THE TOPSPURS COLUMNISTS GUEST COLUMN (Saturday, 08 May 2004)

THE TOPSPURS COLUMNISTS

8^th May 2004 - Alea Iacta Est (by David Owens)

If Mr. Daniel Levy fails to act decisively this summer, Tottenham Hotspur will be relegated next May. Those of you that doubt it, consider this. Our form from January 2003 to May 2003 was that of a team flirting with relegation. We then had the summer of 2003, possibly the worst from a Spurs perspective since 1995 when we lost Klinsmann, Barmby and Popescu. Levy failed to act in the best interests of Spurs. He retained Hoddle and compounded that error by allowing him to spend twelve million pounds on three players, one of which was gone by the following January. We did manage to clear out quite a few players who were leaching wages from the club which will retain finances that can be better spent, or can they? Fast forward to season 2003/04. One word, disaster. Hoddle sacked after 6 games and Pleat placed in temporary control. Poor performances and woeful leadership culminating in form that saw us slip dangerously close to the relegation zone.

It’s fair to say that our form from the tail end of season 2002/03 continued into this season. If this fact repeats itself into next season, we will drop. Our current points total (39) with three games to go is less then the number that saw West Ham relegated (42) last season. They also lost fewer games than we have already, 16 as opposed to our 18. This can be interpreted a number of ways. The two most likely are that the teams being relegated this season are poorer then what has been the norm for teams relegated from the league, or else that the quality of the league, or should I say the those outside the top three, is slipping. For evidence look at the scrap for fourth place. At least seven teams could claim it, yet will finish at least twenty points behind third place, which equates to seven wins. Last season, the difference between third and fourth was two points, with the real being from second to third, a difference of 9 points.

Let’s face the facts, Man Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea are now in a league of their own. Newcastle and especially Liverpool are desperately trying to stay in touch and unsurprisingly occupy fifth and fourth respectively. Realistically the Premier League is four leagues in one. The League title is played out by the top three, the remaining Champions League and lesser UEFA place played out between the teams in fourth and fifth. A group of about seven clubs with aspirations of getting a spot in the UEFA cup come next. Then we have the bottom eight trying to remain in the league. Finally there are a couple of cups, with the possibility of European football, thrown in for good measure should anyone have the balls to take them seriously.

Going on our previous Premier League experiences we have generally occupied that third group, those hoping to nick a UEFA cup place. Worryingly the last eighteen months have seen us slip into that last group, content merely to survive. How has this happened? Is it unreasonable to point to ENICs period at the club? Under Sugar 93/94 and 97/98 had their moments, but we weathered the storm and there were always the high points in 94/95 and 95/96, when we seemed to have at last found some consistency, finishing seventh and eighth. Then there was victory in the League Cup in 1999, when our then Manager clearly identified it as a way to progress, rightly or wrongly. That summer we failed to purchase in order to prepare for Europe, and Sugars reign began to fade. When ENIC took control, they sacked Graham and appointed Hoddle, all seemed cheery. We had a plan, a five year one. So did Stalin! The tyrannical Georgian’s was more successful.

Is it clear that defeat in the 2002 League Cup did not enter Levy, or indeed Hoddle’s, thinking. With the result the plan was obsolete, less than a year after coming into being. Who knows what happened in the back round. That summer our manager claimed we weren’t signing a player who the Director of Football said we were. And yes, we did sign Mr. Keane, thankfully. Something was straining within the playing staff. Results were slipping. Players were talking to pens, and talking to the press. All was not cheery.

Its clear that everything for Hoddle rested on getting into Europe at the latest his second season, otherwise the “experienced” (old) players he had signed would not have the legs for a whole season in 2003/04, as we are experiencing! When the five-year plan was hatched, something should have been kept in reserve, a plan B. We didn’t have one. The evening of January 4^th 2003 (defeat in the FA CUP to Southampton) should have seen Daniel Levy considering that Hoddle might need replacing in the summer. A concrete decision was not needed then, merely the consideration and thought towards a new man. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, however; in this case there were signs. Our preceding twelve league games had seen three wins, four draws and five defeats. Rumours were rife in the press of problems within the playing staff and of problems between Hoddle and Pleat. Fruend, love or hate the mischievous German, spoke publicly of a team not pulling its weight. This led to a strange turn of events. When Roy Keane, not to compare the two in terms of ability (although Fruend has played in a Champions League Final and won!), criticizes his team mates for a lack of effort Ferguson is quite happy to let it go. Fruend, however, was dropped and the prospect of no new contract (although they later offered him one only to retract again). Hoddle seemed a man on edge. The performance of his beloved Spurs in the last fourteen games showed a team in disarray. That run saw three wins (two against subsequently relegated teams), three draws and eight defeats. We finished eight points above West Ham who beat us 2v0 in the run in. Levy had a decision to make.

For reasons only known to Levy he went against the, somewhat questionable, better judgment of his board and backed Hoddle for one more season, supplying him with ample financial backing to go out and buy new players. For this alone, Levy should have been ousted for not acting in the best interest of the club and the shareholders. It was an ill-informed, potentially disastrous decision taken by a man who didn’t seem to understand what was going on around him.

Three promising strikers were signed, but no sign of a midfield general. When pressed by Levy, Hoddle is rumoured to have stated that he had adequate options. So after four games what do we find? We are after Petit. Hoddle to revert to the failed five year plan? Levy finally decided that something needed to be done. He finally made a decision. He flew to the opposite side of the world! There, following our defeat to Southampton, Levy finally summed up the courage to sack Glenn Hoddle by telephone. Three months too late and utterly pathetic.

In the world of business management, long term/strategic management, whatever you want to call it, plays a decisive role. Hoddle had survived by the skin of his teeth in the summer, so it stands to reason that the board may have begun to identify a possible replacement for Hoddle, for contingency purposes. Yet, despite this it seems nothing was done to identify replacement. Instead, Levy took the easiest possible option and gave Pleat the job until a new manager had been found. Now Pleat has performed this task on two occasions before. However, in this instance we were talking about a team merely six games into a season. Levy made the decision to effectively write off an entire season in the history of Tottenham Hotspur. To state that he wanted the time to identify the right manager/management structure is preposterous.

January 2003, or least June 2003, should have seen the board looking at potential replacements and the type of structure they wanted to him to work within. Not the case. Only after the sacking of Hoddle did the board begin a search. In effect the last eighteen months have been utterly wasted by the board. What exactly did they do? It seems nothing. In January 2004 we heard confidant words from Pleat and indeed Levy that we had the new man and a deal was done and dusted. Was this a slip from Levy? Our Chairman, the guy who runs the PLC said to the media we had an agreement of sorts with a prospective manager. Is he aware of City rules? Has he the same lack of understanding of basic business practices as he does when it comes to football (lots of defeats are a bad thing Dan). Perhaps. Once it was pointed out to him that Tottenham Hotspur PLC had to make any appointment known to the city he quickly shut his mouth. This is just one slice of Levy’s mismanagement. I haven’t touched on the failure to secure a future for White Hart Lane, the Abridge fiasco, or the sham of a share issue in January 2004.

Four months down the road, nothing has changed. We are still managerless and the tabloids are having great fun. Despite all the talk of foreign coaching structures, it seems clear that the number one target for Levy has always been O’Neil. The problem is O’Neil does not want the job. That seems to account for the rumours of Trapattoni. He was probably the manager Levy claimed to have some sort of agreement with, seeing as he attended Spurs matches on or around the date of Levy’s claim. The problem is that it seems Trapattoni does not want the job either. So after all the speculation and rumour Levy has had his first choice knocked back and his second. Add in low membership and Season Ticket renewal and record low Season Ticket holders and we see Levy spring into action. In line with his pathetic disposition, Levy has gone back to O’Neil to once again beg him to take the Spurs job. What can Levy honestly offer O’Neil? It can’t be money as after the French Coach Santini was linked, the club stated that 1,500,000 pounds a year was outside their reach. That’s around 30,000 a week. Yet we have Levy’s statement that some of Europe’s top coaches have expressed an interest in the job. Maybe, but as soon as they heard what the salary cap was they waved goodbye. All we can hope is that Levy does decide to go for one man and not for two. The “European structure” as they like to call it has not been successfully employed in England and to start experimenting with management structures, considering or current plight is not appropriate.

Talk of Lippi and Capello is fanciful and pointless. We have to be realistic, as painful as it may be. The rumours after Francis resigned were full of promise. Christian Gross was the reality. I am not saying that it will be an appointment of that magnitude, or lack of, however reality must prevail. Currently, around twelve names have been mentioned most often with O’Neil and Trapattoni heading the list. Both have been more or less ruled out. That leaves Taylor, Ranieri, Antic, Queiroz, Lemerre, Curbishley, Mancini, Hughes, Mourinho, Santini and Strachan as the contenders. Lets start with the non-runners, those who don’t want plus those we don’t want. Some rumours mention an approach for Mourinho last November, but nothing was confirmed. He rejected then and with Chelsea, and indeed most of Europe’s elite, eyeing up the Portuguese his appointment looks unlikely. The club have publicly knocked back Santini while Hughes was meant to be part of the Trapattoni dream team. I honestly doubt Mancini or Queiroz would swap their current locations for White Hart Lane. I think the general consensus amongst most fans would be anti Taylor, Antic and Curbishley. Lemerre is currently Managing Tunisia after a disastrous spell as French National coach, where it has to be said that he had a poor rapport with his players. That leaves Ranieri and Strachan. We now need to ask a pertinent question. What kind of manager do we need, as opposed to what we want?

Ranieri had spent the last few seasons gradually building his team, only for Ken Bates to make some money and sell Chelsea to Roman Abramovich. That has seen Ranieri’s plans go up in smoke as players were purchased, apparently without his consent. Rumours abound that he will be sacked this summer, yet he has retained an admirable, if at the very least, public dignity. His history is at best checkered. His first prominent job was at Napoli, just as they started to fall from grace. He then went down with Fiorentina, before getting them back into Seria A by winning Seria B in 93/94, spearheaded by one Gabriel Batistuta. The Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa followed in 1996. He then joined Valencia in 1997, only to leave in 1999 after winning the Spanish Cup. He then began a disastrous spell at Atlético Madrid, leaving before club was relegated. He is credited by some for laying the foundations at Valencia for their consistent displays in the Champions League but the time at Madrid cannot be over looked. His appointment in September 2000 as Manager of Chelsea was difficult. He spoke no English and was replacing the much-favoured Vialli. Despite this, Ranieri’s introduction brought consistency in the League where Chelsea have finished sixth, sixth and fourth. That is promising. He had also bought reasonably well, prior to the Abramovich era and several of the players with “promising’ tags have improved to become full internationals. In all, Ranieri has performed well with Chelsea and it seems would make an excellent appointment.

Yet, something bothers me about our prospects of hiring Ranieri. He has been at Chelsea for four years and after performing well, he has really been treated shabbily in the last ten months. I cannot see him wanting to stay in England and he has been away from Italy for almost seven years. Realistically, if Ranieri was to look at Spurs as a team he could reverse the fortunes of; he is looking at four years in the job, at least. Couple that with our undoubted problems at boardroom level and for someone like Ranieri, it points to uncertainty. Would Ranieri be willing to take that risk of taking on Spurs, only for the fans to get on his back after those strange team selections that he was infamous for in his early Chelsea days? Spurs seem like a risk for Ranieri and at this stage in his career, I am sure he wants to try his hand at something a little less perilous.

Strachan is not someone I would immediately have identified after Hoddle left, but there are some interesting facts. He is now unemployed having left Southampton in January, this would mean that compensation would not need to be paid. That should not be the primary consideration, but it is certainly worth remembering. In terms of his management ability, well that is open to debate. Some will see him as someone who managed two clubs, one that barely stayed in the Premier League year after year and eventually dropped down and another whom he got to a cup final and decent mid-table finishes. Yet on closer inspection, at least in my opinion, Strachan displays many characteristics that we actually need. Throughout his career, Strachan has extracted every ounce of effort from players who realistically were out of their depth. He is vociferous in defense of his players, yet if they fail to perform is vicious in his appraisal. He often treats the media with the contempt they deserve and when you consider some of the crap we have had leveled at us by tabloids, we need someone to bite back. When it comes to buying players his results are mixed. Keane was bought from Wolves and Bellamy from Norwich, both young players who have gone on the great things. At Southampton, there was Niemi, Fernandes, Prutton and Svensson. Yet he has also had Lee Hughes and Agustin Delgado. In his first season at Southampton he got them to eleventh and in his second to eight place and the FA Cup final and all the time playing a good passing style of football.

Many will say that Strachan is not the type of manager we want. But in regards to his abilities, he certainly seems to be the type of manager to move us out of the bottom half of the table and into that group of teams pushing for the UEFA Cup. After that, well that is down to whether we push on under Strachan or he turns out not to be the right guy for that specific challenge. He could well be, but if not, we will certainly be a better team, on the pitch, than what he took over.

This same rationale must also be applied to player purchases. Examine for instance our last six signings. Two had never played in England. One had been a Division one player for eight years while another had not played above Division Two. Then there were two signed from a Club who had just been relegated from the Premier League. Most important of all, only one had any European experience. Herein lies a major problem with our transfer policy. For the past few seasons, at Tottenham, experience means old. There is no doubt we have signed some promising players and blended with the young players we have groomed within the club; there is a good group there. Yet we have little or no experience within the playing staff who have played at the level we are attempting to aspire to. Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, these are excellent players, relatively young but with more European and International experience than our entire squad. The players Tottenham need to start signing now are not ones we can polish into tomorrow’s potential England international. We need today’s internationals and players who have played Champions League football, or at least UEFA Cup. And these type of players need to be the spine of the team. How realistic is it to expect this? Well, to examine the problem fully, we need to know the positions that require filling.

Keller has had his day. Some would say he never really had one and will always be a second choice keeper. We have been linked with Robinson but as has been pointed out by many fans, he is a long, long way from the finished article, and some will wonder how accomplished he will be then. It wasn’t long ago that Nantes keeper Mickael Landreau was being hailed as the latest big thing. Captaining his club at such an early age and putting in quality performances in the Champions League, rumours of a possible move to a more prestigious club abounded. Yet he remains at Nantes. Then there is the prospect of Cudicini at Chelsea. He, of course, would be ideal, but Chelsea seem hell-bent on signing every player in the world. Perhaps his own personal pride will see him ask for a transfer, not content with sitting on the bench. There are other Premiership options. Niemi at Southampton and Jussi Jaaskelainen at Bolton are both internationals and highly thought of within the game.

In Anthony Gardner we have the raw talent for one of the best center backs in Tottenhams history. Fast, strong, tall, naturally athletic and left footed, he has the potential to be the backbone of a balanced center back pairing. He does have his flaws, poor concentration and wayward passing to name a couple. He doesn’t have the natural defending inclination that Terry, Woodgate or Gallas have, yet none of them match Gardners immense physical attributes. He needs a leader alongside him, a strong, experienced international whom Gardner can hone his skills alongside. Christian Woerns and Jaap Stam are two who spring to mind on the continent. At home Gareth Southgate has been mentioned, but there are others, such as Alain Goma, who are solid defenders.

The entire left side of the Tottenham team needs an overhaul. At full back we need a strong, left footed pacey player, while on the left-hand side of midfield we need a traditional winger, especially if Davies is to continue on the right of midfield. The definition of flank players needs to be defined here. I would not consider Davies a winger in the traditional sense. His strengths do not lie in taking on a full back with pace and flair. He provides good passing, movement and is a very potent attacking option from midfield. What we need on the left is an old fashioned winger, with pace, flair and most important the ability to take on players and deliver crosses. A player like Duff would be ideal, but definitely out of our price range. At left back, Tarricio provides a degree of consistency. He is deeply committed and if it were not for his Argentine background he would not be receiving the level of contempt he receives from the Media, opposing fans and unfortunately, our own. He is, however, towards the end of his career and not what we need in that position. For a start he is predominantly right footed. The prospect of buying an international fullback is limited. We need to be realistic. Konchesky was signed on loan, yet Pleat, in his infinite wisdom, never played him in his preferred position. It would be interesting to his see him at fullback. Other players who could be considered include Gary Naysmith at Everton and Matthew Taylor at Portsmouth. Personally, I believe Konchesky to be about the best. He is strong and has featured at Spurs so knows the players and the surroundings. The left winger is harder to judge. It is rumoured that we have a deal, awaiting conclusion, for Andy Reid, so guessing as to the prospects of a new winger may be pointless. Reid, undoubtedly, has potential, but again, we need more than that. We need an international winger. Two years ago, one of the finest wingers in Europe was Andy Van der Meyde. Prominent with the Dutch National Team and Ajax, he was wanted by many of the big Italian sides. Quite why he settled on Inter, a team that goes through as many players as Dino Zoff, is his own business. Like many that have signed for Inter, team and management instability have served to unsettle him and it is rumoured he will leave this summer with PSV, Ajax and Birmingham said to be interested. He is pacey, can score goals and is a good crosser of the ball, which we lack from midfield.

The center of midfield has been the weakest link in every Tottenham side of the last 15 years. We have lacked a midfield engine. A dynamic player, who could break up attacks, carry the ball forward at pace and then deliver a creative pass out to the flanks or through the middle. As regards players for this position, we all know that Van Bommel is the player the club wants. How sure we are of getting him is another story, and probably one with a negative outcome. King has performed well there for the club and may have to continue there next year. Given preseason and the opportunity to work with a decent manager, Brown could develop in a good player for the club. Not Champions League quality, but the type of player who could certainly get us on our way out of the bottom six and challenging for the top six. After that, it’s down to Brown and whether he can continue to develop.

After writing all this, you may think that I believe it to be a possibility. I don’t. The fact of the matter is that the writing is on the wall. It cannot be said in one instance that Levy has made a “right” decision for Tottenham Hotspur, and going on form I do not believe he will make the right decisions this summer. He will pursue the unattainable and then return empty handed to the fans. Personally I would prefer him to return empty handed and not with some pathetic letter as was the case with Rivaldo. Those, along with so many of his actions (sacking Graham, appointing Hoddle, Sir Bills testimonial, the Rivaldo letter, the press speculation regarding a “done and dusted deal), have been pursued in the attempt to gain credibility with the fans. As if we are stupid enough to be drawn in by this. Levy has, and continues, to treat the fans with disdain. HIS success in forcing the rights issue through in January, clearly without the backing of two members of his board, was not in the interests of the club. And now we see him bringing the renewal date for Season Tickets forward with the threat of losing loyalty points, built over a number of seasons, being lost for those who fail to renew. It is tantamount to blackmail. Strike that, it IS blackmail. He is a poor businessman, with very little understanding in how to treat customers with respect.

This week has seen many people looking at Leeds United and blaming many of the problems on Peter Ridsdale. These allegations are probably true, but live by the sword, die by the sword. We haven’t even tried and we are in the bottom six. We are dying and we are not even trying to live as a football club. Ridsdale wanted to achieve something and was determined to do it. I don’t condone financial mismanagement, I just desire the ambition that the man had. The mistakes he made were clear for all to see. Seth Johnson, Robbie Fowler, Michael Duberry, the best part of thirty million pounds that the club would kill for now. Ambition does not constitute financial suicide. It is trying to be bold; it’s what the clubs motto states. Audere est Facere, To Dare Is To Do. We don’t have bold men in the boardroom. We have bad, and they are destroying the club.

Our first League game of season 2004/05 ??

Niemi

Southgate Gardner

Carr Konchesky

King Brown

Davies Van Der Meyde

Kanoute(?) Defoe

David Owens

5^th May – David Graniewitz

I can’t really say why I became a Spurs supporter. I had no big brother (or sister for that matter) to influence me in the way that I was to influence my youngest brother (something he has never forgiven me for), my parents weren’t interested in football at all, I didn’t live in the vicinity of the ground and by the time my footballing consciousness had fully developed at the age of 8 in 1969, Spurs were past their 1960s’ best. My best guess is that there came a time when I needed an answer to the question, “Which team do you support?” (I can recall that later on there came a time when I needed an answer to the question, “Which girl do you fancy?” and I had to make something up even though I hadn’t yet developed a proper interest in the fairer sex.) Perhaps I chose Spurs because at the time my family lived in the West End of London, not far from Tottenham Court Road and I made the connection from there. Maybe the fact that I was born in 1961, three months before the Double was completed, affected me subliminally.

Whatever the real reason, by the 1969-70 season, I had thrown my lot in completely with THFC. This, of course, was not the best season to start off my new interest which would eventually turn into an obsession. I have to admit that I couldn’t get to see any games. I came from an observant Jewish background which ruled out Saturday games. I had no one to take me to mid-week games which my mum wouldn’t let me go to as they were on school nights anyway and at that time Sunday games didn’t exist. (Much to my frustration, Sunday matches began to take place shortly after I left England.) In lieu of actually experiencing the highs and lows of watching Spurs at the Lane, I relied on the match highlights on “the Big Match” on ITV on Sunday afternoons and, later on when my mum let me stay up, on “Match of the Day” on Saturday nights. Spurs weren’t shown every week, but they were on often enough for to be able to keep up with things. Also I became what was to become known in later years as an “anorak”. Religiously I would read “Shoot” magazine every week and devoured anything football-related from football annuals to the backs of bubble-gum cards which I collected and from which I learnt about my new-found heroes. I discovered that the team I had chosen had been the most successful club of the 1960’s. The impressive list of achievements proved to me that despite the mediocre showing of Tottenham that season, I had indeed made a wise choice. However, I read that the previous season had been Spurs’ worst of the decade. We finished in 8th place, the first time we had finished outside the top 6 for 10 years. The 69-70 season was to be even worse. Spurs finished 11th, got knocked out of the League Cup in the 2nd round and the FA Cup in the 4th after that fateful match against Crystal Palace.

Although I was basically self-taught in the ways of Tottenham Hotspur, there was a very large influence on my life that was instrumental in consolidating my love for the Spurs. His name was Mike. He was a friend of the family and about 6-7 years older than me and for a few years he became the older brother that I never had. Mike was a proper Spurs fan. He had been to games. He knew all about them from first-hand experience and not from what he had read in magazines. When I visited his bedroom in his house in Finsbury Park, I was enthralled. The room was a shrine to Tottenham Hotspur. As soon as I got home I began to redecorate my own room accordingly, cannibalising my Shoot magazines and newspapers for anything which featured a cockerel atop a football. I don’t know what my parents thought of it, but there I was at the age of 8 asserting my individuality. I sat at Mike’s feet and thirstily drank up everything he had to say about football in general and Spurs in particular.

One thing he said stuck in my mind. I think that I must have been bemoaning the fact that I had chosen to follow a team that wasn’t doing very well. “Don’t worry,” he said, “We’ll win the league soon enough.” How did he know this, I asked my mentor. “Because we’re good enough and every team gets the chance to be champions eventually.”

I had read enough to realise that Mike was not blessed with the gift of prophecy that had been bestowed on some of his Israelite ancestors. What he was saying seemed to be realistic. No team, at the time had a monopoly on the Championship. In the 14 Championship seasons between 1959 and 1972, the league was won by ELEVEN different teams. Only Everton and, more ominously, Liverpool and Manchester United had managed to win it twice during those years. It seemed that it would not be long till Tottenham would take their rightful place as the best team in England.

Indeed, the following season bore out, to a certain extent, Mike’s words. Despite our poor showing in 1969-70, Sir Bill did not lose his job (compare that to the situation today or to Sir Alex’s proclamation last year that if Man U were to have a second consecutive potless season, he would resign) and the team remained, more or less, the same. Steve Perryman had been given a permanent first team place and Martin Peters had replaced Jimmy Greaves. We finished 3rd in the League (we even led it for a brief time during the season), won the League Cup and got to the quarter-final of the FA Cup. Surely the league title couldn’t be far away? The following two seasons brought more silverware – the UEFA Cup and another League Cup (we became the first team to win that trophy twice,) but no League Championship. Things began to look down for us in 1974 when we lost our first ever final. Today mere qualification for the UEFA Cup would be seen as a reason for mass jubilation on the part of Spurs fan, let alone reaching the final, but in those days our defeat meant the loss of a proud record.

The rest, as the cliché goes, is history. Relegation, promotion, FA Cup wins, another EUFA Cup and a League Cup and defeats in three more finals have all peppered the past three decades. But the championship became a mere pipe dream as the English first division became more and more like its Scottish equivalent with the domination of Liverpool in the late 70’s and 80’s and Manchester United and the Scum in the 90’s and whatever this current decade is called.

It seems to me that there are three main reasons for following a particular team; a) they are your local side, b) they are extremely successful, or c) you have been convinced into doing so by an extremely influential role model. The fact, therefore, that my two sons have turned out to be Spurs fans, living 3000 miles away from White Hart Lane says more about my parenting abilities than it does about THFC’s achievements over the past decade. They know all about the pain involved in following Spurs but have experienced none of the glory. Worst of all, I cannot inspire in them the hope that Mike did in me 30 odd years ago. Looking at the present League table, how can I tell them that every team will have its day? At what exactly? At being fourth in the league? At qualifying for the monster now known as the UEFA Cup, where you play your guts out in knock-out rounds only to meet one of Europe’s richer clubs that couldn’t get through the Championship League? (Why can’t UEFA decide you’re knocked out, go home?)

Moreover, sometimes I think that there is some gooner working for the Ministry of Truth who is trying his best to write Spurs out of the history books. It is getting more and more difficult to tell my kids about Spurs’ achievements that made them one of the greatest teams of all time.

A) The Double is not such a big deal anymore having been done so many times in the past few years. (Try explaining that, 40 odd years ago, it was considered a superhuman feat. Who cares anymore?)

B) Even our two championships don’t sound so impressive as they were in the First Division. Tell this to your children, you’d have to explain first that this was during the time that ordinal numbers still had some meaning.

C) The European trophy that we won to make us the first British team to triumph in Europe exists no longer. We might as well have won the Anglo-Italian Cup or the Texaco Cup for all the educational impact it would have on the younger generation of today. (Anyhow, how could they believe that a major trophy could have such a long and cumbersome name?)

D) We were the team that broke Aston Villa’s long standing record of 7 FA Cup wins. And how many times have ManUre done it since then? Again three cup wins in the more competitive 1960’s should be a bigger achievement than doing it 30 years later, but who gives a toss about that either?

E) When I first started supporting Spurs, there were two main myths that followed us around; we never lost in a final and we always won stuff in a year that ended in a 1. As time went on these were whittled away, but always something remained. After losing the UEFA final in ’74, we could still say that we had never been beaten at Wembley, (remember that place kiddies?) Then, we lost the League Cup Final in 1982, but we still hadn’t been beaten in an FA Cup Final, till 1987 that is. In 1991, the myth about the year ending 1 was perpetuated. But we all remember what happened 10 years later, don’t we?

So there you have it. What do we have left to pass on to the next generation? I often wonder at what point did supporters of once-proud teams realise that they were following mere mortals and not semi-deities. I suppose I’d have to find some 80 year-old Preston North End or Huddersfield Town fans to get an answer, (not too easy in south Jerusalem.) Remember, when Spurs last won the league, the other big teams of the time were Wolves and Burnley who have both spent periods in the 4th, er 3rd Division over the last 20 years. The problem is that with the state of football today, there seems no way back.

(I began writing this piece when Spurs found their way into the bottom 3 at the end of 2003. I left it when things started picking up for us but I completed it on the eve of what is to be possibly the most important game for us for some time now – against Villa away as relegation is still a possibility.)

David Graniewitz

April 20^th 2004 – I can, I can't (Jacob Goldberg)

I can't..
Go on the message board from work any more since my company has installed some sort of 'SpyWare' that detects message boards. This is some feeble attempt to stop employees spreading subversive comments about the company and being inflicted with virus's without going through their firewall. Like I am more interested in my company than Spurs..The company pays me money to sit there all day talking about football with my colleagues and then to use to go to watch Spurs..End of. (Oh and to pay the mortgage I suppose)

I can't
Stand up from my seat at WHL. Apparently this restricts the view and spoils the enjoyment of others. Well if football isn't enough to get you animated to the point of wanting to stand up, then you should stay at home.

I can't
Smoke at WHL. There is no evidence that passive smoking occurs in an open air environment of 100 trillion cubic meters of Nitrogen and Oxygen atmosphere. You are more in danger of getting botulism from the fumes of the catering franchises pies. Frankly, I don't care about the health police view on this, it is a simple restriction of liberties - You can fuck off.

I can't
Drink in view of the game. This is easily overcome by the surreptitious use of miniatures. This is a necessity watching Spurs.
I am not a hooligan, and I refuse to be tarred with the same brush as those who do incite trouble. Don't like it? Well you can again fuck off otherwise you will get your head kicked in ;-)

I can
Go to away games. I have chosen not to this season as I am the recent proud father of a beautiful baby girl. She will be Spurs. I will be at away games next season. No loss.

I can
Voice my opinion on the state of the club, the performances on the pitch, the prices. If I am not allowed to do this, then football would not exist as nobody would be interested in it. You don't have to like my opinion, it might not even be defensible, it might even be stupid sometimes. But I am at liberty to express it. Fuck 'healthy debate', get some passion, raised voices and serious arguments. Football is there to stir the passions.

I can
Choose not to renew my season ticket if we are in the 1st Division. Is this disloyal? No, because I can spend time with my daughter instead of watching the likes of West Ham and Millwall. After 30 years of supporting Spurs through thick and thin, I am entitled to a year or two off. Glory-Hunter? By all means bring back the glory.

I can
Dream of a Title-chasing, European-conquering team squad of players managed by a tactical genius, supported by 60,000+ in a state-of-the art stadium. I have no sentimental affinity to the past. It's time to move on. Give me some trophies - fuck the 'beautiful game' if that's what it takes. Let's get some success which will attract the best players who can then bring back the 'Spurs Way'.

'Nuff said
Jacob Goldberg