24^th April 2008 - Oh dear, Juande “I’m not going to discover now anything new about a group of players I have been with for a long time and know perfectly well” - J. Ramos, 18/4/08 (source: bbc.co.uk/sport) Oh dear, Juande. Suddenly the reason for Tottenham’s abysmal performances in recent weeks has become a lot clearer. We all thought the Spurs players were fighting for their places in next season’s squad; that is why the lack of motivation and desire on show seemed strange in the extreme, and why the embarrassingly heavy defeats to the likes of Newcastle and Birmingham were so perplexing. But Ramos’ statement here reveals that they are not playing for their places at all - he suggests that he already knows exactly who is staying and who is going. And the players probably have a pretty good idea of this themselves. Those that are secure have nothing to worry about, and can coast through to the end of the season safe in the knowledge that they will still be at the club come August; while those on the way out will be confident that there will be a Premier League somewhere willing to take them on. Their wages and the lifestyle are unlikely to suffer too much from having to move on. Of course, we fans know that there is still something to play for this season - pride, dignity, and not least the entertainment and satisfaction of paying customers. But that is not how the mind of the Premier League footballer works, evidently. Ramos must shoulder some of the blame for this. Motivation comes from the management, and the Spaniard and his coaching staff obviously haven’t been getting this right. Making it clear to the team that nothing they can do will alter his plans for next season is a tactic that has backfired spectacularly. The quote, in case you were wondering, comes from the same interview in which Ramos tells us that Ledley King’s future is uncertain. Or at least, that’s the way it has been presented to us in the media. The manager has since moved to quell speculation surrounding King’s departure, and Spurs fans shouldn’t read too much into what is clearly an exaggeration of the Spaniard’s comments. Nevertheless, there are question marks over our captain’s fitness, and if the club were to lose both him and Berbatov for next season, we would be severely lacking. The top four get stronger every year, and the likes of Villa, Everton, Portsmouth and Manchester City all have good squads and money to spend. It looks like a hard slog will be needed if Spurs are to qualify for Europe for a fourth season in a row. Given their recent showings, however, it is questionable whether our current crop have the stomach for the fight.

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30th March 2008 – Looking to the future

With six weeks still to go before the end of the season, but with Spurs’ campaign ostensibly wrapped up, predictions for next year have begun in earnest.

One thing us Spurs fans can never be accused of is pessimism. Despite the harsh reality check this season’s league form has provided us with, many supporters are convinced once again that next year we will make the breakthrough into the Premier League’s top four, finishing in one of those coveted Champions League spots. It was the same last summer, before a dreadful start to the campaign forced us into a dramatic reassessment.

As it stands, we still need another six points to avoid this season being our worst ever in the Premiership, in terms of points accrued. The truth is, a Champions League place next May is a long way off.

Our away form, for a start, is a particular concern. Spurs have won just twice away from home in the Premier League in 2007/8, one of those victories coming against whipping boys Derby. It was a similar tale for much of the previous term, with the team taking until the weekend before Christmas to register their first three point haul on their travels. In fact, the whole Premier League era for Spurs has been dogged by wretched away performances, with six wins on opposition turf being the most we have managed to muster in a single season in recent years.

It is one thing to play free flowing, attacking, winning football at home, but if the club seriously hopes to compete at the highest level, a significant improvement in results away from White Hart Lane is a priority.

There are other areas in need of improvement. Recent months have seen the side claim impressive victories over both Arsenal and Chelsea in the League Cup, as well as holding the Stamford Bridge outfit to a thrilling 4-4 draw at the Lane and coming within seconds of beating league champions Manchester United. But these performances have not been matched on a regular basis against supposedly less formidable opposition. Two defeats to Birmingham City speak for themselves. We know that Spurs have it in them to play exceptionally well; but we need to see a greater consistency of performance.

The way to achieve this, however, is not to radically overhaul the squad. How short the memory span of the football fan is – Spurs’ current set of players are essentially those who achieved successive fifth place league finishes, not to mention winning the League Cup little over a month ago. It is no coincidence that, in each of the last two campaigns, we have started slowly as we struggled to integrate a whole crop of new players into the first team.

Major surgery is not required. A little tinkering, and some good coaching over the summer and throughout the season, is the way to achieve success. For years we have been crying out for some top quality midfielders. A couple of signings in this key area, and the addition of a new goalkeeper, should give us a squad capable of attaining European qualification through the league next season. That is to say, a UEFA Cup place. The Champions League is in our present situation an unrealistic goal. But that is not to say that it can never be achieved.

In defence, Michael Dawson is a more than adequate replacement for Ledley King or Jonathan Woodgate. His troubles this season have come for the most part when he has been thrust into the role of the senior defender – alongside either of these England internationals, however, he has looked as steady as he did for the previous two years. And Darren Bent showed with his man of the match cameo against Portsmouth that there is a good player lurking in there somewhere. With an arm round the shoulder and a little encouragement, this player who thrives on confidence will do just fine.

There is plenty to be optimistic about at Spurs. This has been a very good season, with a cup victory and some cracking games at the Lane that will live long in the memory. But let’s not get carried away quite yet, not least because the ribbing we would undoubtedly receive from fans of opposing teams if we don’t make the Champions League would be even worse a second time around.

22^nd February 2008 - Cup Final Thoughts

If we play our game and go at them from the start we will be in with a chance. What we cannot do is get drawn in to tight, cat-and-mouse exchange – Chelsea are highly skilled at sucking the life out of games before pouncing to seal victory.

They are in a great run of form, and have Terry, Lampard and Drogba back to bolster an already formidable line-up. But they have been unconvincing when up against the top sides this season, and with our performances against Arsenal in the semi-final and Man Utd in the league fresh in the memory, there is great cause for optimism.

We must play an attacking game though – it’s the Spurs way, and the only way this team knows how.

Prediction: Spurs 2 Chelsea 1

31^st January 2008 – The Woodgate issue

The much-heralded arrival of Jonathan Woodgate at Spurs has raised more than a few eyebrows, but these seem to have more to do with his questionable injury record than what is perhaps the more pertinent issue of his criminal past.

Let me refresh your memory. In 2000 Woodgate along with Leeds teammates Lee Bowyer and Michael Duberry were arrested on suspicion of assaulting an Asian student on a night out in Leeds city centre. The original Crown Court trial collapsed after an interview with the victim’s father appeared in a Sunday newspaper, but following a retrial Woodgate was convicted of affray and handed a 100 hour community service order, a not unsubstantial penalty. The issue of race was not brought into the trial, but the circumstances of the attack and the involvement of Bowyer in other incidents throughout his career leave this at the very least open to question. Furthermore, the victim and his family maintained throughout that the attack was racially motivated.

Is this the type of player we want at Spurs? In an era where players’ antics regularly grace the front pages of the tabloids as well as the back, Spurs have managed to remain relatively free of controversy, Mr Defoe’s sex life excluded. I’m sure our players are not whiter than white, but at least none of them have got into any Joey Barton-like scrapes. Until now, that is.

I’m all for the rehabilitation of criminals accepting them back into society, and I’m not condemning Woodgate. He has served his sentence and managed to stay out of trouble since, and as I have said there is no proof that the attack had anything to do with the race of the victim. But the spectre of racism has always hung over the incident, and I am astonished at how few remarks this has generated on the Spurs messageboards and fansites. Does the fact that someone is a good footballer prohibit them from questions about their personal suitability to represent our club? It’s certainly a debate we should be having, rather than shying away from. It’s a sorry state of affairs if it does.

Now he is a Spurs player, I will support Woodgate like I would any other that dons the Lilywhite shirt. But his signing provides us, at the very least, with food for thought.

18^th January 2008 – Downing - Do not sign this man

Stewart Downing would a typical Tottenham signing – young, British, over-hyped and over-priced.

The premium that is placed on the value of all British players is something that is well documented, and true to form the quoted price of £8-12m for the Middlesbrough winger is well over the odds for a player of his calibre, especially when you consider that the superior Martin Petrov cost just £4.7m when he signed for Manchester City last summer.

Downing has a decent left foot, admittedly, but doesn’t beat his man often enough or deliver enough quality balls into the box to merit this overblown fee.

Something seems to have gone strangely awry with Spurs’ transfer policy. Whether or not you agree with the system of signing young players with a high resale value, it does not seem like this transfer target even fits that bill – is there anybody out there who thinks Downing has the potential to be a £20m player in a few seasons time? Darren Bent is a similar case; it is very unlikely that Spurs will ever be able to recoup their £16.5m outlay on the striker if and when they decide to cash-in.

Second-rate players for huge amounts of money is a recipe for disaster. Just because Downing, and Bent for that matter, have played for England a few times does not mean that they would improve our team. Under Eriksson a succession of undeserving players were awarded caps, even our own Anthony Gardner, and with McClaren things were hardly any better. (Incidentally, Downing’s only starts at international level came under McClaren, his former boss at Middlesbrough. Make of that what you will).

Is Downing really someone Ramos has identified as a target that will improve the standard of the team? It seems more likely that this is the work of Comolli. The Frenchman’s record in the transfer market is patchy at best; surely it’s time Levy et al realised where the real problems at Tottenham Hotspur lie.

And what of Steed Malbranque? He has been in great form this season, along with Robbie Keane the shining light in an otherwise disappointing campaign, who works tirelessly for the team and has never been found lacking in terms of quality. It is true that he is not a natural left-winger, but surely his performances merit at the very least a stay of execution in that position until someone of the necessary quality can be persuaded to join?

And given that Malbranque is playing so well, is this area of the team the priority in terms of strengthening right now? Surely a centre back and a holding midfielder are more pressing concerns. So why have we chased two right-backs this transfer window? And why are we being linked with Fred? Scoring goals has not been a problem for the side.

Spurs’ transfer strategy has gone to pot, and this target, if it is to be believed, smacks of incompetence on the part of those responsible. Please Spurs, don’t do it. Not Downing. And please Levy, get shot of Comolli. Only then will we have a genuine chance of success.

4^th January 2008 - Where next for Berbatov?

Ambitious clubs do not sell their best players - or so the story goes.

I am confident that Berbatov will not be leaving this month - the club have said as much - but ultimately it is impossible for a team to keep a want-away player in the long-term. The player stops trying, or becomes a disruptive influence in the dressing room, generally having some negative impact on the team. Unprofessional, yes, but we see it time and time again. The power is with the players. If Berbatov really wants to leave, there is little that Tottenham Hotspur can do to stop him.

But what the club can control is where he goes next. It would be criminal for our most naturally gifted player to end up plying his trade for another team in the English Premier League. Contrary to the statement at the top of this article, ambitious clubs sometimes HAVE to sell their best players - but this does not mean they must release their stars to clubs in direct competition with themselves.

Emil Dantchev, Berbatov’s agent, says his client is hankering after a move to a big club. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Juventus and both Milan clubs fit into this bracket, besides our own league’s top four. If Berbatov has to be sold, then offers from outside of England are the only ones the THFC board can possibly consider.

Even if Manchester United were to offer, say, £25m, and Bayern Munich £20m, it is clear that the bid from the German club is preferable. Of course, the board have a duty to their shareholders, but their first duty is to the fans - and football club shareholders must realise this. It’s part of the deal.

To repeat, ambitious clubs sometimes have to sell their best players. But it needn’t be to their detriment. Everton have flourished since Rooney departed, while we don’t need to look very far down the Seven Sisters Road to see the impact the sale of a certain Frenchman has had on the fortunes of our nearest rivals. That is not to say that selling Berbatov will be good for Tottenham - it would be a blow, but by no means would it mean the end for the club’s lofty aspirations.

In any line of work, you want to be successful, to be the best. The same is true in football. To the players, it is a job. Some have emotional ties to the clubs they represent, but to most it is work. I don’t begrudge Berbatov wanting to win a league championship, or the Champions League.

But I do ask that he try his best for the remainder of his Spurs career. We go into 2008 once again competing on four fronts. There are not many clubs that can say that; perhaps the Bulgarian should count his blessings.

19^th October 2007 – What has gone wrong with Paul Robinson?

I don’t blame Paul Robinson for England’s defeat to Russia on Wednesday. Many have been quick to attack him, but we could just as equally point the finger at the referee for the penalty that never should have been (it was outside the box), or at Gerrard for volleying wide when it was probably easier to hit the target, when the score was still 1-0.

Having said that, Robbo must shoulder at least some of the responsibility for the result; an international-class goalkeeper really should have done better with the initial shot that led to the second Russian goal. Although he is an easy target for criticism at the moment, which means that he is perhaps maligned to a greater extent than his performances warrant, there is no escaping that he is a footballer in a terrible run of form and with his confidence at an all-time low.

We now discover that he is out of the game at Newcastle on Monday night with what the club term “an injury. Make of that what you will, but I would think it very likely that this has more to do with his form and state of mind than anything else. The only question is whether it was his or Jol’s decision (or should that be his or whoever-makes-the-decisions-about-the-players-at-this-club’s decision?)

Either way, the time is certainly right for that decision to be made. Many thought he should be dropped after the Aston Villa match; sticking with him did not have the desired effect, with another spillage leading to another goal against at Anfield.

How does a goalkeeper go from being so good to so poor? In his first two seasons at White Hart Lane, Robinson was imperious, instantly becoming a fans’ favourite (Player of the Year in his first season), and considered by many to be the club’s best stopper since Ray Clemence.

Problems began at the World Cup last year where, despite not conceding many goals, his indecision on whether to come for crosses caused confusion in the England back line on several occasions. Then came that goal’ against Croatia. Since then, he’s never quite been the same.

Is it just a question of confidence? Possibly, but I think it’s more than that. Even so, you’d have thought a Premiership football club would be able to shell out for a top-notch sports psychologist exactly for this type of situation.

Is it because of a lack of competition for his place, at both club and international level? Again, possibly. But Radek Cerny has proved himself a very competent keeper, at the very least, who surely deserves more chances to impress given his patience and loyal attitude. With England, there are several decent goalkeepers to choose from at but none of them could be placed in the ‘world class’ bracket. On current form, David James is the most obvious candidate, but age and past misdemeanours are against him. So it is possible that lack of competition has seen Robbo rest on his laurels.

Surely though, given his recent error-strewn run, he must have realised his place was under threat?

Maybe it’s just a Tottenham thing. Over the years many a previously good footballer has arrived at the club, only for any semblance of the talent they once had to ebb away from them the moment they stepped out on to the hallowed turf in N17. We have had a goalkeeping example in the last few years, in the shape of Neil Sullivan, who had an awesome first season in the club, in which he almost single-handedly won us a point in the North London derby, only to fade into lower league obscurity after a poor run of form a year later. Christ, he even lost his place to Kasey Keller!

A combination of these factors must have played a role in Robbo’s demise. Other elements are undoubtedly at play; who knows what they might be. All we can do is hope that this is malaise is only temporary, not least because in a footballing world inhabited by prima-donnas with more money than sense, Paul Robinson is one of the good ones.

27^th September 2007 - Spurs on course to repeat success of last year

Spurs have exactly the same amount of points from the Premier League games played so far as they took from the corresponding fixtures last season. Fixtures against newly promoted teams take the place of the teams relegated at the end of the previous campaign, so, for example, Sunderland (1^st in Championship) replace the highest-placed relegated side (Sheffield United, who finished 18^th in Premiership), and so on. Take a look at the table below:

2007/8	Result	Points	2006/7	Result	Points
Sunderland (a)	L	0	Sheff. Utd (a)	L	0
Everton (h)	L	0	Everton (h)	L	0
Derby (h)	W	3	Watford (h)	W	3
Man Utd (a)	L	0	Man Utd (a)	L	0
Fulham (a)	D	1	Fulham (a)	D	1
Arsenal (h)	L	0	Arsenal (h)	D	1
Bolton (a)	D	1	Bolton (a)	L	0
TOTAL		5			5

This would indicate that Spurs are on track to repeat their 60-point haul of last season, a figure that in most seasons since the inception of the Premier League has been sufficient to claim 5^th place (which, at this stage, I think a great many Spurs fans would be delighted with). All that is necessary is to repeat the results of last season against the same opposition, a feat not as difficult or far-fetched as you might imagine: is it not possible that footballing performance is, to a certain extent, place-orientated? This might explain why some clubs have appalling, or conversely brilliant, records at certain grounds – the psychological factors induced by playing in a particular stadium have an effect on a team’s performance, and this state of mind is transmitted and passed on to each new generation of players due to their always being some degree of continuity among the playing staff.

The above is a theory that has been put to me this week, and from it I conclude that, firstly, you really can prove anything with statistics, and, secondly, that the optimism of some fans knows no bounds.

Make of it what you will, it’s something to think about at least, and even if you don’t agree with the sentiment, it might still bring a smile to your face as you realise that the spirit of some football fans simply cannot be broken!