8th spot is the new 4th
Monday, May 25, 2009 at 1:28PM Tottenham: Not good for your health.
One moment we are high up looking down at everything, anticipating – dare I say excited. And then it begins and we find ourselves heading downwards with dizzying speed, my heart in my mouth and my gut pushed up somewhere into my head. Why do I put myself through this? When will the nightmare end? The twists, the turns. The agony and screams. The ups and downs.
It’s a rollercoaster ride.
Literally. The Colossus ride at Thorpe Park. Which is where I spent most of Sunday (making it back for the final 15 minutes of the football). But not a minute went by without thinking about how we were getting on up at Anfield.
I’ve seen extended highlights of the game and considering the players missing due to injury along with one or two Keystone cops on ketamine performances best illustrated by the lethargic Corluka – I don’t want to read too much into it. Proper end of season get it over and done with football. Shame really, as Fulham lost to Everton so we might have sneaked into Europe but then again, I’m not crying over the fact we didn’t.
Three consecutive years of European football ended probably at Blackburn when we lost 2-1 and along with West Ham, the only London clubs without a passport to the continent. Talking of which, we finished above them, which is no reason for an open bus parade, but still hilarious if anything for the fact that at one point we were so far behind that one happy Hammer bet me £100 we would not finish above them.
As for the game, the missing players illustrates that we have plenty of work to do with strengthening the squad so that the balance is not lost on such occasions. Harry once more recycling the fact that we might need to sell to generate more funds for players.
Bent, Pav, Bentley, Huddlestone, Zokora....a few that are being constantly linked with moves away. It all beings soon. You ready for it?
Keane scored our only goal, and decided not to celebrate. Which resulted with applause from all sides of the ground. Disaster signing or not, that was classy. By disaster, I mean for Liverpool. I don’t agree it was a mistake for us to get him back. Those early performances on his return were vital ones. And he'll back to his normal self after a break in the sun - one that this summer will not include any phone calls from Rick Parry.
So that’s that. Two points from eight games. Ramos and Comolli sacked. The Bale jinx. Bentleys form. Harrys appointment. 4-4. The climb up the table. Our home form. Keane and JD returning. Wilson. Laughing in the face of relegation. Touching distance from Europe. 8th. The end.
I'm happy, if only because of the mess we found ourselves in at the start of it all. In the grand scheme of things, it's been a wasteful season and once more a transitional one. Let's just pray to the footballing Gods that next season is a little more gentle in the way of any unwanted hiccups and that we sustain a 7th - 5th spot from the start of the season. Would be nice to enjoy the season from start to finish.
We won’t even have to time to recover from this one, with the summer transfer window almost upon us.
Another rollercoaster ride no doubt. Close your eyes and hope for the best.
Reader Comments (9)
In a perverse way I'm looking forward to all the changes. Different type of pressure on Harry next season.
I'll take eighth and be thankful. Better a damp squib than an unmitigated disaster. I've watched the car-crash(es) happening to the bar-codes and thought 'there but for the grace of god'. I'm grateful to Harry for rescuing us, and only hope that he's given the time and resources needed to build a team capable of challenging for league and champions league success. The constant changing of playing staff, coaching staff and managers is not a recipe for success, let's hope that Evil has finally grasped this truth. Roll-on the next roller-coaster ride, the closed season is like waiting for a bus. Tedious.
ps Thanks for a great blogging season spooks, lots of luaghs and incisive comment.
I'd compare Tottenhams season to Saw the ride rather than Colossus. Fucking horror show.
Relegation fodder to 8th is fine but not so good when you consider how we all believed that 5th/4th spot was a possibility at the start of the season. Unless you actually ignored the media and saw that Ramos was failing us in the league from the previous seasons and bought players that did not fit into the current one.
"....at one point we were so far behind that one hapless Hammer bet me £100 we would not finish above them.
Corrected.
Great blog once again ive been Reading all season and have been glued to your articles with agreement so well done I hope u blog for us some more. Pat on the head for you :)
8th is better than 7th, we do not have a big squad and with the right signings who knows - 8th will become 4th because unlike the teams that finsihed in 7/6/ and 5 we do not have the pressure of extra games - Everton, remember the last time u got this high, next yr u almost went down .... Pav needs a rest then u will see the true class the guy has, Hudd is also class we need 2 keep - bibi zakora, bently and all the non-discrips. Here is to a new year without the pressure ...
Thanks to 'Arry Boy. I pray he does not spoil it by signing the likes of Cisse or Jones. With £30m + rasing a further £70m by selling the likes of Bent/Pav/Keane/Bentley/JJ he has a proper kitty. He does not have to scrap the barrell like he has had to all of his carrer. £100m could bring in the likes of Tevez, Santa-Cruz, Veluso, Young and Richards. If he wants to bring Cisse in as a fourth striker, on loan and on the back of that, then I'd let him off.
dave you're deluded lol
spooky keep up the good work onwards and upwards my good man