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Jim Duggan's TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR site |
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The
thoughts and views on THFC from Jim Duggan – Born in the year of the Cockerel,
Shelfside season ticket holder & supporter since the early 1970s (last updated 01/09/03 20:28 PM) - Spurs
fans of the world Unite
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THE TOPSPURS COLUMNISTS |
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30th August 2003 – Spurs 0-3 Fulham
We’ve been here before…another wretched showing by Spurs and another embarrassing defeat which has dampened much of the optimism generated by the last couple of results. I’m sick of reporting back on another miserable match for Spurs, made even worse by thinking that we’d finally turned the corner with Hoddle in control after a couple of decent results in the last week.
More empty seats must be a concern for the board who have invested heavily this summer but the same old ineptitude and lack of passion as the end of last season, and another humiliating defeat to add to the countless others over the last few seasons. I really want Hoddle to be the man but the evidence both on and off (trying all week to sign Petit) is not looking good. We have everything in place to start moving forward again and the best squad at the Lane since the early/mid 90’s, so why is it not working & the optimism (well my optimism at least) with Hoddle so short lived?
I did my best to big up Redknapp last week, but he is not a player I like or rate and today gave an abject display, epitomising the lack of heart at the centre of the problems of Hoddle’s Tottenham. In this day and age, central midfielders who cannot run, tackle or head, have questionable bottle and do not last much after 70 minutes, even at his modest level, are not going to feature in a successful team. In short, he is an English Bunje and captain or not he should be “rested” with Ledley told he has to play central midfield, and better still tossed on to Harry’s dustcart next time it comes knocking to take away our crap.
The half time substitution was baffling (unless King was injured) as it totally unbalanced things and very soon we were back to the old days of players playing out of position and others playing even though they were not fit. In short, we were a mess. Things were not much better in the first half when we had gifted footballers like Gardner and King, lumping high diagonal balls up to strikers all the time. This is not a random thing they do when they have run out of ideas; it’s a tactic, albeit a very poor one. With its lack of success, you have to wonder why we do it and have been doing it for quite a while when it is so ineffective. Perhaps Gorman could start a sentence with “No Glenn…” and not only when he going to put a Kenny G CD on.
It was the usual reasons for the performance but individual errors for the goals. Richards was culpable for a couple but everyone is entitled to an off day and we know he’ll be back, although we are left to wonder whether rest and not surgery for his recent injury is allowing him to operate at his best. Anderton was another to have a shocker but again, he did not look fit and I wonder if he was only out there to prove to the Portsmouth Chairman that he was fit enough to be sold.
Postiga is starting to get a Rebrov look about him, being forced to contest high balls with the mile high Knight and generally looking lost. Kanoute worked hard for the team but with no service did not look a goal threat. Of all of our strikers, Zamora looked the most dangerous coming on at half time and if there was any justice in the world, he would retain his place in the team, but big reputations and big signing fees should ensure that he has to work doubly hard. Ricketts is another without any “reputation” who again had a decent match creating the one decent chance Spurs had all match when putting Kanoute through, and if Dalmat comes in against Chelsea, the below par Davies (and Sharon) should be the ones for the archer. This is nothing to do Ricketts and Zamora’s age, it’s because they are good and currently effective for Spurs, merit of performances being surely the number one criteria for selection.
All in all, it was another shite day at White Hart Lane, and if the 90 minutes of football was not bad enough, those of us who could not be arsed to leave early, were subjected to a very loud “Tubthumping” by Chumbawumba, booming out as Winter blew the final whistle, presumably to drown out the anticipated boos. A very very sad and inopportune event on a sad day, opening with “We'll be singing, when we're winning“ – a real toe curler moment, and Alice Nutter repeating the line “pissing the night away” is contrary to the sad notices in the stadium about swearing. ”Oh Danny boy” indeed.
WHL has not been a happy place for a while for Spurs, where our last few results have been 2-3,2-1,0-2,0-2,0-4,2-1,0-3 – a total of 6 goals scored and 16 conceded in seven matches – different players (only Keller, Carr, King and Davies started against Liverpool at the start of the run), different formations and tactics but the same results and performances, the Leeds match last week apart.
As bad as it feels at the moment, there is still plenty to be optimistic about at Spurs in general. I’ve not given up on the renaissance – the board have done well bringing in new players, including signing Dalmat this afternoon, and shifting out the too old/too shit over the summer, meaning that on paper at least, things look good. That is where the management and coaches come in and for the most part in 2003 we have been pretty ineffective. This needs to change, or at least look like we are on the road to change, without ever dropping back to this shit level. And it needs to happen soon and be sustainable and not a flash in pan. Surely its not asking the impossible for Spurs to be good again, is it?
30th August 2003 – Spurs sign Dalmat on loan
Spurs have signed Stephane Dalmat on loan for the rest of the season from Inter Milan in what looks a good deal for Spurs. Dalmat plays in midfield and is a very versatile player who can occupy a variety of positions.
He has good technique; good ball control and is pacey which has often seen managers use him wide on the left midfield, making him an ideal replacement for Ziege. Despite being left footed, he is comfortable with either foot and also has a good engine and plenty of stamina, which should mean he can adapt to the pace of the Premiership.
With all these good qualities, there is bound to be a downside if he is coming to us, and his problems appear to be with teammates and coaches. Apparently he has the Anderton and Beckham disease of being good wingers who believe they are central midfielders but with Spurs problems in that position, he should at least get a chance to play a more central role for Spurs.
He started his career in 98/99 for Lens, playing as an attacking central midfielder and earned favourable comparisons to the “wooden” Zidane. He quickly moved on to Marseille but after a dodgy season for the team, where he was often used out of position at left back by a coach he did not get on with, he moved on to PSG where he formed an attacking midfield to die for alongside Citeh’s Benarbia and Newcastle’s Robert. A new coach came in and it all got ugly before Dalmat moved on to Inter.
In true Tottenham tradition, he was injured for most of last season but he had impressed in a left midfield role before his injury. He has U21 caps and has possibly represented the French team, although not recently and was once sold for £10m so he has a pretty decent pedigree and if he settles at THFC could be a good signing.
30th August 2003 – Update on Convey – Well done (again) to the Board!
It’s a weird summer when you spend all the time thinking what the chairman and board at THFC are doing is wonderful, but after breathing new life into Spurs, Levy has also tapped into the outrage at the double standards in turning down of Convey’s work permit, as reported on here yesterday.
The full text is available on the official site Chairman Levy's words on Convey
They describe the factors which go into the assessment of a work permit as: the amount being paid for the player, his wages, whether anyone of similar value is available in the domestic market and whether he has played in 75 per cent of his country's competitive internationals in the previous two years. The statement says that Convey has played in 15 International matches in 2003 alone - more than any other American player. Howard who signed for ManUre has played in six.
Levy said: "I firmly believe that an injustice has been done and I urge all the bodies involved to review the system, as there are certainly several anomalies at present … It is far too subjective in its current form as it literally comes down to the individual opinions of six people and as we know football is all about opinions. Set criteria have been applied in some circumstances and ignored in others. Unless the authorities, along with the Premier League and PFA come together to form a common view nothing is likely to change and that, unfortunately, is the reality of the situation.
"We are part of the European Union and UEFA, yet clubs in mainland Europe can secure work permits for foreign players on a far easier basis than clubs in the UK are able to. For example, in Holland and Belgium it is extremely easy to get a permit for a foreign player. Surely all European clubs should be competing on a level playing field? I believe there should be a European policy that doesn’t hinder the recruitment of worldwide talent into Europe.
“I want to reassure our supporters that we will not let this situation lie and will be pursing this matter vigorously until the system is made fair and equal for all clubs and players."
And Word to all of that
29th August 2003 – Fulham Preview - Promise into fulfilment
We’ve done well this summer, both on and off the pitch, but the match against crappy Fulham it’s the acid test; all very well getting 0-0’s in the face of difficult tasks but there can be no excuse to not put Fulham away if we are serious about moving forward. This match has to be a dead cert three points and a game to bolster the goal difference.
Fulham are zhit. Even Everton who have not won a game by more than a single goal since Moyes took over managed to race into a three goal lead against them last week, their best player is too injured to move to another club and their next best player has hot footed it off to Marseilles. Not to mention a 32 year old player drafted in as manager. Until last season’s debacles, home and away, Spurs had only lost 4 of the 46 matches against Fulham, with a massive 24 wins in 46 previous games.
No excuses, time to deliver the first tangible rewards of the
summer of promise, and with that in mind, I reckon a repeat of the 4-0
scoreline of a couple of seasons ago at 28/1 with Blue Sq. After going close to
scoring from a Ricketts cross after 10 minutes last week, I can see no reason
to desert Carr for the first goal, esp. as he has drifted out to 40/1 this
week. Priced up as a full back, playing wing back/right wing is definitely one
for us value hunters, and combining the two, its 700/1
Click on the button to get a £10 free bet from Blue Square
And for those going on from THFC to Walthamstow on Saturday night, topspurs very own greyhound Lilywhite Lane will be contesting the S1 feature event of the evening and granted decent luck in running (and an early lead) must have a decent chance of bringing home the bacon.
And don’t forget – make sure you get the new issue of CADD before the match
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The premier Tottenham fanzine – Still only £2 & available from the usual sellers or CADD c/o PO Box 6979 LONDON, N5 1JQ Great stuff including an article on Nutty Naylor, the 10 most important matches in our fall from grace and even a quote from Julius Caesar! |
Blue Square
- Fantasy Football – Blue Square is running a
Fantasy Football League, in partnership with Fantasy League - the original
product, not a cheap imitation.
Unlike other competitions, ours is free to enter and will have a first
prize of £10,000 plus many other prizes including Manager of the Month and
prizes for Chairmen of private leagues.
And make sure you join the private TOPSPURS league. Register your teams in the normal way by visiting the link above and then visit your team screen. They then click on the PRIVATE LEAGUE button and apply to join.
28th August 2003 – No go on Bobby Convey
Modern football, as well all know in many different ways, is bent. But even knowing this it still comes as a shock to get stiffed by the same rules which other clubs need not worry about. The fucking cunting Tourettes keeper at ManUre has played 9 games for the USA but there is not even a whimper when he gets signed, but Convey who despite being younger has played 14 matches in total, including three matches in July 2003 when Howard was not even near the squad, as well as being one of the youngest players to represent the USA, has been turned down, even after appeal. In fact, most of Howard’s caps were when European based keepers Keller and Friedel were not available, and it is a joke, one rule for the rich...
Its called cheating – and yet again we are the victims and no doubt we are going to crawl away without complaining rather than serving it up and making a fuss for justice.
Not one for the ladies – Tottenham player of the year in 2000/01 Neil Sullivan has been shown the door after nearly 18 months in the Hoddle/ENIC cold since a disagreement in April 2002, and according to the official site will sign for Chelsea tomorrow. Give a way an international goalkeeper to the richest club in the world who have just spent £100m on transfers? Don’t get it.
The official site dress this up as a chance of Hirschfeld and Burch (without a thank you to Sully for his service) but anyone with half brain realises that this is a sad day for the club. With money being the God in modern football, nothing is irreconcilable and for Spurs not to play Sully for the last year and a half and then give him away is just such a massive shame, esp. when some reserve watchers are not that impressed with Hirschfeld. As with the last window and the non signing of a replacement for Ferdinand, cue Keller to get injured/suspended!
I wish Sully all the best in the future & thank him for some memorable performances during 2000/01, notably against the Scum at home when he was the one and only player ever to receive a 10/10 match report rating at topspurs.
Other News – Yesterday, the shop shut signs were up for this window, but as these things turn daily, a few hours later and there are all sorts of possibles, including shitbag Petit. It appears that we have put in bids for Van Bommel, Papa Dioup, even Graveson if the reports from up North are true, over the last few weeks but have been blown out either by the club or player not wanting to know.
Do we need another midfielder? Yes. Do we want someone we have only thought of two days before the deadline as all of our original choices are unavailable? Most probably not as it will look and probably be a panic buy. The board have done a great job this summer breathing new life into Spurs and don’t want to cock it all up now by signing someone on a whim. Or even worse, giving into the incredible sulk and signing Petit.
27th August 2003 – Liverpool 0-0 Spurs
Its official: the rot is over.
Well it feels like it at last. The good signings over the summer, a change in managerial direction, the bonus of Ricketts and our first point, and a deserved one, up at Anfield for 7 seasons on the back of a good result and performance against Leeds suggests things are at last turning for the better for Spurs. All credit to the Hoddle for the tactics and the players for their disciplined approach, and even though it was not the strongest looking Liverpool side we’ve faced up there, a point still represents a good result and maintains the progress.
Not only was it our first point up there since the days of Mullethead, Austin, Sinton and Fox back in Feb 96, it was our first clean sheet in 16 matches, and the first time in over 100 league matches that Hoddle has been able to play Richards, King and Gardner in consecutive matches. It’s a lot easier to be optimistic about Spurs these days, even if we don’t bolster the midfield area (which now looks likely) and its time for optimistic daydreams about a realistic top 5 challenge this season. Next stop is Fulham, and we have to make sure we make up for the follies of last season by putting them away in good style at the weekend. Happier days, at last!
That’s yer lot, No more signings - Not sure what went on with the Brazilian but that ain’t gonna happen, at least in the next couple of days. This is not the first time Spurs have been stiffed by a club who won’t sell or a player who won’t come, but all credit to them for being in there and getting involved. With Petit also a non-runner that looks like it for this window and there does not look to be anymore signings before the deadline, or at least not ones that are in the frame at the moment.
So sit back and reflect on a quality summer of signings by the board and the promise of a better season ahead on the pitch. Sure we could have done with something a bit better in the midfield but it’s worth reflecting on what has been achieved and it has been the best summer of transfer dealings, both in and out for years and years. It’s more than an inch and it’s very much in the right direction.
And Finally – I’d like to send my best wishes to Damien Davis is to wed his fiancé Mel at St Andrews Church, Kingham, Oxfordshire on Saturday afternoon. Hope you have a great day!
26th August 2003 – Liverpool Preview
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In previous seasons, the match preview for the Liverpool game used to contain that picture of the “Scousers” in the yellow Liverpool shirts on the terrace. In each of the now 4 seasons TOPSPURS has been going, I’ve wheeled it out and gone up there to see Spurs get beaten in the now familiar pattern of bent refs, cheatin Scousers and no points. Well no more – no this season anyway. In an effort to bring about a Spurs win up there, and being hugely superstitious and with a certain degree of prompting from TOPSPURS Columnist Crackers, I’ve taken some action. Firstly, the picture goes. We were cursed long before it appeared on topspurs up there, but if losing it this year helps the cause, it’s a worth sacrifice. Secondly, as my 8 or so visits up there have all been defeats – from giving away two goal leads to wholesale surrender 4-0, I’m giving it a miss this year to allow the gods to favour Spurs up there. |
Even without my Jonah like presence, it will not be easy up there as Liverpool have a decent side and it is the sort of game Spurs have regularly lost over the last decade. In some respects a hiding to nothing, so we should play without fear. But this year, with Inspector Clouseau ring twitchin at 1 point out of 6 and only one twice taken kop end penalty so far, a spirited Spurs side with good discipline at the back, pace and bite in the midfield and more accurate finishing than at the weekend may just have a chance. Here’s hoping…
Diego and Petit Updates
Diego: It has been utter madness on the message board with rumours, counter rumours and all sorts going on. It is safe to say they want money, we want to buy and it’s whether the sides can agree a price and schedule. If it happens, it happens, chill, whichever way it goes, it will not be the making or the end of the world for Spurs.
Sure it would be good to have him, now or later, but the latest valuations of the offer take it up to £9.6m which is a lot to pay for an 18 year old Brazilian on the back of one good season in anyone’s money, esp. on top of our already decent outlay this summer. The board know how much dough we have but we still need to get the right balance between income and expenditure as well or is that very boring of me to think of these things in times of mass hysteria.
With it dragging on, and the need for there to be a plan B that does not involve Petit, it would be helpful if the club could wrap this one up one way or the other ASAP so that we don’t miss out elsewhere.
Petit: The Petit story has been niggling away at me since the weekend so I was pleased when I heard that the club had released an official statement denying we were after him. There is a rumour that this move was prompted by a number of well reasoned emails from Spurs supporters outlining what a regressive move Petit would be and we should be thankful that the club are sensitive to our concerns (and just as thankful that we have supporters ready to make a stand, Tottenham salutes you all!). The club statement read:
"Contrary to press speculation over the last couple of days, the Club can confirm that no bid has been made to Chelsea for midfielder Emmanuel Petit."
Petit has got under my skin enough to make analyse that all of this is in the past tense and no mention of future action, an unease increased by the story in the standard linking Sully to Chelsea in a swap for Petit, remembering the standard have a very good source of info when it comes to these things.
I have to admit that our new forward looking and progressive board are most unlikely to sanction this madness, esp. as its coming from the manager rather than the board and it will be pretty difficult to go back and sign the wanker after the above statement but a statement such this would have made me sleep a bit easier:
"Contrary to press speculation over the last couple of days, the Club can confirm WE HAVE NOT AND WILL NOT bid has been made to Chelsea for wanker Emmanuel Petit”
The Petit saga also stokes the fires in the back of our minds about Hoddle, largely put out by the good summer signings, clear out and start to the season. Did he jump or was he pushed and is it sustainable as part of Hoddle’s plan or will Ricketts get dropped for Sharon when available? Hoddle deserves the benefit of the doubt and our wholehearted support but not sure if he has led us out of the woods just yet. I want to believe…
25th August 2003 – Petit Update – Bad news but I think we may have got away with it
After breaking the first story on Saturday night (another topspurs exclusive!), it appeared in the Express today and both Petit via his agent and Hoddle have commented on it. Fortunately for Tottenham it looks like being a happy ending with Petit’s agent coming out with this:
"There's no credence to the speculation linking him to Tottenham. At the moment he's still trying to get himself fit, after he had a knee operation in the summer. But he's happy at Chelsea and he will be more than happy to fight for his place when he's fit."
Perhaps someone should move to make these comments legally binding just in case, esp. as Hoddle seemed keen on Petit in an interview with Sky.
Signing Petit would be an unmitigated disaster and against all the principles of “Part 2” of the Hoddle new revolution. Petit is old and shit, even when he was younger he was only rated a fifth of Marc Overmars and has looked second rate since leaving Vieira’s side at Scumbury. Old, expensive, and just recovering from an injury with his best days (if he ever had any) very much behind him (and a goon to boot), surely the management can encourage Hoddle to look elsewhere, and if he won’t do it willingly, lead him by the ear for the good of the club!
Signing an injured Chelsea reserve, who is nearly 33 and an ex-gooner. Fuck, who could be so bloody stupid! And at the same time, paying Portsmouth £750k to take Anderton away – fucking madness, even to think about it!
Check the video of his performance in arfa arfa match 18 months ago – shit, and one of the reasons someone as normally appalling as Deadwood had a good game in the midfield but looked less good when Petit was dropped for the Cup game afterwards.
For fuck sake the last time he came over here, he used the cab fare and pissed off to Scumbury. He’s a slag and I say again, Petit would be a terrible disaster for Spurs. Time to man the barricades and defend the good name of the club we love!
On the French theme, unconfirmed rumours around that Gormless and Pleat were watching the PSG – Monaco game with the following line ups
PSG : Alonzo - Heinze, Mendy, Pierre-Fanfan, Cubilier -
M'Bami, Déhu, J.Leroy (Ogbeche, 67e) - Fiorèse (Paulo Cesar, 88e), Pauleta,
Reinaldo (Diawara, 75e). Entr. : Halilhodzic.
Monaco : Roma - Evra, Rodriguez, Squillaci, El Fakiri (Givet, 65e) - Rothen, Zikos, Bernardi, Giuly - Adebayor, Nonda (E. Cissé, 8e). Entr. : Deschamps.
Possibly Rothen is the player they were after (assuming all forwards are sorted now) who has just broken into the French national side and on an “anyone but Petit” ticket looks worth a go.
24th August 2003 – All sorted & let the good times roll
· · We wanted Hoddle and we got Hoddle.
· · We wanted the Board to invest and the Board have invested (finally), and not only that, invested well
· · We wanted great strikers and we have got 4 great strikers
· · We wanted pace and vitality in the team and at last it looks like we are getting it
Ok, so we wanted a bit more beef in the midfield but we can’t have it all and the progress made by the club since May has been excellent. This is what we wanted pretty much and now that we have it, we have to be patient and let it grow and develop. There is a way to go, but at last it looks like we are going the right way after months of the blind leading the lame.
Next step, a run of good performances and the first step up from the crap, winning more than we lose, scoring more than we let in, but if things continue to be done in a positive way, the board have done their best off the field and the player do their best on it, we’ll have to accept what hand fate deals us with good grace.
It will be interesting to see if Leeds are the side that nearly beat Newcastle or the side that could not win a pre-season friendly match, but Spurs could do no more than win and win well and we travel to Liverpool in the knowledge that cheatin’ Scousers & bent refs apart, we have a good chance up there of at least avoiding defeat and all in all, the dark clouds are lifting and things are starting to look up.
And take advantage of Blue Square’s misreading of the match, as they have us at a massive 6/1 up there (9/2 elsewhere). Our record in recent seasons up there is not a good one, but Inspector Clouseau show feat. Pinocchio’s on vocals is not as strong as previous Liverpool sides up there and that looks like one to have a tilt at
Click here to access the Blue
Square site - and a free £10 bet for new customers
14/1 to win 1-0, 22/1 for 2-1 and a massive 80/1 to match the score of our last win 3-1, also in a match just before their manager was for the elbow.
(Monday Price change – due to a welter of support for the mighty Spurs, Blue Square have cut our price into 5/1)
23rd August 2003 – Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Leeds United – Salute Kanoute
The sun shines again! After months of shite and a seemingly hopeless drift away from the Premiership party, the good work of the board and Hoddle over the summer was translated on to the pitch today in what was quite simply the best win Spurs have had for ages. Sure a 2-1 score does not sound that wonderful – but we were all over them and it was a matter of when and not if.
I wrote in the match preview:
I think not worrying about letting in the first goal because you know the team can come back and score at least two more … will be a good indicator if and when Spurs ever pull out of the mid-table mire
And today for the first time in ages I was not worried that Spurs would come back to win – you cannot believe how good it feels!
We are not the finished article, and the objective this season remains winning a cup and getting to 6th in the league (or wherever top of the crap is this season), but for the first time there is genuine hope, something that has been sadly lacking for so so long.
Plus points all over the pitch, apart from I suppose Keller as you can legitimately expect a premiership keeper to deal with the shot Smif scored with. That made no odds and only set the game up for attack on defence for Spurs. A couple of minutes after the goal, Zamora was put through and he accelerated past his defender before smashing his shot wide but it was like exorcising the ghosts of the pensioner strikers to see a Spurs forward go past a defender like that. Zamora had a good game and looks ready for the Premiership & I’m sure £1.5m will look a bargain.
Up front with him, Postiga took time to settle into the pace of the game –often coming short of his defender to pick the ball up only to see it being punted up for him to contest in the air – something that will be resolved as he gets used to the Premiership and the players get used to his game. It was in the second period that Postiga came into his own and looked a sharp striker with a fierce shot and was unlucky to come away from the game without a goal, which will surely not be long in coming.
Zamora took a knock on the hour and Kanoute replaced him to a warm reception. Kanoute, like Zamora did not look 100% but still managed to score a truly wonderful goal, trapping the ball on his toe, swivelling to fire home within 10 minutes of coming on. I think only Deano and JK have scored on debut in the last 10 years or so and the goal was not that different from Klinsmann's against Everton in his first home match.
Keane, Postiga, Kanoute and Zamora – all signed within the last year and riches beyond our recent dreams
Much of the good Spurs play was on the shelf side of the pitch – in the first half Ricketts and Taricco and in the second Davies and Carr. In a team performance where everyone did well, Taricco nicked the man of the match for me for his excellent use of the space offered him by Wilcox and he linked up really well with Ricketts to give Leeds all sorts of problems before scoring one of the goals of the season. On his 100th League appearance, and after only one deflected goal in the previous 99, Treacle having a great shot which flew only just over the crossbar was memorable in itself, but there was even better to come. Zamora sprayed the ball wide just inside the Spurs half as Spurs broke out of defence. Treacle raced onto it with Postiga and Zamora making ground into the penalty area, Treacle cut inside onto his right (surprise!), before flashing a sensational shot into the top corner. Wonderful stuff and although a home goal has been a long time coming, it was top quality.
Ricketts was also excellent with Taricco and his effort and determination give a much needed extra dimension to the midfield and deserves a long run in the team to develop into a good premiership player. He one thing I did notice about Ricketts is that he holds his forearms horizontally when he is on the ball in much the same way that Thelwell. I have a lot of time for him and he is the unexpected bonus of the opening weeks.
Carr came agonisingly close to getting on the end of a Ricketts cross in the first half (told you that 33/1 is a good bet one of these days) and generally had a good match, especially in the second half, getting forward and linking with Davies, who although looking a little way below his best, did at least show signs of better form.
I was also impressed with Redknapp who showed good skill and reading of the game in the middle of the park, although the concern as ever with him was that he was running on empty from 70 minutes and could hardly raise a leg to tackle as Leeds sought a late equaliser.
At the back, there are no worries. Deano took out a distinctly lethargic FAW and Ledley and Gardner were also class. Its time to get on the old prayer mats to pray that these three, along with Kanoute, Redknapp and all the others stay injury free.
Today was a good day at Spurs and as old Lao Tzu said, “Give a man a lucky win and he will be happy for a day, give a man a good performance with young players, talent, pace and hope and it last a season and beyond.”
Transfer News – First the good news
My apologies for being a bit slow off the mark with the Diego story but it seems like we are tantalisingly close – as of Saturday evening – of landing our man. The deal is pretty much done in terms of all the hard stuff. We are sorted with Santos, his old man and I think with the player and everything is in place including a Italian passport (if they are short of dodgy passports, plenty around down the grocers shops in Green Lanes although they may have to convince FIFA he is an Albanian Brazilian) - all done that is apart from a “Brazilian standoff” over when he arrives.
Santos want to keep him for the rest of their season which would mean we get him in the next transfer window but naturally enough, if we are coughing up the Real’s (R$), we want him to spearhead our assault on the Champions League this season. That is how it stands, and there appears to be genuine excitement about this one.
They want to sell, we want to buy and he wants to come – all that is to do is to sort out the final “deal” which makes it all happen and with a week to go, its probably going to go to the wire as each side seeks the best value.
It would be good to get him now, but the most important thing is that we get him and even if it means January, so be it, just as long as we get him.
…And now the not so good news – It was put to me “one for now, and one for later”. The one for later appears to be Diego but “faaaackin no! No! No way, he’s a faackin cunt” was how I greeted the news of the name of the other player. He’s nearly 33, steals cab fares, vowed he would never play for Spurs out of respect for the cunts that line the North Bank, sits in some second rate club’s reserves and it will be "my little groany’s" all round if he signs.
Say no to Petit, we don’t need him & we don’t want him – don’t ruin it all now. I would rather have no one and take our chances with Redknapp, Sharon and even Bunje than have him sour the apples at Spurs.
Don’t have nightmares, plenty of these stories go just as quickly as the drop out of the night air, and lets just hope this is one of them.
Glenn Hoddle – 100 Not out as a manager (P100 W41 D17 L42 F147 A149)
Today was Hoddle’s 100th match in charge since that awful day at Old Trafford against the Scum. The record is hardly something to get excited about (and is a lot worse if you just take league matches) but after the summer signings, the summer clear out and today’s showing the next 100 should be much better.
Through these pages in recent months, it has been quite obvious that I could not see how Hoddle was going to be the man to turn it around, even after last weekend and the promise shown despite the defeat. There was never anything personal, all critiques were dressed up with appropriate reverence to the Tottenham legend but today for the first time I am happy to say that I am back with Hoddle and think that he should get the time he needs to build the young team which will be Hoddle’s Tottenham – Phase Two (out with the old and bring on the young).
It is a great relief & lets hope this time its for real!
Hoddle: "I'm delighted. It was a good win for us and one that we should be proud of. The crowd were fantastic as well even when we were 1-0 down. They can take a large slice of the credit for this result. We responded to them and totally dominated. I think we could have come in winning by several goals.
"Everyone pulled together and now we can go to Anfield on Wednesday with a lot of confidence to face Liverpool."
Word to all of that!
Low attendance
I suppose it was not a surprise with the desperate form towards the end of last season and defeat up at Brum, but even so, it was quite a shock to see empty areas and not just the odd empty seat with only 34,354 turning up, especially as it was the first game of the season.
A bit of digging has revealed the following attendances for the first Saturday home game in the last few seasons when the capacity has been 36,236
2002-03: Villa 35,384, 2001-02: Villa 36,059, 2000-01: Ipswich 36,148, 1998-99: Sheff Wed 32,129 (and also 1999-00: Newcastle 28, 701 (Monday night & on Sky))
While it’s not a disaster, and on the back of this good win we should be back to normal against Fulham next week, it does show that there is a price and perhaps a quality elasticity effect on ticket pricing.
If ever there was a good time to renew your season ticket or get a new one its now. The Spurs board have had a terrific summer signing a whole host of good players with one poss. two more to come and at last the football looks as though it may start to get better. Click here - Go on, you know you want to!
Good turnout
Another good show from the topspurs before the match and it was especially good to meet up with a few of our friends from the frozen North – Jesper and his charming wife from Denmark, Oystein and his three friends from Norway and not forgetting old GeordieYid from Newcastle & it was good that Spurs put on a show for them, and of course, Irish Den.
Who is more ashamed?
While watching Pennant today, getting rightly roundly booed for being a goon, I wondered who had the more to be ashamed about – him, as his mother/Step mother is allegedly a prostitute in Nottingham? Or the mother/Step mother having a son who is registered as a player with Arsenal.
And finally – Pratty Etherington’s though for the day
While Spurs batter one of only 5 sides to have won the title in the last 15 years, Pratty and the rest of the Canning Town Bingo and Social Club are losing 1-0 at Champions League “Real” Rotherham – you silly boy!
23rd August 2003 – New CADD out today
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Don’t forget to get the premier Tottenham fanzine – Still only £2 & available from the usual sellers or CADD c/o PO Box 6979 LONDON, N5 1JQ Great stuff including an article on Nutty Naylor, the 10 most important matches in our fall from grace and even a quote from Julius Ceasar! |
21st August 2003 – Leeds Preview
Its almost impossible to get a consistent feeling about where Spurs are at the mo. A bad end to the season, down. A good load of signings over the summer, up. Another defeat to start the new season, down. But some promising performances from 4 debutants, up. And that’s even before thinking about Hoddle & the contradictions his management has delivered between heart and head (eyes and brain).
With Keane, with Richards and Ledley coming in at the back, Ricketts being given another chance and at home, I was reasonably confident of Spurs getting a win but take away Keane (and it looks like he has been taken away for the next 3 matches at least) and its all up in the air again. Who knows!
In terms of team news – Perrydinho is back from suspension, King and Richards made it thro a reserve match, Carr has shaken off his knock, Sharon has risen (although cannot be match fit), and Kanoute and Zamora look like being available for the bench at the very least so we should have a decent few to pick from & something like
Keller – King, (Richards/Bunje), King – (Treacle/Marney), Ricketts, Redknapp, Davies, Carr – Postiga, (Kanoute/Zamora)
Looks a reasonable team and perhaps a spirited Spurs side (fired up to play for the manager?) including the likes of Postiga, Zamora, and Kanoute, urged on by the masses under the summer sunshine can prove too strong for the Dirty Lids but equally Fat Aussie Wanka usually has his say against us and our recent record is hardly inspiring. I like FAW and hope the banter between him and the Spurs crowd is as good as ever.
Things may not be too clever at Leeds at the mo, stacked up with debt and shedding star players to who’ll ever pick up their inflated wage tabs, but on their last two visits to London they whacked Charlton 6-1 and then did what we have been desperate to do for ages, won at Scumbury to stop the Goons winning the title. Add a win against Villa on the last day and a decent draw against Newcastle (forgetting the pre-season nonsense in between) and Leeds are in much better form than us, even if they lack the quality of previous years.
With no points from our first match and a tough looking visit up to Murkeyside (where we have lost the equivalent fixture for the last 7 seasons), this game takes on the importance of a must win match. I was going to write the cliché of the first goal being important. It will but if we score it we’ll worry about conceding an equaliser and if we let one in the 5 matches or so without a goal at WHL and the last three league matches start to become a factor.
I think not worrying about letting in the first goal because you know the team can come back and score at least two more or when you score the first starting to think about threes and fours will be a good indicator if and when Spurs ever pull out of the mid-table mire as it seems a long time since we have had justified confidence in a Spurs team being able to do that.
The last but most vital thing Spurs need is a bit of luck, no cheating just the rub of the green which would lift some of the long faces and dark clouds around the management and give everyone a bit of breathing space to operate normally and not in panic mode. Although it is said, you earn your luck…
In terms of predictions, you can’t go near Spurs at a shade of
odds against to win the match but Carr’s 33/1 seems a reasonable shout for the
first goal as he seemed to be getting in the box a bit more against Lisbon and
is well overdue a goal (Brilliant free kick away at Leicester on the last day
two seasons ago wannit?).
£10 free bet on anything to people who open a Blue Sq account at TOPSPURS |
If you assume Spurs click under the summer sun of N17, something like 3-1 at 12/1 could be worth a nibble as you have to go back to the Leeds home game in November of last season for our last clean sheet |
Although having not scored in three desperate home defeats since Poyet’s late winner against Brum at the start of April 3-1 starts to sound like one of those early season naïve bets!
Hoddle “Don’t Panic”
Just in case the unthinkable happens, Hoddle was not slow to get his “excuses” in first …
``The injury situation has hardly changed since the first day I walked in here. It is a major frustration and I know people don't want to keep hearing about it but what I still desperately need is to have all my key players available. `Until that happens we don't know what we are really capable of achieving. Nobody does. It's a massive challenge because this club hasn't won too much over the last 25 years and the injuries were still there three or four years before I came. I'm still convinced we can turn things around though”
This all starts to look a bit familiar now. Moan about injuries, many of the players out crocked have been signed/resigned by Hoddle despite of poor injury records. He goes on to suggest that even if we lose the next couple, there is no point panicking, cos we’ve been no good for “25 years” – his words, not mine as I’ve seen many great sides, three FA Cups, the UEFA and League cup landed in the that time, not to mention the 5 top 4 finishes, great players etc in that time since 1979, notably the manager himself!
Many people have been saying Hoddle will have until the middle of the season before he is assessed, but I have a feeling the axe maybe drawn sooner should we fail to win (or only beat Fulham) before the middle of September.
It’s a long time since any Spurs match was not a sell out at home, let alone the first match of the season (and season tickets are also well down, with reports that some people who did not renew by the deadline were phoned up by the ticket office to remind them – good customer relations or desperation?).
The money men will wait until the crowd turn on Hoddle for their own popularity (just as Sugar did with Ossie) …… but will any of the Celtic tigers of O’Neill, Sourness or even McLeish do any better? Lets hope it does n’t come to that and the sun again radiates from Hoddle’s backside like it says in the good book of Tottenham as it would be unthinkable that Hoddle would only get just over two seasons in charge, just as Ossie did not get long enough a decade ago.
Brazilian Waxed?
I have to admit to being a bit sceptical about this story but after a bit of digging there seems to be something there, although as reported its all gone quiet over the last couple of days after looking “distinctly possible” last Sunday.
Our resident Brazilian correspondent has been in touch over Diego & here is his assessment
“I've seen a lot of him playing for Santos on the TV & from videos & he is very special indeed. Comparisons with Pele are absurd because they are completely different types of players. Diego usually plays quite deep in a playmaker sort of role. Just about every decent move comes through him & he & Robinho have been linking up superbly to provide Santos's best season for 30 years or so. He's got brilliant touch & control, goes past players with ease, has superb vision & passing, takes wicked free kicks, has a decent shot & works his nuts off tracking back when needed & puts a tackle in despite his slight build.
All in all the perfect attacking midfielder & all the Brazilians I know expect him to be the next Superstar for the National team. The feeling in Brazil was that Diego would stay at least another year in Brazil before moving to a top European side but as all South American sides are cash strapped I reckon a large enough bid could land him, and even if it was a massive fee, it would be money well spent.
Mabizela & Convey
The good news for Spurs is that Mbulelo Mabizela has got his work permit and there is a chance that he could be involved against Leeds if all the pen pushers get their finger out. Mbulelo is known as ‘Old John’ at home in South Africa but has been nicknamed ‘OJ’ by the Spurs players.
Convey will have his application for a work permit heard next week and hopefully we should have these two signed up before the end of the deadline.
Keane Injury update
Of all the crocks, the Keane injury has been top of everyone’s thoughts today and a vague statement from the club indicated that he is likely to be out for at least three Spurs matches (& experience tells us its likely to be more, even allowing for the free week afterwards)
Teddy at Walthamstow
Its been another good week for our dogs, Come Home Sober landed her first race in our colours on Monday (and is out again on Friday in the 13.44, Trap 4) and while we were down there on the Tuesday to watch Lily run a solid race in third, we spotted Teddy, no doubt making time before Chan’s opened. We are pleased to report he had a win and judging by the fact he was the first in the queue at the bookies after the race, it was probably a decent touch (whatever that is for a multi millionaire footballer)
And finally – Don’t forget to buy your Tottenham Fanzines
Both CADD and MEHSTG should have new issues out for the Leeds match & they are always well worth a read.
19th August 2003 – Fuck our luck, Keane stretchered off
Just what is god playing at, 100’s of players will play internationals and be fine for their clubs this week, but not us. We have ‘the Ginger Pele’ and the world class Keano playing for the Republic tonight & if it is the decree of fate that a Spurs player has to be crocked, all but possibly the THFC board (who are looking to make a few quid by flogging ‘Pele’ to Cardiff) would pray that it would be Donkerty. Not cos we don’t like him, far from it, just cos Keane is so special and with the rest of the injuries around, is a player we can ill afford to lose.
It starts to sound like self indulgent teenage stuff, but it does seem like we are cursed and everything we touch turns to pony. And as its been going on, more or less the same over different managers, players and chairman for so long it just feels like we’ll never break out of the cycle of ordinary crap, where its one step forward & two steps back.
The good news is Sharon and Zamora look likely to be fit for Saturday, but if last season we were “West Ham with Keane” lets hope this injury is not too long or too serious.
18th August 2003 – Good and bad news about the injuries
The official site report that Deano and Ledley are set to appear for the stiffs against Portsmouth at Havant & Waterlooville (co-incidentally where wanker ref Styles lives & it would be nice to think they’d all go round his house afterwards for a bit of a “word”). With the legendary Perrydinho also returning from his one match ban for Leeds we should have near to a full house of centre backs to pick from which can only be good news (although Richards will not be 100% cos his problem is being nursed not cured). The only downside would be Bunglevic pulling seniority in the midfield at the expense of Ricketts although under the new “understanding” approach from the reformed manager, surely this cannot happen.
The bad news is that Zamora has pulled out of the England U21 match with an injury. It is my hope that this is Hoddle not for the first time mimicking Fergie (strong minded, does n’t always get on with the players…and er..,wins things) and keeping him safe for Saturday when he will surely be needed to send those Norvern ‘erberts up the motorway with a flea in their ear on the back of a five goal hammering.
Coventry in the League Cup – You could not have dreamed up a more dull set of opponents than our car building mugs from the arse end of the midlands, which post war planners finished what Hitler started. The beauty of these matches is getting to a place you’d never normally go to but we’ve been to Coventry every year bar one in the last 25 & and it’s a shitehole.
Its on Sky but for those who fancy another trip up there the good news is we’ve got 3800 (at least before the club give half of them back) and its only £15 & with a good chance of a Spurs win in a decent away “side” it should be a decent trip up there.
“Spurs to sign the greatest young footballer in the world, ever” Think we’ve done this one before…zzzz!
Still 13 days of obsessed madness on message boards before we can all get back to normal when the transfer window closes. Although like everyone else I’d love this to be true & us to sign the new Pele (with Hoddle of course doing a “Blondel” and giving him plenty of time to acclimatize in the stiffs). If he has just got into the Brazilian team, he probably won’t have enough international caps to get a work permit unless he has a Portuguese close relative (dodgy or otherwise)? Knowing our luck if he does sign, he will be as much the Santos 10, as Iversen was the Tottenham 18 when he took over JK’s shirt!
New Northern Ireland Spurs Website Online - A new website has recently been launched for all the Tottenham Hotspur fans throughout Northern Ireland. The site will be independently run and will provide a portal for local fans to express and exchange views with other fans throughout Northern Ireland. http://www.spursni.co.uk/index.html
It will provide the usual information on club activities but most importantly information on travelling to and from games. The supporter pages gives fans an opportunity to outline their experiences at games. It allows fans to tell us about the match you attended, your views on how it went, and the option to forward pictures of your day, which can be published online and lots of other stuff.
Contact the site developer for more info glenn@spursni.co.uk
17th August 2003 – Birmingham 1-0 Spurs - No points or goals, but just maybe the hint of better things to come
Yet again, an incompetent ref and shithouse Savage’s cheating has cost Spurs and again its more misery on the road for Spurs, but despite the defeat there was a general feeling of more optimism for the future with the debuts of Ricketts, Postiga, Zamora and Marney. All we need now is a central midfielder before the deadline, the injuries to heal and a bit of luck! (none of which we have had for far too long)
Savage has done plenty of bad shit but it was more the desperate decision rather than him falling over which cost Spurs. It was good to hear Hoddle get stuck into Styles the ref after the game and really dig him out, although what we need to do is do this before the match. Not necessarily Hoddle, possibly Gorman or a visible and verbal member of the board needs to dig out and put the pressure on obviously bent refs or incompetent ones before the important matches.
Of the debutants, Ricketts drew the most praise; giving the midfield some much needed mobility. Up front Zamora looked more ready for the Premiership at this stage than Postiga and hopefully the selection process for the next match will be based upon merit rather than price tags. Marney, one of those tipped for good things by old Pleaty, also impressed when coming on for the last section of the game. Both Ricketts and Marney, along with Blondel, have a long way to go but with all three showing promise it gives the squad a bit more depth in the midfield after the summer pony cull.
Much has been made of how Hoddle “Picked” the young players but with the usual long injury list and the thinned squad for this match, his hand was largely forced and it will be interesting to see if he continues to give the younger players (who appear to be doing well to the fans at least) when the failed old guard limp up from their sickbeds/bank vaults.
Plenty seem confident that Hoddle will continue to play the young players, even long-term Hoddle bears, but I’m not so sure. Hoddle’s position as manager is not as strong as it was, and directives from up above may mean that he is forced to play the young players and Pleaty was again over-stepping his jurisdiction when commenting on the first team again on Teletext, saying how this is the year for yoof but I have to admit I remain a little sceptical. Sure I would love Hoddle to have suddenly woken to the fact that certain players are not good enough but he resisted for a long time last season, like with Blondel and even failing to give Yeates his debut 15 minutes in the final game against Blackburn. When Poyet is fit, will we see Ricketts? When the central defenders return, will Bunje get pushed into the midfield at the expense of someone younger? Playing the yoof could be the move that saves his job and if he does, why the hell did he not do it last season?
The irony of the weekend was that our too olds and too shits (and too “expensive” to signs) all managed to score. Ted sent Portsmouth on their way to a win over Villa, Ferdinand scored a magnificent header (complete with heroic head injury) for Leicester and even the log found he was too close in to shoot over for Wolves. And I’m sure Hoddle mentioned Phillips brilliant goal for Southampton in his chat with the Board. Still, at least Fraud is continuing to weave his magic at Kaiserlautern - three games no points.
16th August 2003 – Cork Spurs Supporters Club
Just like to say a big thanks to Pat Healey and the rest of the lads at the Cork Spurs Supporters Club for the hospitality shown to the webmaster on his recent visit to the Rebel County & looking forward to returning the favour later in the season.
15th August 2003 – Sporting Index Link at TOPSPURS
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11th August 2003 – TOPSPURS SEASON PREVIEW 2003/04
I’m off (again) for another week, which means this will be the last update before the season starts. I’ve done a season preview, which follows, although if you can’t be bothered with that, a much shorter piece should be in this Friday’s Evening Standard Football Season Preview.
TOPSPURS SEASON PREVIEW 2003/04
Lets start with the facts, Spurs have been going nowhere slowly for what seems like an eternity. We have not finished in the top or bottom 6 for 13 seasons. Never done good things, never done bad things, never did anything out of the blue (whoo-oh). In 99/00 we got 53 points, 38 points behind the champions, 14 points off 4th and 5 points off 6th. In 00/01 it was 12th with 49 points, 31 points behind the champions, 19 points off 4th and 12 points off 6th. In Hoddle’s first full season ‘01/02 we had the excitement of an ultimately disappointing League cup final appearance but it was the same old in the league, 9th with 50 points, 37 points behind the champions, 21 points off 4th and 14 points off 6th. Last season it was 50 points again which saw us into 10th, 33 points behind the champions, 17 points off 4th and 10 points off 6th. For the last three seasons, we have lost more than we have won, and conceded more than we have scored.
So using the average of the last 4 seasons, we can expect to finish with 50points, 35 points off the league leaders, 18 points off the champions league and even 10 points off the UEFA places. It’s not the magical Tottenham Hotspur we have come to know and love.
While the monotony of mediocrity is bad enough, the “table” from the second half of the season, makes frightening reading. Spurs just won just 5 of the last 19 matches, accumulating a modest 19 points with negative goal differences both home and away. Only the hapless Sunderland and West Brom finished beneath us, and we were 4 points adrift of the next worst Aston Villa. It really was shit and was getting worse rather than better as the season came to an end. Name the last player to score at WHL? Name the last home clean sheet? Try Poyet’s great volley against Brum at the start of April and the Leeds game as the last home clean sheet in November.
The mad thing is that we went into those last 19 matches with a realistic chance of a decent league finish and even European qualification. This should be a massive alarm bell as in the case of both Blackburn and Forest in recent years, a second half of the season slump in safety one year cannot be reversed in an unsuccessful fight with relegation the next season.
Fortunately the alarm bells have been heard loud and clear and since the almighty fuck up during the last transfer window, the THFC board have acted swiftly and with great purpose to rectify the problems, shifting a load of too old or too shit players off the wage bill and purchasing a whole new forward line, with the summer spending apparently not over yet.
The latest word is that Sully (£1m destination unknown), Doherty and Anderton will be offloaded before the deadline and a central midfielder will be purchased. I’m not sure how it works out if we fail to offload those three; it’s almost a fate we dare not contemplate. This will be in addition to the work permit permitting duo of Convey and Mabizela. We wait and hope (and pray).
After giving the board plenty of stick (most of which was deserved at the various times), it is only correct that they get all the plaudits for their great work over the summer, and long may it continue without forked tongue or bluff.
For every positive thing that has happened this summer – getting rid of too old/too shit players and signing a couple of potentially great forwards – there is still the realisation that we have no midfield, no pace and no backbone in the team. The new forwards should ensure we don't go down, but will not be enough on their own to break us into the top six on merit, and its one step forward & one step back and another 8th-12th finish looks on the cards with something adjacent to 51 points.
At the current moment in time, arguably our best line-ups are
(4-4-2)
Keller
Carr, King, Richards, Taricco
Davies, Anderton, Redknapp, Ziege
Postiga, Keane
Subs: Sullivan, Gardner, Blondel, Poyet, Zamora
(3-5-2)
Keller
King, Richards, Gardner
Carr, Anderton, Redknapp, Ziege
Davies
Postiga, Keane
Subs: Sullivan, Taricco, Blondel, Poyet, Zamora
On first inspection, the teams look quite good – decent keeper, good defenders and exciting forwards but the midfield is too slow and not sufficiently able to protect the defence and it is readily obvious that the team would not be able to compete with the top of the Premiership.
And that is even before considering the effect of injuries!
Take Sharon and Redknapp out of that midfield and its Bunje and one other from Poyet, Blondel or even Asillymiss and as we know from the second half of last season, that don’t work.
These are the simple facts; you can’t play Anderton and Redknapp in the same team. The Cheeky Girls (Bunglevic & Asillymiss) do not have the necessary fight or desire to supplement their footballing ability to be successful in the Premiership. Davies improvement has levelled out and is looking more like a Taffy Leonhardsen. Ziege’s misfortune with injuries will probably mean we have seen the best of him. Poyet’s legs went a long time ago, and while he is likely to pop up with the odd goal, he is not able to contribute to the midfield and is a liability, esp. at £40k a week. Blondel must not have gone to church when ordered as his exclusion by Hoddle is mystifying based on his now infamous 12 minutes last August. That said, he has a long way to go before we can think of him as a Premiership player. All in all a pretty gorblimey bunch and then there’s Toda…
A defence that shipped 39 goals in the last 19 matches would seem to be a major problem, but injury permitting the players are good players and have been let down by an abysmal midfield and some questionable tactical decisions. The major room for improvement could be on the flanks where Taricco is just average and Carr has yet to recapture the sparkle, which made him one of the best full backs in the League before his time off with ‘injury’.
Our forward line is fine, even above average should Postiga develop into the player he has been billed and we have no worries there apart from the service (and of course injury!). The lack of good service is perhaps the most baffling thing of Hoddle’s Tottenham. No only was much of last season bad, it was also boring – balls played along the back line before Perry lumps it long and into a channel, (usually the English) with the pinpoint accuracy of the modern Bobby Moore. If the ball does find its way to the midfield, the whole game slows and the ball goes sideways to stationary players for a bit before being sent forward when the opposition have all their men behind the ball. Davies is not a winger, Carr cannot do it anymore, Taricco has never ever gone down the line since his i