The blueprint still requires ink
Thursday, June 21, 2012 at 10:41PM An excellent read from David Conn via the Guardian here about the problems facing Daniel Levy in terms of how the club can sustain competitiveness at the very top level based on our current financial model. Or rather the quest that presents itself and how it may continue to remain answered even after we appoint a new manager.
Once more it's worth regurgitating the ugly truth that it was because of how Redknapp behaved and the apparent non-relationship he had with Levy that saw him lose his job. Judging by comments made by Levy and Redknapp post-'sacking' the official line is that Harry was let go because the club want to go in a different direction. Isn't this just PR, an avoidance and agreement to side step making public the real issues at hand? Or am I just basing that on the deafening silence from the club whilst Redknapp talked contracts to Sky Sports? Seems obvious to me but it's just an opinion.
Redknapp was a success compared to the past. The past in this instance is the Sky Sports era of football where we spent over a decade turning up for a yearly party at the wrong address. You could attempt to argue with the squad at hand it was expected in the time Harry spent at Spurs to achieve top four challenges - which he did. Even if that wasn't the intention when he joined. It soon become apparent that if the squad played like men instead of lost little boys they could aspire to so much more. So regardless of his flaws and lack of tactical shrewdness, he has left a steady foundation for the next man to build on. Perhaps the next man will be backed by Levy in the transfer market. You would hope they will see eye to eye and spend money on areas that need mending and upgrading. Forwards, midfield and the defence. Not too much then to concern themselves with.
Beyond Redknapp, Conn does hit the nail on the head in suggesting we need to be able to go toe to toe with the teams above us and to do so we need to be equipped, tooled up so that we stand a chance of us being the ones left standing when the fighting is done and dusted. Other clubs, the richer clubs might not always spend as much as you expect them to but they knock us out when comparing wage structures. As we all know, money talks and in this modern game it can talk players into remaining or signing regardless of whether Champions League is part of the package. I'm not completely comfortable with it but the wage you offer a player is a far more powerful tool than being able to sign the player in the first place. City might be able to out bid any competitor (both in transfer and wages) but not everyone can sign for City. It creates tiers in football in terms of which clubs can go after certain players. The Hazard transfer was interesting because apparently we could afford his fee but his wages? The only tears here are the ones falling down our cheekbones.
Ironically, Redknapp's legacy (aside from the stability we've found with our league form) finds our expectations for the club to see us compete at the very top of the Prem. There's no particular model or blueprint that has been implemented by coach or chairman. We know how good we can be, we know we can be even better and we know what we need to be able to get there. It's up to the chairman to unequivocally back the next man placed into the hot seat. I never got the impression Redknapp had that reassurance. Probably because he wanted to do things his own way. He took it a touch too far in the end, a one man band playing a tune that nobody else at the club was singing along to. There was disassociation, again this can be placed down to Redknapp and his selective detachment and loyalty to himself.
A very good manager, say someone equal to Redknapp, will probably achieve what Redknapp achieved. That sounds obvious but the point is with the players at our disposal, we won't degrade in any major way unless 3-4 key players walked away from the club. Which is highly improbable. So as long as the next man in gently and carefully begins to mould the team into the vision he has for them, there shouldn't be a major impact on our expectations or form. Granted the pressure (not just from the media) will be a problem for obvious reasons (how dare we sack their favourite son). But equally the pressure from us, the supporters. The much maligned Redknapp has actually set the bar very high as many amongst us expect us to achieve what we failed to do this season: 3rd place or better. Even in his failure there's an echo of glory.
We're going to need to retain our feet firmly on the ground and appreciate that one season in football is hardly comparable to the one that follows it. Still, the attitude has to be focused on bettering this season regardless. How else do retain a sense of progressive positive motion and emotion to see the club elevated further forwards?
To actually achieve more we have to be completely ruthless in our ambitions. There is no need for a five year plan as per previous years. Scouting and youth development should be part and parcel of a clubs set up. Which it is at Spurs. Although the scouting element is not something I quite understand since Comolli left. What we do need is to maximise our potential based on our current stature and aim not just for the season ahead but for the team to grow and evolve organically as to avoid any transitional periods. It's a continuation, not damage limitation or gutting. This job should not be one that is made difficult by the circumstance of the team itself. We just need to manage these expectactions with a little caution and not too much arrognance and entitlement.
To achieve that the chairman and manager have to be completely on the same page with short term transfer policies to get us challenging now and with long term projection. Even without a manager, signing a player of Jan Vertonghen's quality is the perfect illustration of this. As opposed to the moneyball quick win 'for the present day' strategy that Redknapp had with his signings (although kudos for Parker and yes, Redknapp's method can work if money isn't going to be spent). A blueprint for the future will be birthed from such a harmonious relationship.
Easier said than done. We still don't know what Levy is planning on doing in terms of the structure that will be set up to support the new manager/coach. Rumours suggest the return of the director of football position. Although arguably its never gone away. Levy has acted as one since Comolli was sacked, working with Redknapp or attempting to do so. We assume money wasn't spent because they couldn't agree on targets. If there was something else at play in terms of working to a budget outlined by Levy then Harry did work miracles to see us compete with the clubs above us that dwarf our budget in comparison.
The big boy revenue wont be there until the stadium is built and that could still be five years away if not longer. So until then we have to sustain our stature as a 'top five' club season in season out which means perhaps the short term tactic Redknapp embraced - working from one to the next - is the only way to do with the caveat that we sign players we can then sell on for profit (a classic Levy tactic, one that we'll probably see with Luka to La Liga).
Modric will go this summer. Bale might go next summer. We've always been able to attract players that are then sought after so perhaps this is the only financial model that will work to sustain our challenge. It's high risk because we're going to have to be up there challenging to attract the players in. It's harsh, it's not something I like to tag us with, but you can understand how Spurs act like a stepping stone, a gateway for players that want to showcase before they move on. I'm certain the link up with Internacional was based on this thinking, as we'll probably see with Sandro at some point in the future with him moving on to Italy.
Sometimes high risk can pay off. A club like Spurs in the CL every season would mean the club can start to throw heavyweight punches back at the bigger boys standing over us. Having no monopoly is a good thing but it also opens up a far more competitive league meaning we might have to share the privilege of wanting to get back in it. I for one would want to see Sandro see out his career at Spurs as a legend. It's going to take some doing.
Are we punching above our weight? In financial terms, yes. In footballing, there isn't that much difference at this moment in time between 4th and 3rd. We have to adopt and strength to remain level pegging. It's risky like I mentioned but there is no other way until we have a 60k (or just below) stadium.
To finish, here's Conn's opening paragraph from his article:
There are two ways to ask the same question about the Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy, the club's owner, Joe Lewis, and the three directors who sanctioned this week's sacking of Harry Redknapp. Do they have delusions of grandeur if fourth place in the Premier League is considered not good enough? Or, to put it more bluntly: what more do they want?
This isn't about Levy and the directors having delusions of grandeur. We don't have any other option at the moment than to build on the team finally sustaining consistency in the league. The key is the football played. Another season of Champions League will elevate us further in terms of accountancy. I'll settle for that and a piece of silverware. No one said this would be easy. Retaining Harry would simply give us more of the same and there's nothing wrong with that. Had Harry behaved, had we perhaps got into the CL. If anyone, Levy included, wants to validate sacking Redknapp purely for footballing reasons then perhaps the risk is in the belief that the right top class appointment would give us the very same thing but with the potential to go that little bit further and as I stated, there's very little between 4th and 3rd.
We can't stagnate, regardless of whether the statistics sneer back at us.
Reader Comments (48)
Can definitely see levy going back to dof, think commoli was the catalist for jols success and harrys.
He over all was successfull and forward thinking in the transfer market, we definitely lost that under redknapp.
the club has had no long term player strategy lately, harry was very much for the now, unlike say wenger who constantly has few irons in the fire.
cant help thinking though that we are on the cusp of a big sell off, and back to mid table mediocrity, or is this a sentiment of a true spurs supporter
PS to "Mr" Levy ,Mr Lewis and the 3 wise men... Sign AVB at your bloody peril!!!
I read Conn's article and detected an unnatural bias towards the blue end of Manc-town
Nicely balanced article Spooky. Regarding the new stadium providing funding for bigger salaries and better players, i would have thought that after it has been built (if ever) it will take a big chunk out of the revenue stream every year to pay back the loans, unless of course someone funds the stadium out of their own pockets and recovers the cost by selling the club.
Arsenal have been out of the big transfer market for years since they have had their new stadium but I guess by now they are ready to move forward which will make it doubly difficult for us to compete.
There has been some talk of Levy buying-in the Ajax management and adopting the model of producing genuine young talent to keep costs down and still enable us to compete. Some of the buys into the Academy last season would tend to support that approach if not with the Ajax management.
We will just have to wait and see, the operative word being "wait" as usual with Levy, but the good news is that he still has until the end of September to buy the new man those closing window bargains that he loves so much.
Spooky, A great bit of Journalism from both Conn and your good self. I think that Levy is secterive to the point of disrespect for the fans. I think we deserve to know why he sacked Redknapp. (I know why I would have sacked him). We should be given an idea of the direction he is going now, now that season tickets are for sale for next season and the facts are that we don´t know ´diddly squat´about signings or indeed who our next manager is going to be and whether he is going back to a DOF system or control by one person. I´m worried now that Levy thinks he doesn´t need to communicate with the fans and frankly I am starting to get pissed off with his attitude. Does he think this is his toy only.
Things weren't as bad as you paint, but then became unacceptable. The club were more than fine with Harry and backed him well. He gets results. He's a very good manager. But he's Arsenal and let's face it, cash is his bag. He went for the sack to get the England job and only went for top4 when Woy got it and he might have been here next year after all. Then got rightly booted. Levy is the person we must not lose. I like that he didn't sack Harry 'till Di Matteau got his contract so H is temporarily shafted back. He'll probably sit tight for a few months knowing he's not far from the Chelsea job. It's a shame. He's a bloody good manager. But despite being a former Harry fan, there were many areas of his thinking I didn't like. His disdain for Cups. Ditching reserves, etc. There is the right choice out there, someone who can keep us at the level we're at, but Danny has been put on the spot, and the decision needs to be spot-on, so can't be rushed. Levy is indispensable. He plays his cards close to his chest and is extremely clever, excelling in many departments. He must be kept. COYS
its only been a week since arry left. DL is entitled to spend 2 or 3 weeks interviewing etc isnt he? coz this is spurs, theres been 6 weeks worth of internet traffic on this issue squeezed into a week, and actually i think we've been saved from a full on fleet street & Sky onslaught coz of the Euros being on. i'll be concerned if we dont get it sorted by end of June tho coz then the Euros will be over and it will be open season on us. (unless he wants Blanc or Loewe in which case another week could pass). DL must deliver on this otherwise brown stuff is gonna hit the fan (pun intended). Fab for me for 2 years then Jurgen after WC. not martinez please and im not sure on AVB after he went mental in west london.
Anyone who puts their faith in Levy is a fool.You all are about to find out what he's always been about.
Talk, don't tease.
"Anyone who puts their faith in Levy is a fool.You all are about to find out what he's always been about."
your a bloody idiot,
Levy turned the club around, which is probably why he didnt like Redknapp as he seemed to be so happy to take all the credit "they were bottom when i arrived (we just won a cup by beating arsenal 5-1 and chelsea in the final, something harry couldnt even dream about)".
At times like this, we the fans need to step up to the plate and do our job. So much talk about players who may leave and those who may sign. How about we make a fuss of the quality players who have remained loyal? Lennon, Walker (signed a new contract amongst all this) Sandro, Hudd and dare I say JD. Make a fuss of these players, love them for their loyalty,don`t take them for granted and when it`s their turn they may just repay our support.
Levy will announce as soon as he can, but consider the number of potential candidates who are currently commited in some degree with the Euros and it's easy to see why our new boss has not been revealed. Yes it`s frustrating and we`re all grabbing our laptops as soon as we wake up in the hope of some news - but surely it`s a case of Levy cannot announce yet, rather than him thrashing about like a wet haddock trying to find a new boss.
Whats done is done. We now have no option but to trust Levy to make the right decision. If ENIC want to sell, and I think they do, then Levy may just break the bank to get the right manager. Next season may be more interesting than usual. However I have a gut feeling that things will not turn out well. But being a Spurs supporter for many a long year I live in hope, as I have done season after season.
Everyone seems to be thinking that we are at a certain level. But that should be passed tense because the 'missing piece' striker that moved us on a level is no longer at the club. He'll probably be lining up against us next season for citeh unless Levy can sort it out. Why has talk of Ade gone quiete?? We've got one centre forward at the moment in JD!
simyid - we need to look forward. If we signed Ade he would become bored and comfortable as he did at the scum and city.
Once the new boss is in place he will identify the players that he needs.
35mil for Luka - that will pay for two decent strikers. I hope we don`t sign Ade, the best excuse we`ve heard for him, Luka etc for their dip in form has been playing too many games. Tell that to Messi, Ronaldo etc and they`ll laugh in your face.
Yes, 4th was an achievement butit should have been more and that is why I would have fired Harry.
Why we did not finish higher was for several reasons in all of which I think Harry played his part.
Not realising that he had to actually act to stop the rot of the last dozen or so games.
Buying short term fixes without letting the youngsters step up. They might not have done better but scarcely could have done worse.
He should have made it really clear he would have taken the England job straight away. that would have been the honorable thing to do and I think everyone would have respected it. The FA's suspicious dalliance about a decision together with his coyess about the job, resulted in an unnecessary uncertain atmosphere which had to impact all aspects of the club from Directors to fans.
Interesting in the Euros to see a certain Helder Postiga as a starter for Portugal and Tomas Pekhart coming on for the Czech Rep. If Levy's transfer policy settles on the very young or the very old, not much point in the former if successive managers don't do anything to bring through the new talent. Redknapp's biggest failing (among quite a few) imho.
If the new manager's similarly strapped for transfer cash - or, more to the point, paying the new arrivals once they're here - a little more interest in the young players wouldn't go amiss.
The budget is smaller without a dof, yeah? Don't expect to see that then.
Levy's gotta be looking for a manager with spendthrift tendencies.
YouthAcademy is the buzzword and this should be a strong part of our new top dog's pedigree.
IMO Bale must be kept as cover for Benoit and Modric's millions should be cashed in while Vdv is still around.
Over the next 3 windows Spurs must invest in a shiny new spinal column, every disc from GK to CD to CM to CAM to ST.
Is the 'genius' Levy really going to hand over the reigns to a 34 year old with less than one year's (bad) experience in English football? AVB has already got the press against him as he didn't dance to their tune during his time at scumski. Add that to the ill feeling they have against Spurs and Levy for offing their boy, then unless he hits the ground sprinting, he's got a mountain to climb.
Seems like quite a risk from the people who invariably take none.
Don't think anyone will have it easy with Harry's Boys on red alert.
Hate Levy, worst thing to happen to our club since ever. We aren't going to get Vertonghen now, he'd only come here if they have a manager like Redknapp, not fucking AVB or Blanc. Look at Arsenal, getting Podolski, Giroud and probably M'Vila, Chelski getting Hazard, Marin and Hulk, Man Utd getting Kagawa, we struggle to get one defender who plays in a shit cub.
Another day of no news and the media knowing fuck all. The Mirror said Vertonghen was doing medical yesterday and, as usual, they got that wrong. AVB hasn´t pulled the plug yet but I hope he does today as he´s unsuitable for this job. Let´s get Moyes before Man U do.
In a world of ITKs and biased hacks, You have provided a pearl of wisdom and clear-headed, level opinion of what the situation is and how we can move forward.
Love the blog.
Question is, what manager fits the bill?
Somebody of Rjikaard's standing would become frustrated by the wage structure for signing players but would bring the gravitas required to manage an ever increasing dressing room of egos...
AVB would be younger than our 1st choice goal keeper and has a history of causing dressing room unrest by humiliating players, but does seem tactically astute and plays the right football...
Martinez would suit the football, and would adapt to our financial restraints, but isnt proven at the top level...
Moyes doesnt suit the football, but is proven and could be a stop-gap until the stadium is built.
I say we sign Terry Connor. He cries when his team lose. I like that
Let me say this right at the offset, I didn't like Harry and I believe he let Spurs down more than a few times both on and off the pitch. I am not sad to see him go. That said, I think his style of management suited Levy and the Spurs Board. They signed the players and Harry (if it suited his short term aspirations) tried to get the best out of said players. Harry went along with using what Levy had provided.
AVB on the other hand plays his own way. He styles the team according to his own philosophy and chooses the players which fit into that style, even if it would mean stepping on some big egos and established rules within the club. He doesn't strike me as a man willing to have players or style imposed on him.
I think its telling that a few days after AVB emerges as the front runner for the Spurs job, he is willing to walk away and Levy is out sounding "other potential candidates". Somehow, I can just imagine Levy telling AVB that he's getting Vertonghen + other Levy sourced players to mould into the existing team while AVB stares at him with glassy eyes.
I think AVB is a good manager but I don't believe his style suits Levy. For better or worse, Levy needs another Harry type (hopefully without the self serving rent a quote baggage) that takes on what's given and makes do with what's available. Moyes, anyone?
To all of you who either don't like Harry and are glad he's gone,and/or think he should have made his intentions known sooner,and those of you who think that AVB is a good manager..get a grip on reality.What was it that Harry did exactly? He WASN'T offered the England job.Nobody from the FA approached him in any way shape or form.ALL of the speculation about the England job came from Talk Crap..I mean Sport,Five Live,,and every other TV and radio outlet.It came from everyone and his brother calling up these radio stations and say that "IT HAS TO BE HARRY"..no doubt some of you lot were among the callers,probably Levy as well becasue he was hoping fro a nice little pay off ,and then he could get rid of HArry as he had planned and tell the world how sorry he was to lose such a great manager.He's as disingenuous and full of it as anybody. The call for Harry to be crowned the next England manager carried on in every paper,and on every internet blog, in every tweet..EVERY bloddy where..but NOT from the FA.Get it? NOT from the FA. Redknapp himslef was forced to comment even though there was no approach.He said he was flattered.Yeah and so weho wouldn't be.He said he didn't know if e would take it ,then after he got sacked he said he would have taken it had it been offered.You don't know how much of that statement was designed to have a jibe at Levy.Look ..if you don't like the bloke then say you don't like him but don't start making shit up about how he did this and that and was terible on and off the pitch yada yada yada..He has the best record of ANY Spurs manager in many many many yeears.He got us into 4th twice.Yeah..could have done better and would have.Now we're faced with the very real prospect of Levy signing the biggest managerial flop of last season or any season ,and not just a flop but a poor man manager and somebody who I know for a fact is disliked by many players who have crossed his path and a man who is an alienating figure of the highest order.I even saw some poor deluded Spurs fan say that AVB was the tactical"GENIUS" behind Mourinhos success at Chelsea.Spurs fans taske the effing bisquit.
As much as I love Spurs and have done for all of my 39 years,part of me will get some satisfaction knowing how gutted some of you will be and how quickly you'll change your tune,when Spurs are languishing in mid table,and not even coming close to the form of last season ,becasue the owners sacked the best manager we've had in many years.Yet some of you are prepared to welcome him andstill one or two have said he's a good manager.If Boas is intent on plying his trade in this country,then he belongs in the 2nd dvision where maybe he can learn about football in this country.He has no business manging at the highest level.NONE
Mal White, if it is to be AVB, at least give the bloke a chance.
Redknapp had his chance, but fucked it up with that giant mouth of his. He needn't have said anything about the England job, but the prick couldn't keep quiet for 5 minutes. In the papers, on the telly, on the radio, out his car window etc. It's little wonder the FA didn't want him; the man was an embarrassment and not fit to be a manager of Spurs, let alone represent the country.
So the bloke got a couple of top 4 places in a couple of seasons where Liverpool were way of the pace, and both the scums lost over 25% of their matches last season - so what! The scum had one of their worst teams for an age last season, we had one of the best, yet we still finished the season below them as we had a wanker for a manager.
Didn't sign a contract as he though he was getting the England job, started playing players out of position and generally not giving a shit, didn't get the England job, but still wanted a contract. Started mouthing off (as always) in the media that if he didn't get a contract, players would leave. He was holding the club to ransom, in public, in the week of Levy's mother's funeral. Underneath the media friendly cheeky chappy façade lies a no good, lower than a snakes belly, lying and conniving shit bag. But forget about all that because he got two top four finishes.
Whatever happens, sacking Redknapp was the right thing to do, but to not even give the new man a chance is pathetic.
It seems to me that everything you have said, Mal, about AVB could have been said about Mourinho or Mancini or even old whisky face. Great managers tend to be acerbic and opinionated, because they have a vision for which they will fight tooth and nail. If the players buy-in everything is lovey-dovey and, if it works, great things happen. If they don't , ie: Tevez/Mancini or Beckham/Ferguson, someone has to go. I was impressed with AVB's intelligence and his rapid grasp of the English game and media. His mistake was taking-on the old guard at Chelski, before establishing his own system and credentials. You can't slash and burn players like Fat Frank. Hopefully he's older and wiser, although his comments in the press last week give me some qualms. But, I for one want to see something daring and innovative and attacking; and that's what AVB will give us given the chance. To be sure, there are others out there who can provide the excitement, but they will all have their-own tics and idiosyncracies. It's up to the players and us, the fans, to give whoever gets in a chance. When Levy made the mistake with Ramos he was still a baby sitting in the Chairman's seat. He's older and wiser and more cautious now. Hopefully he will make the right choice for Spurs and take us to the next level.
Where's my Rosary...
Looking on the bright side of being a Spurs fan, we are never short of something to talk/blog about.
Nice piece Spooky.
Great article but can see spurs going back to the dark days of ramos, if we get avb, jol got us 5th twice then he went just like harry, avb what he done got sacked by chelsea are we now prone to other clubs failures, at least moyed kept everton stable with no money, and the french manager has won a double and got the french playing good football. avb has done naff all and
then starts mouthing off about other possible managers in the frame, who does the guy think he is, please levy dont make
anther mistake.
To TMWNN..Your exactly the sort of Spurs supporter that I hope gags on your words come November December time when if AVBis manager ,Spurs will likely be in a sorry state.You don't like Harry and you can't seperate what he did on ther pitch with your deep hate of him.Your language when speaking abpout him says it all so as far as I'm conceredfn your opinion is worthless.You hate Harry and eveything else out of your mouth is built around your hatered of Harry. "SO THE BLOKE GOT A COUPLE OF 4th PLACE IN A COUPLE OF SEASONS..." yeah..piece of cake innit.I mean we were sitting on top of the league and HArry took us down to 4th right?? Go away. You have no argument.You just hate Harry.
As for not giving AVB a chance... He isn't fit to manage at the highest level in Engllish Football. Whats he done other than alienate alot of people? Jack shit. Here..think quick.. HArry got sacked, so who was the person who popped into your head straight away to succeed him.AVB??? I doubt it.
Devils advocate
On the other hand, Redknapp was our Red Adair. He was hellied in under the cover of darkness, cameras snapping, flashlights popping, flames a licking. Levy stood in the shadows, smoke stained, coughing and clutching what was dear - a golden cockerel, and forty or so slightly singed player contracts, oh, and thirty-six post-bags of hastily crammed cash.
Redknapp, tooled up to the eyeballs, made his way through the gauntlet of gloating bystanders, some could even be seen fanning the flames. Redknapp took one last deep breath, grasped his overall-zip between finger and thumb, and yanked it upwards over his belly to his chins. Looking over his shoulder he could be heard muttering something about Ketchup, and then, he was gone.
Days later the fire was dead, Redknapp had done it. He’d saved the day, and how good was that feeling. Redknapp, of course felt like a Masai warrior with no less than a 30,000 goats, but unfortunately for Redknapp, the sandals, stretched earlobes and constant jumping became irksome, but why?
‘What were the real issues at hand’?
Red Adair and Masai warriors, are good at what they do - fire fight and smile - and so was Redknapp. Redknapp was good at providing Ketchup exactly where it was needed, but hold on, if that was the case, then surely anyone could’ve rocked up with a bottle and squeezed themselves into this tenure?
No, of course not!
Try dressing up as a Masai warrior and walking through Tottenham dragging a goat!! You’ll be rumbled, ridiculed and goatless within a nanosecond.
So after doing what he was brought in to do, he, Redknapp, thought he’d give Football management a bash, he knew exactly what we all wanted, and he had a vague idea how to get it, he’d seen others over the years do similar things, and so, with everything covered in Ketchup he gave it a bash!
Now there’s nothing to complicated about banging the base of a bottle of Ketchup, and so Redknapp employed the same tried and tested approach to football. Redknapp was not what we would call learned; historically we would only call Redknapp in the event of a fire.(already discussed) We knew this, we knew that he was a bit wooo, a bit of a one, a wheeler, a dealer, and it was this image, this understanding of this man and his abilities that eventually had him hoisted into the air, with crones and harridan’s alike forcing the price of rotten fruit through the roof on execution day.
‘hope he rots in hell’
Redknapp stopped fighting fires and told them to run about, he knew that if they did, they’d more than likely end up scoring, and run about they did, and by jingo it seemed to pay dividends. Redknapp rejoiced in this newfound role, and thumped his chest accordingly, but hold on, remember our friend and his goat? Well the same applied.
Redknapp thumped, and thumped, but nothing, not a sausage. No adulation, no warmth, no, no, no, he thought, what’s going down here, what am I missing, why do they point? " I rescued this lot from a burning building and gave um mouth2mouth, for God sake what more do they want……..blood"? It appeared so.
Redknapp, now bereft of affection, understanding or praise searched for love, but who could love such a rouge? ‘Harry, harry, can you talk into this mic for 5 or so minutes mate, and anything will do’ And so Harry found unconditional love, and on tap too. This union only served to anger the masses, and the reason was simple, as simple as Harry: intellect.
Now these sound-bites originated deep within the pre frontal cortex of a 62 year old man, who, by his own admission wrote like a 5 year old chimpanzee. He was unable to use a computer, or for that matter, read. So what made us believe he was in control of complex cognitive thought processes? Even is motor functions were shot!
When he talked of ‘them’ rather than ‘us’ I’m sure synapse activity overrode true meaning, or was this RedAdair the fire fighter talking, rather than the manager, the manager who didn’t fit the mould. The manager who waved his arms around, pointed, made strange hand type signals that indicated communication and meaning, (run around here, not there) a manager who became irked himself.
Redknapp believed that he was in a results business, and that good results meant, champagne, bacon sandwiches, new contracts, new suits and smiles all around, but thoughts aren’t tangible, take my Granddad for instance. He once thought he farted but in actual fact he’d shit himself.
And so this dragged on, until one day, it happened. FIRE!!!!!!!!! FIRE!!!!!!!!!!
Red Adair was the talk of the town, adulation, smiles, mic’s a plenty, Red didn’t know what hit him, and nor did the pointers, the knockers, the doubters. Redknapp had made it, he had morphed overnight into a beautiful magnificent manager, the knockers stopped knocking, the pointers stopped pointing and the……get the drift? Red, was now ready for the off, there was a job to do, and boy was he ready. After months of rejection, his day was finally fast approaching. He could almost ear the helli blades over the goats and the 3rd chorus of ‘we want you to stay’
Levy stood in the shadows once again as Newcastle suffered at the hands of Redknapps mastery: Ketchup philosophy and run around tactics winning the day. Levy, contract in hand beckoned the new invigorated, talk of the town manger and at last talked sweet nothings into Reds elongated ear, but Red was gone, Red was distant, Red was dead inside.
The call never came
In a cruel twist of fate, another spritely young thing ended up with the England gig, and Redknapp? He was escorted from the premises into the waiting arms of Sandra.
The Ketchup? Placed in a glass cabinet next to a single-adult-tube-ticket - slightly singed.
Word on the street is that smoke can be clearly seen billowing once again from WHL.
so who I ask is the Fire starter?
Mal White, I'm just telling you exactly what Redknapp is. At least I had the decency to give Redknapp a chance.
So it's just me is it who has seen through Redknapp? Have a read of this, think of Redknapp, then spit on the floor ;-)
http://www.fansnetwork.co.uk/football/southampton/fb_news.php?storyid=17336
Why is there an in-built assumption that AVB has learned anything positive from his bad experience at Chelsea. What makes us now believe that he possesses the ability to manage the media, Senior Players and adjust his tactics to the squad available at Tottenham. Everybody here seems to be quick to think him the victim of a cruel plot at Chelsea - mainly because they detest the rogues gallery at the bridge. Maybe they did convince Roman A. to displace him, and maybe just maybe they were right and perhaps Chelsea went on to win the top prize in Europe without him, with a bunch of old codgers and some defensive tactics.
Tottenham Hotspur should not be a repair home for broken Managers. He is damaged goods. We should select someone with a good track record.
The s$%t has well and truly hit the fan..
The irony is that Spurs now need a Redknapp-type manager to give us a collective cuddle and rally the troops.
Hello Ian Holloway..
Or we could get ourselves a fancy foreign manager and play sexy football. Either way.
I'm going to play the AVB 'devil's advocate' here. For those not ITK, AVB trained under Mourinho at Porto, before taking-over another Portugese team. He then took-over at Porto after some mediocre seasons at Mourinho's urging and took Porto to an undefeated season, their FA Cup equivalent, Supercup and won the Europa league as a bonus. So the boy knows what he is doing. He was recommended by Mourinho for the Chelski job, where he came acropper. Why that happened has been argued above and I wont re-iterate it.
So I think it is premature to toss the baby out with the bathwater just yet. I was impressed with his intelligence. He may be a spoiled brat, however, I'm willing to give him a chance.
Harry never impressed me with his intellect, but there's no denying that he knows football. I think that you need both to be a top manger in today's game. Harry took us to the promised land. Now we need someone to get us in the gates past some sodding rich guard dogs!
Porto are, and have always been the Barcrlona of Portugal and have won their title 39 times....actually i'm lying....it's 71. They won it again the season after AVB rocked up at Chelsea.....so lets get some perspective shall we!
Mr levy has his head up his arse. None of our players are gonna want to play when avb and his coaching staff come in. The squad were all happy and we played some of the best stuff I've ever seen from a spurs team in my lifeteam. Harry was pretty clueless but to finish 4th 5th 4th last 3 years is all we could hope for. It was the team that stopped playing when the whole Harry for England stuff come along and the same will happen when avb and co come in. We will go back to the dark days of crumbling and panicking when teams have a go at us. Harry u done us proud. Mr levy your head is well and truly up your arse and hope u do one when it goes tits up
@TMWNN
I have no great undying love for Redknapp, and understand the whole situation was complicated (as articulated by Spooky above)..
However.. that whole idea that Redknapp 'fluked' finishing 4th-5th-4th because either;
a) All the hard work had been done for him previously in acquiring talent, and/or
b) Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Man City were simultaneously coughing up underachieving, mismanaged seasons repeatedly between 2009 and 2012
.. is complete and utter bunkum. It wasn't lucky that we beat Arsenal, Chelski and Man City in a matter of weeks to reach the CL in the first place in 2010. It wasn't lucky that we made Inter and AC Milan look ordinary the following season. It wasn't lucky that we put that stunning string of results together in the opening half of the just completed season.
We didn't see Villa, Everton, Newcastle (gave it a decent shake admittedly) or anyone else capitalise on the state of flux at the top of the table. I understand why people didn't/don't like Redknapp. I understand there's politics and angst going on upstairs that we can only guess at. 2012 could quite conceivably be the right time to start a new direction with a new manager- we shall see in time.
But seriously- underselling 4th-5th-4th (and hosting Real Madrid, no less, in the QF of the CL), given what we as fans have had to endure in the last 15-20 years (additionally overlooking our handicap when fighting the new-money brigade at Citeh and Chelski), is .. unbalanced. If you don't like Redknapp that's fine, understandable on some levels. But don't be myopic- the last three years have been one hell of a ride, one we should all be thankful for given the mediocre hell that preceded it (the Jol years excepted).
SonOfSkeleror, Just forget what Redknapp supposedly achieved or didn't achieve for a minute, the bloke lacks any sense of integrity.
integrity.....ya say!
When the suggestion of selling star striker Dimitar Berbatov arose, Jol claimed "I'd rather die."[7]Because of the large amount of money that had been spent, Spurs were expected by the board to challenge for a top 4 place in the 2007–08 season. However, after Tottenham lost their opening two games, their club secretary John Alexander and director Paul Kemsley were photographed in a Spanish hotel with Sevilla manager Juande Ramos, who then claimed that Tottenham had made him a "dizzying offer" to become their manager, though this was denied by Tottenham's chairman Daniel Levy.[8] This undermined Jol's position, and he was eventually sacked by the Tottenham board on 25 October 2007 during their 2–1 defeat to Getafe in the UEFA Cup.[9] Jol confessed that he first became aware of the decision when his nephew told him of a text message he received saying Jol was to leave the Tottenham
Sorry, but I'm becoming apoplectic......
I don't know how much integrity Sir Alex or Arsene have either?..
Every time Man U or Arsenal lose a game it's always solely down to referee incompetence- when was the last time either of them lost graciously?
Regardless, integrity (or lack thereof) neither explains nor explains away 4th-5th-4th. Redknapp's personality and failings may explain his sacking, but it doesn't stand to reason that the last three seasons were some kind of fluke, or an unremarkable sequence of results achieved in spite of him.
To all the HR lovers Aston Villa 1, Spurs 1. What was he doing? I don't fancy AVB either. We need someone who knows and understands the EPL. Someone who could work with, and get the best out of the existing squad. It IS a very good squad. One of the best around. Even without Modric it is still capable of being a serious challenger for a top 3 place. Especially if Modrics transfer money is reinvested in the squad.
@ Victor Mildrew
I'm not an HR lover, but I'll attempt to answer the question re. Villa 1 Spurs 1:
1) We had ten men
2) He knew that a point could prove valuable in terms of finishing in front of Newcastle, ie he didn't want to risk finishing 5th
3) He may have figured that, having just equalised with ten men, we might stand a better chance of scoring again by not becoming outnumbered in midfield. I don't necessarily agree that it was the best plan, but it wasn't lunacy or suicide either
4) Fulop's floundering and Robben's penalty fail in Munich had not yet happened, neither were they a fait accompli. Finishing 4th was not certain at that point (it was still possible we could have finished 3rd OR 5th at that time), and neither was 4th a surefire poisoned chalice on that afternoon.
I don't necessarily agree with what he was doing, but that's why he was doing what he was did.
@Son Of Skeletor
The will to win what was a winnable game, was lacking not just that day, but in several key games, which
ultimately did for us. It is all about instilling belief and the Spurs players, on noting Defoe was not brought on
in the Villa game, were receiving a negative message from the boss that said we will take the draw, when we had a poor
Villa team on the backfoot.Perhaps H felt sorry for McLeish.............
.....and anyway, you should never rely on the results of other teams going your way. Play to win.
Hold on a minute, so what you're saying is. Red actually influenced the game! Really? So this 'run around' nonsense must be, well, nonsense then, surely? It's funny, actually, its bloody hilarious, how we blame Redknapp for drawing, and losing, but sweep wins briskly under the carpet....sad really.
Don't get the wrong end of stick here, I'm merely throwing spanners into nonsensical biased rhetoric.......... If I could have tracked down Redknapp the evening of the Villa game, I'd have attempted to give is face a wedgie!!! That game drove pain deep into my soul, I hid in a fcukin bush in Sandbanks for near on 5 hrs, and nothing! Someone must of tipped him off!
The arguments are getting ridiculous.The people who hate Harry ,and I don't get why,will carry on hating and use their hate to support AVB or whatever other incompetent manager Levy decides to appoint,and will play down what he(Harry) achieved.Those of you who hate Harry ,remember one thing,the players like him and they responded to him.AVB hasn't even signed yet and there are already discontented players who are not happy,and they aren't happy becasue they know more about the ginger in the mac then we do,and pleanty of fans are prettty upset/pissed off as well.So it would seem that in a brainstorming moment,Levy ,has gotten rid of a highly successful manager who the players liked and responded to,and is about to sign a guy who was a complete failure at a club with loads of money and quality players,and where he got most of their backs up.Also to the bloke who asked the question "what makes you think that Boas hasn't learned from his mistakes"? Are you having a laugh.He's only been away from Chelseas for what is it..6 or 7 months.?What the hell is it that you think he would have learned in such a short space of time? What he should have learned was that he has no place playing big league manager in the EPL and probably is bettter served in his home country or somewhere similar where he can be a big fish in a small pond.I was hoping the Venkys might take a good hard look at AVB to replace Kean.
So Harry haters ,keep on using any ecxcuse you can find.He's the second coming of Hitler.He has less scrupoles than any of the Krays did right? I've got news for you lot.We're all out for ourselves,like you people say Harry is,but being out for yourself doesn't mean your a Hitler or a Kray or any other nasty piece of work,and the friends and the respect that Harry has within the game for the most part,speak volumes about the kind of guy he is,apart from being a fantastic manager.I didn't say perfect manager ,but without doubt a really good one,who did well for Spurs.Keep all of your links to articles by other haters.Not interested.
Seems the cat's out of the bag! We're being SOLD
@Mal White
HR is a good manager with a good team. He can't manage a squad. He ran his first XI into the ground and it showed at the tail end of the season. Rather than promote a hungry reserve he played his first XI players out of position. He sent out on loan Corluka and Bassong and kept an unfit Ledley KIng struggling to last 90 minutes. He showed extreme bias against Bent, Pav, Defoe, and no doubt others as well. He abolished the reserve team. I live in OZ and have taped every Spurs game live for the last 10/12 years via satellite TV. Sure there has been a considerable improvement under HR. 3 days ago, during the Euro rest day, I rewatched both of the Spurs Norwich games. The difference was there for all to see. In the home game Spurs were bereft of ideas and energy. There was a very prominent Australian Rules coach who once made two very pertinent observations, The first was "players never improve by just sitting on the bench". And the second was "Why would you play someone who is only 80% fit, when you have a youngster 100% fit who wants to make a name for themselves". If you gave HR Pele, Greaves, Garrincha, Beckenbauer et al. He would win the World Cup every time. But in the EPL he lacks the ability to handle his squad for an entire season. I still have nightmares about Aston Villa 1 Spurs 1. To Dare Is To Do. And on that day HR didn't dare. Sure he did do good things a WHL. But at times, when it really mattered, he went missing. Probably because he didn't know what to do.Well done Levy.