be a good buy for a team from 10th to 15th in the table but unfortunately just not good enough for Spurs anymore.

Verdict: Sell and replace with Parker

19)Wilson Palacios (DM)

A passionate player who gives his all, unfortunately just hasn’t been the same since the death of his brother. With the emergence of Sandro and an already congested midfield, Wilson is going to struggle for game time next season.

Verdict: Sell

20)Luka Modric (AM)

Was voted as the player of the season by his club, the instrumental cog in the Spurs midfield and if sold Spurs will regress. A creative genius who can is at the heart of nearly all the entertaining football we have played this season. Irreplaceable in my opinion

Verdict: Keep At All Costs

21)Niko Kranjcar (RM)

Very unfortunate circumstances for Niko,scores two winners, three times for his country and yet cant force his way into the team, I believe he should be kept as cover and utilized a lot more next season however he is a brilliant player and deserves regular football at a decent team, so with a heavy heart I feel Spurs should sell him instead of wasting him on the bench and playing him for 3 minutes every other game.

Verdict: Sell Reluctantly

22)Jamie O’Hara (CM)

Looked like a decent prospect when he first broke into the first team, however being left out of the CC final really affected him, his back injury seems pretty serious and with an already loaded midfield will find it hard to break into the 1st team. Seems to have found his level at Wolves.

Verdict: Sell to Wolves

23)Danny Rose

Based on his goal against Arsenal alone Spurs should keep him, has been an excellent filler at left back since BAE’s injury and looks a promising player for the future, Spurs should give him sufficient game time next season and he will develop into a class player. Where to play him will be the biggest problem a natural left sided midfielder but brilliant at left back whereas Bale is a natural left back but a brilliant left sided midfielder.

Verdict: Keep

24)Sandro

I still remember the story of Sandro arriving at the airport to travel to the champ’s league qualifier game only to be told he wasn’t on the short list for the competition, a few months later and he was the stand out player against Milan and Madrid, how things can change so dramatically. When I first saw him play I though “here we go again”, Spurs have bought some relative unknown from Brazil and he just wont cut it at this level however he has proved myself and a lot of other doubters wrong, an absolute stalwart in the middle. Still laugh today after his goal against Chelsea and Harry’s reaction

Verdict: Keep

25)Steven Pienaar

Why on earth did we buy him was my initial reaction, we already have to many midfielders at the club, I still somewhat feel that way however there’s no doubting he was a bargain at 3 million and if the squad is trimmed sufficiently he will provide excellent cover across the midfield and he is South African.

Verdict: Keep

26)Rafael Van der Vaart

I heart Van Der Vaart,one of the most skillful players to play at the Lane since Ginola.With a full pre-season under his belt imagine what he is capable of. Yes Spurs have had to alter the way they play to accommodate him but what a fantastic player,im not particularly fond of him storming down the tunnel when substituted but that is a mere blip for an otherwise excellent player.

Verdict: Keep

27)Roman Pavlyuchenko

More erratic than a four year old manning a gattling gun, but by golly when the lad gets it right he is deadly. His goals in the champ’s league and his brace against Birmingham highlight that. I feel he has been under used in the league and has the potential to be a world class striker, unfortunately goes missing in games but more game time next season might rectify that.

Verdict: Keep but reassess at the end of the season.

28)Robbie Keane

Just what exactly did they do to him at Liverpool, they say players returning to old clubs hardly ever works and it seems that may be the case, unfortunately he isn’t what we need at Spurs anymore. A fantastic player in his day and a fantastic club captain. Spurs should do the right thing and sell him to Celtic and let him finish his playing days as a hero.

Verdict: Sell to Celtic

29)Peter Crouch

I have to agree with Harry when he says that Crouch offers something different to a team but that doesn’t necessarily mean smash the ball at his head from all over the park and pray for a decent knock down. The little and big combo was quite successful but I feel Spurs have to evolve and have different options. A difficult choice as I’m in two minds as to whether I would care he if stayed or went.

Verdict: Unsure

30)Giovani Dos Santos

Has fantastic potential, can’t seem to replicate his World Cup form at club level, sell to a club overseas as I can see him being the type of player who will come back to haunt us if stays in the league.

Verdict: Sell To Recoup Outlay

31)Jermain Defoe

Another to return after being sold and they jury is still out on that debate, in all honesty has had a miserable season in part to a relatively serious injury, but his game time to goal ratio just isn’t good enough at this level, carrying on in the media about lack of opportunities etc isn’t going to help him. Someone needs to tell Jermain that he is a striker and if he doesn’t score goals he doesn’t get picked.

Verdict: Keep For Another Season at Most

So out of 31 players Spurs can cut their bloated squad by 11 players and replace 4 of those players at most:

-          Gomes replace with Given

-          Jenas replace with Parker

-          Keane replace with Aguero/Huntelaar/Anelka/Klose/Gameiro etc

Lee Iser

With an unprecedented injury list throughout the squad, quite something to say at Tottenham, Harry somehow guided Spurs to 5th. Spurs managed to have as many as 11 of the squad injured at one time.

An unsettled back 4 caused by those injuries led to us conceding more than we needed, simple angled balls across the box from Wolves causing havoc in our defence is just one example and led to a 3-3 away draw against the lowest-scoring team in the Premier League (they scored 10% of their league goals against us in one game).

Injuries to strikers and a lack of confidence left us relying on midfielders for goals. Our highest scoring striker, Pavlyuchenko, squeezed into double figures with a brace on the final day. We still somehow managed to be the fifth highest scoring team in the league, 6 goals shy of Manchester City and 36 shy of Chelsea. A lot is said about van der Vaart and Bale but the rest of the team, minus strikers, contributed 29 goals.

Problems at both ends still only lost Spurs 8 games for the entire season. It was the draws, 14 of them, that stopped Tottenham finishing above Arsenal and left our boys, instead, 6 points adrift.

Where we lost points

At Chelsea. Away. Where there were three goals. Only one of them legitimate. And it was scored by Spurs. Robbed not by Chelsea and not by officials but by Sepp Blatter and his aversion to technology. The man is an arse and must be destroyed. Three points stolen by a corrupt arsehole in a corrupt organisation with no oversight. I am not at all emotional about this. Really.

A quick look at our season reveals that Tottenham play good football but cannot win against the bottom teams away from home. NerdyJester analysis says our Points Per Game (ppg) against the bottom 4 away from home is 0.5. This is worse than against the top 4 away from home at 0.75 ppg. We had the most fun against the teams finishing 6th to 9th in the Premier League, who presumably tried to play football against us rather than attack us savagely with improvised weapons. We fleeced them for 2.25 ppg away from home and 2.5 ppg at home.

According to Opta Stats

Gomes finished 4th best Keeper in the league according to Opta Stats. Only Foster at Birmingham has a higher saves to shots ratio. A notable 5th was “Englands number one” from the good old days, Paul Robinson, clawing back his respectability. Go Paul.

Second best passer in the league was a certain Luka Modric with 86% accuracy. Ahead of him was Michael Essien at 87% pass completion. Considering Modric plays much further up the field than him of them, and under a lot more pressure, I say well done.

No one in the Tottenham squad made it into the top 5 tacklers this season. The last Spurs player who did was Steed Malbranque in his final season. Sold, and not replaced, by some idiot Spaniard who couldn’t then work out why we couldn’t beat anyone…

Top goals to shots ratio, at 30% was, former Spurs Star Mr. Berbatov way ahead of 2nd place man Carlos Tevez at 24%. unsurprisingly no current Spurs strikers made the top 5…

Under-rated

Benoit Assou-Ekotto, the man who, when asked by the TV commentators looking for a short nickname, what they could call him, famously said, “You can call me Benoit Assou-Ekotto, it is my name.” I paraphrase since I am too lazy to hunt down the exact quote but you get the idea.

He called out all the sycophants who kiss the badge too easily. He is arrogant and imperious at left back. He makes me panic when he does little fancy moves under severe pressure with no cover but he almost always pulls them off. He scored a beautiful screamer, his only goal, from yards inside the halfway line. He costs us a goal, maybe 2, a season when he goes to sleep with a crossfield pass that was never on but he’s great to watch.

Honorable mention must go to Michael Dawson who has been working very hard on developing the rest of his game while still remaining a really top class (if slow) defender. A lot of people forget just how hard it is to be considered a top central defender without pace.

Over-rated

Blackpool’s Gary-Taylor Fletcher set up double the number of goals Gareth Bale did at Spurs. Bale scored a respectable 7 himself, though. Gareth Bale will be world class but it is worth remembering that he isn’t world-class yet. Do not misunderstand me- not since the days of David Ginola have I enjoyed watching a Tottenham footballer as much. He is quick and his skill is sublime but the plaudits he has received have more to do with media hype than ultimate performance on the pitch. Tottenham fans got it right when they made Modric, and not Bale, their footballer of the year.

Now to sit back and wait for the hate-mail…

Emergent talent of the Season

If you forget that Gareth Bale was an also-ran player last season raised to godlike status with his Champions League performances then the competition is between Danny Rose and Sandro. Kyle Walker would also be in there if not for the fact that he was on loan at Villa.

In the end I think we have to hand it to Sandro above Danny Rose, despite the kid’s incredible crossing ability and Harry playing him out of position. Danny, I am reliably informed, is a winger not a left back- and a better left back than Gareth Bale who, oddly enough, is meant to be a left back not a winger but is a fine winger.

Sandro looked out of place and off the pace when he first took to the field and the old “here we go again” feeling settled into the pit of my stomach. In the second-half of this season, however, the boy who was told in Brazil that he was actually born to be an English footballer because of his delight in the tackle, has shone. Pace, agility, aggression and skill make him a future Makelele or Essien.

Best signing of the Season

Rafael van der Vaart.

Flop signing of the Season

Steven Pienaar. Since his arrival he has offered nothing more than Jenas, Palacios, or O’Hara could have. However, I expect him to settle in and come good next season. He does have the ability to score, showed some great passing using both feet at Everton and bites constantly at the ankles of the opposition. Steed Malbranque without the age and Frenchness.

Why is this article called “Building the Grindhouse”?

Because that is what Spurs need to do. Of the top 5 teams only two cannot grind out results against determined, lower-league opposition and they sit 4th and 5th. Kenny Dalglish now has Liverpool doing it in 6th and you can bet they’re going to be mixing it up in the top4 next year. Key to grinding out results are hard workers and hard tacklers with a strong, skilled striker to hold up the ball and muscle out defenders. Creative players then come on between 70 and 80 minutes against tired opposition if the result isn’t yet safe.

Chelsea under Jose Mourinho and Bolton under Sam Allardyce were ultimate Grindhouses. If we had had Kevin Davies from Bolton instead of Peter Crouch from Mars (a lower gravity planet) I firmly believe we could be further up the log.

Grinding does not mean there is nothing to watch and no skill on display and with the exception of a striker we already have the players to grind out results. Replace Crouch, our only and gangly target man or Pavlyuchenko, who hasn’t the strength to hold off opponents, with a Drogba, van Persie, van Nistlerooy or Berbatov. Suddenly and we can turn the results against the bottom 4 into into the same results we got playing positions 6-9 on the log. We find ourselves with 19 points instead of 10.

Okay smartarse, who is your “Grindhouse” team?

Gomes

Hutton – King – Gallas – Ekotto (Hutton ahead of Corluka for width in attack)

Kaboul – Jenas – Sandro (Jenas can swop out with Palacios or Pienaar depending on form)

Modric – van der Vaart

Striker who is unknown

After 70 minutes a tired opposition could face any combination of Bale, Lennon, Defoe and Pavlyuchenko who all thrive on space so much they could be astronauts. This is basically what Chelsea have been doing since Jose Mourinho formed the team way back in the 17th century and the reason why Manchester United can win the league with, mostly, a very ordinary squad.

Final Words

It may well be Harry’s final season with us. England beckons and we can only hope that the Football Asociation continues to make derisory appointments and passes Harry up. Let’s enjoy it in case they do not.

Against Liverpool I was reminded, watching all 5 minutes he had on the pitch, why Niko Krancjar fell so far behind in the pecking order at Spurs: (1) he is no longer fast by Tottenham squad standards, (2) his best position is behind the striker and both van der Vaart and Modric play there and (3) if they are unfit Harry would prefer a Defoe/Crouch or Defoe/Pavlyuchenko combination.

For him to stay another season without footie at Spurs would be a crime. I would love to see him join an Everton, an Aston Villa or a Sunderland. A team that wants to play good football and needs an additional creative spark. If Harry decides to keep him around I can only hope he gives him some football in games where pace is not the answer.

Given the choice of Europa League football next winter and testing out some more of our youngsters like Danny Rose for the last few matches of the season I would choose the latter but I suspect that I am, as with many things, in the minority on that count.

Tonight we play Manchester City on their home turf without Gareth Bale and with no firing strikers. Watch with drink in hand is my suggestion. COYS!!