Daniel Levy misses conference call in bid to derail Modric Madrid move

Spurs chairman AWOL

Daniel Levy has thrown Tottenham’s summer transfer dealings into disarray after failing to dial into a conference call to decide on the latest bid from Spanish giants Real Madrid in their pursuit to sign Luka Modric. With the player’s heart set on a move to La Liga, the hope was that the Spurs board would agree on the latest offer of £24.9M (with further add-ons) or simply wait a week for Madrid to bid less before accepting it.

The suggestion is that Levy plans to agitate for stagnation and avoid any deal from concluding so that it’s dragged on across the summer with the possibility of the player, deep in contract, unable to move on for the second year running. According to club insiders Levy submitted a memo saying that he won’t consider taking any calls from abroad unless they are from clubs responding to offers made for their players or bids for our players that are not called Luka Modric.

Modric did not train on Thursday, the first scheduled day of his pre-season, although he did turn up at Spurs Lodge. He did not stay for long having been chased out of the training complex by club mascot, Chirpy, who (with cigar in mouth and a bottle of whisky in hand) screamed obscenities at the Croatian play-maker who managed to escape by car without injury. Modric later met representatives from Claims Direct at a restaurant suggesting that perhaps one of the squirrels thrown at him left a scratch or two.

Injury lawyers for Luka

Madrid president, Florentino Perez, is confident that Modric will move to his club and has instructed the player not to travel to the United States with Spurs for their tour. The plan is to have the player stay behind and if he remains detached long enough everybody will forget what he looks like so when Ricardo Carvalho turns up with a mullet speaking broken Croatian nobody will notice. Levy’s stance has also softened. Last summer he was abundantly clear the player was not for sale. This year he accepts the player does have a price. A price that sits written on a post-it note stuck to Modric’s current long standing contract with the club placed in an envelope hidden within Levy's boxer shorts which can only be revealed if he is caught.

Some one close to the board who isn’t on the board but knows someone who knows someone who shared it with someone who posted it on a forum which then proceeded to spread via social media said, “If Luka’s agent wants to orchestrate a move to Madrid, they’ll have to find Levy and get hold of the envelope. They will have to place their hand down the front of Levy’s trousers to get it. It’s that simple”.

According to the Daily Mail, Levy was last sighted boarding a yacht, sticking up his middle finger and screaming 'haters gonna hate'.

Time to doff our hat to the potential return of the DoF?

Last week we recorded an emergency episode of The Fighting Cock podcast to cover Harry Redknapp's departure and the managers being linked with replacing him. Tim Sherwood was mentioned, not as a replacement but in connection with the alleged potential return of the DoF at the Lane. Firstly, my issue with this is simple. What is the basis for the rumour? Is it because the back to basics approach that replaced Comolli with Harry has come to an end? Or is it because Sherwood survived the cull that saw Allen, Bond and Jordan leave the club? I don't see how such an appointment would work or for that matter be feasible because of his complete lack of experience at the very highest level. It's a non-starter for him. Is it a non-starter full stop? Or is it only a non-starter when assuming the role is similar to past ones we've seen at the club?

If Levy was considering restructuring the hierarchy and re-introducing it, what exactly would the DoF system work when compared to its past ? I've written this article for my own process of dismissing the system from being a relevant option for Spurs to re-introduce. It's not really as in-depth as I set out to craft. It's just me moaning and waffling. You know the drill. I say a bunch of stuff out loud and hopefully in the mess you lot can pull out sound-bites and argue and debate amongst yourselves.

I've been asking myself that question over and over again. What exactly would the DoF system be if re-introduced at Spurs? Would it match the previous under Comolli or the one where Pleat acted like a glorified scout knocking heads with Hoddle and giving us joyful sagas such as 'Rebrov' and 'Diego'? I don't care for the footballing dictionary definition because of the variety of incarnations we've witnessed under the same chairman. Add to it the fact that other clubs are of no significance thanks to the rather sensational reason that other clubs are not THFC.

Under Comolli, the quintessential Spurs DoF appoints the coach/manager and they work in unison, a collaboration, to sign players that fit whatever formation and club model they agree upon with the chairman. It's a system completely reliant on both men being one hundred percent on the same page. It's long term aim is to create stability with transfers and potentially with ideology of said transfers, so that if the manager/coach is replaced the DoF brings in a new man and the transition isn't too disruptive. It's what Levy was advised to look into and introduce when he was still a footballing virgin, turning to advisor's for support. It works on the continent. It works in the NFL. But neither are the English Premier League. It also works in the lower divisions in England but the ambitions and stature of the clubs there provides a different type of working template and very different pressures on all concerned. Again, that's just my own opinion.

Arnesen replaced Pleat. He appointed Santini and then Jol. He left for Chelsea and Comolli took the role and eventually replaced Jol with Ramos. Hardly plain sailing. The ethos and scouting of Arnesen and pattern of incoming players was different to the one introduced by Comolli. I always saw DC as a chief go-getter of potential signings. Levy would rubber-stamp the air travel and off goes DC to bag Berbatov or Zokora (can't always get it right). DC does all the face to face work, easing pressure away from Levy and the manager. But then that just sounds like a more slick productive version of David Pleat.

My discomfort has always been that the DoF, regardless of the fact he's there to support the man he appoints along with the chairman, has too much influence and power that can undermine the coach. Santini struggled. In some ways we hit good form with the unexpected promotion of Martin Jol (conspiracy theorists will suggest Levy felt obliged to appoint Santini, a 'big name' to appease fans and media and Arnesen always had a keen eye on Jol taking the job. Perhaps there is some truth in there that long term, that was the plan, but it came to fruition early). 

Jol was his own man but worked well with Frank and post-Arnesen to Chelsea continued to do a superb job before it all fell apart. Ramos was supposed to be the perfect coach for such a system, proving just how delicate and risky it is to implement. Highly rated, few doubted his abilities but we all doubted his lack of English speaking skills. More so the lack of apparent enthusiasm the players had for his tactics and match preparations. My main scratch of head here has been the fact that most successful managerial appointments do not work with someone looking down from above, packing as much punch as the man that selects the team. Ramos was the catalyst for the DoF system imploding at Spurs, never truly proving to be a genuine success. Even when Jol was leading us to top five finishes, the cracks still appeared and Comolli got itchy fingers (along with one or two others that sadly got ahead of themselves with our 'progress'). The only success was that some of the signings proved to be very good ones. But no different to any other prolonged period of time concerning players signed.

Levy scrapped it. Enter the wheeler dealer and the rest is very recent history.

Would most of the managers we've been linked with so far be comfortable working under a DoF or would they expect the chairman to trust their own judgement? Is it not more prudent to allow someone with ambitions that match the clubs to perhaps ask for changes to be made in scouting or youth development or for the club to offer this support to aid the new man at the helm?

I've always believed that a DoF can work as an administrator taking some of the more mundane responsibilities away from the manager. Mundane underplays it, what I mean is - if the manager wants to sign a striker he tells the 'DoF' what he requires and the DoF returns with the short list. Apparently, it's what Comolli did. But then Comolli did a lot more than that what with his dizzying offers to others. Technically speaking, he did what a DoF (dictionary describition) is meant to do, but that doesn't necessary make it the right thing to do at Spurs and in the English Premier League.

Also, the major bugbear I have with all of this concerns the fact that you could argue Daniel Levy is so hands on with transfers and building relationships with other clubs (i.e. Real Madrid and Internacional, two very different relationships) that in many ways he is a director of football. Or an acting General Manager at the very least. The assumptions made and usually confirmed by Redknapp via Sky Sports was that they would both 'discuss' potential targets. Levy famously telling Harry about van der Vaart's availability is one example. Another concerns the story that Pienaar was signed by the chairman and not wanted by the manager. Parker, another well documented disagreement between the two of them.

Their relationship degraded, we know that much. They didn't always see eye to eye to players. Whether it's true that Levy wanted to spend big but Redknapp only wanted the bargains and the cheap for the moment signings rather than players that can impact Spurs season positively over the next few years, that's something we won't quite know for sure (until the next man is appointed). Levy and Redknapp were not on the same page.

The chairman will always do the chasing but you could clearly tell which targets being linked to Spurs were Levy targets and which belonged to Harry. The conflict here is; if you trust the manager you back him you don't try to influence him into another direction because if you find yourself doing so then perhaps he's not the right man for the job you want him to do.

There is no need for a DoF at Spurs.

For a start, if you believe what you read in the press, we've gone after potential managers. We'd have to appoint a DoF first before we started interviewing anyone. There is no need for one I'm certain of it, but there is a necessity that Levy's vision is shared with the prospective manager and they both understand how best to improve and evolve Spurs together. A collaboration not based on job titles but one based on a clear understanding of the task ahead and how to achieve it (or die trying). The same page please.

I'd like to hope the plan is long term with the aim to sustain a challenge in the short term. I'd explain that hope with us signing the players we need to build on the side we have and avoid stagnation. No job in football is particularly easy but a job where the two most important people at the club fail to agree will be made impossible. Such a basic and obvious statement, and yet one that failed us not too long ago.

The director of system works on the continent because the culture is completely different there. Real Madrid is an example of a club signing players before appointing managers. But even they have gone through internal hardship with Jose Mourinho fighting for 'complete control'. I personally don't see the point in comparing football with any U.S. sport in terms of the DoF system. Mainly because their culture and structures are different to our own.

If you want to lighten the load on the manager that has to handle training, day to day business, match day preparation and transfer targets, assign him Tim Sherwood. Or define the role to be a more concrete long term position in the club to cater for youth development, say a technical director (as the suggested rumours). Not quite as interfering as a director of football. You'd think Sherwood must be doing something to impress behind the scenes. In fact, let the new manager ask the chairman for the personnel he requires to be able to comfortably do his job. Let the new man at the helm set up his boot room of soldiers so he can lead us into the battle as one unit with no politics holding us back from marching forwards. No Brutus for our Caesar. We do not need to complicate things and I doubt very much we will. So if Sherwood does end up with a position it will probably be one that will also benefit Levy, allowing him to concentrate on the stadium and other matters (like ENIC selling Spurs.../trollface).

As for the other slightly more important appointment we are all waiting on, I'm not going to guarantee we all agree on the man Levy does end up appointing. Just hope we can agree to back him.

Until Christmas at the very least.

If you're interested in more on this discussion including comparisons between the DoF system in the NFL, visit this thread for heated debate.

The blueprint still requires ink

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.

Beyond redemption

Via The Secret Footballer's blog:

I have been told by more than one player at the club that one decision in particular last season angered Daniel Levy, the club chairman, beyond redemption. After Norwich City had held Arsenal 3-3 at the Emirates Stadium, Tottenham needed to beat Aston Villa to all but secure third spot.

With the score at 1-1, Redknapp made a change. But instead of the extra striker that was needed to grab a vital winner, he threw on Scott Parker and played for the draw. A few people have told me that there were strong words in the Tottenham camp after that incident and that relations between manager and chairman were never quite the same again.

Full article here.

Can't disagree with the fact the substitution was a negative one lacking fortitude and desire for victory. It's about glory and there would have been plenty of it with an attacking substitution even if we went on to lose the game. Would Levy truly blow his top and have words with Redknapp over this? Strong words is a touch ambiguous though. There's no suggestion there was a face off or angry text messages exchanged. Strong words amongst the board of directors? They probably had a good moan. We weren't happy. Why should they be? Everything we had built was being demolished from within.

The game cited might have been the catalyst. They're have been plenty of questionable tactics since February that you could argue as being instrumental in the failure to consolidate 3rd spot. Point being, there were several occasions during the course of the season that would have seen Levy pulling metaphorical hair out. The Villa game was the final opportunity to take control of our destiny and in that moment Redknapp turned his back on it. Pragmatism, safety, consolidating a single point. Whatever the reasons it was his choice. In the manager we trust until that manager has been removed.

Beyond redemption sounds about right if a little dramatic and harsh in relative terms (the damage was done long before the Villa game, as stated, the Villa game was the final straw). But that's the beauty of hindsight and circumstance. It adds weight or removes it from the shoulders that hold it. Micro-analysis of tactical shuffles and substitutions can be long forgotten (even if they warrant more discussion) if all goes well in the end. It didn't end well. So as long as Harry continues to perpetuate a paragon of perfection regarding his tenure at Spurs, we'll have to make do with these lesser scraps that wont be appearing in a tabloid column any time soon.

The Book of Daniel

by Ryan the Perplexed

And the Lord spoke to Daniel the Levite saying:

'Daniel, oh Daniel, why when I delivered you into the League of Champions in 2010 did thou refuse to seriously invest in my Beloved? Last harvest was another paltry sacrifice of shekels, offloading the Goliath, Wilson and sacrificing little on Scott of Tarsus and loaning the Togan. I have even sent you my prophet, Ari the Blameless, as your helpmeet. Oh, Daniel it is true that I work in mysterious ways, and none is more mysterious than Ari, who speaks in tongues behind car windows, alongside his driver Kevin the Bondsman.

Yea, and Harry delivered you from the depths to Champions League in under 2 years, but every harvest time you refused to take the next step, keeping the funds to build a Temple for me, fortified against the Philistines of Gillespie Road, and the heathen Moabites of Spam. Yes it may have a Sainsburys with 613 checkouts, but I am greatly angered by your actions. Instead of a striker, we have a planning consultant, instead of a winger, we have Saha the Crocked.'

And Daniel trembled before the Lord and said he was much vexed by Ari the Blameless, who was tempted by England, Rosie:47 and Sandra of the Banks of Sand. Then the Lord became angry, and winds around the goalmouths of Stoke howled, Webb failed to see Mario's evil, Ari was tempted, and the pathetic Goonites had their luck returned.

And Daniel trembled further as he thought CL was safe. The Lord then said 'Daniel, my Daniel , never stand still, thou need to invest in thy squad and cut the deadwood.' But Daniel was stiff-necked and his transfer policy could do no wrong in his eyes and this enraged the Lord. And the Lord put confusion into the hearts of the Tottenhamites who forgot how to score and Ari’s tactics were lost in the whirlwind.

And the Lord took blood, dung and avarice and brought forth the evil Despicables from the bowels of the Earth, led by a great and faithless Sinner garbed in shin pads. The Lord then blinded the pious Catalunians as they were pillaged by the Despicables. He again blinded Atkinson the Weak as the Despicables overran the Tottenhamites on the plains of Wembley. And lo, Levy was still holding out for tribute for Gio and hoping to offer a new contract to Jenas.

The Lord appeared to Daniel in a dream, represented by the angel Ledley.

And Ledley said 'He upstairs thinks that you needed to invest more to get into CL heaven when you have the chance. This is your final warning guv. Ouch, my knee...'. But Daniel told him to go forth and multiply.

In his wrath, the Lord created Fulop, a spineless wretch, to see a fortunate Wenger the Blind and his smug Goonites through to the promised land. Still Daniel would not budge and in a final act, the Lord came down and with great might (Drogba) and an outstretched arm (Cech), and intervened in the fabric of creation itself to the stop the Germans winning a penalty shootout, and finally prevent Daniel from entering the promised land.

Amidst much gnashing of teeth and wailing, Levy and the Tottenhamites became as one and cried 'How can it be that the Great Sinner and his Despicables celebrate yet we are left in the wilderness? Why do Sinners enter Heaven when the Righteous go to Hell?' And Levy was broken and wailed to Heaven in the form of another Open Letter but no answer came. And the Tottenhamites were banished to the plains of Europa where they encountered wild beasts, pestilence and away trips to the Ukraine.

Daniel then donned sackcloth, ashes and called the lawyers. And so Graham begat Hoddle who begat Pleat, and Pleat begat Santini who then begat Jol. Jol begat Ramos who begat Ari the Blameless. And Ari begat...

Worms of disillusion

Dear Mr Levy,

What has become of us? After years of restraining orders and home invasions, I find myself somewhat isolated. On this occasion I am not outside your mansion hiding in the shrubbery, neither am I following you on one of your jaunts to the local supermarket or using my night vision goggles to watch your wife shower. No. I'm sat at home in front of my pc monitor and I type this without threat of a legal violation that a judge might frown upon. I do this not because I am weak or have surrendered the fight. How many times can a man protest in the same way before he becomes a monument to himself?

Do not misunderstand me. If I so wish to claim back old traditions I will be more than comfortable to strip naked save for a bagel to hide my blushes, and proceed to handcuff myself to a turnstile in protest. I still have that in me. Why only yesterday I waterboarded Chirpy. Why? Simply because I could. But still, here I am. At peace. Microsoft Word and my thoughts. No rage against the machine here just gentle gesturing and an electronic cuddle. Hopefully these poignant paragraphs will entertain you or perhaps inspire confidence in some way.

I had grand plans to anger up the blood and lay waste to the catastrophic season that we have only just left behind. I could so easily rape and pillage my way through 20k words of ranting, spewing vengeance and disparaging rhetoric with my contempt and disdain subtly shining through the cracks of the wall you will attempt to build in defence as I come charging towards you. But what would that achieve exactly? So rather than just point the finger and once more highlight where you’ve gone wrong I’m going to attempt to add a more positive spin to it. I’m offering you a solution to the problem at hand. From one Tottenham fan to another Tottenham fan.

Harry Redknapp. We appear to be stuck with him for another season. No compensation is forthcoming as the England job has long since passed. So if he left now you’d have to fork out the less enticing ilk of compensation, the one that goes the opposite direction from your wallet. Next season’s success is dependent on what we do in the transfer window before it closes. Between now and then we’ll know if we’ll be able to sustain another challenge. Considering we need a number of players to come in and a few to go out, that’s a monumental amount of business that needs doing in the space of three months. No dithering or indecisiveness can be part of this process. Agreed?

The problem with Redknapp is that he’s short term. Even though he has been with us a number of seasons it feels like we are reacting to each new season as if it’s the first we’ve had under him. There is no longevity in our plans. This is best illustrated by the lack of money spent in the transfer market for arguably key positions. Theorise away what might have happened had we bolstered the squad with top drawer quality rather than older bit-part squad players. But then you might have been saving up the war chest for when Redknapp walked. Which he hasn’t done. So, are we left not speculating for another season or do you take the initiative and sign players that the next manager can easily work with? Or do we continue to pluck away using the prior template that involves the both of you not seeing eye to eye on potential signings?

The other issue with Redknapp is that he’s reactive to whatever is happening at any given time, adapting his soundbites to fit into whatever position we happen to be in. Contenders, title contenders, top three, top four, fifth etc. There are more contradictions and hypocrisy to be found with our manager than there is with any politician. It’s like having a captain of a ship pretending to guide his crew to a far gone land, except when he looks down all he sees is a broken compass.

“If we keep going that way, we’ll hit land soon enough”

Blag. Hope. No drilled hard thought strategy. We've got a ship, we've got a crew, that's all you need to sail right? If we sink, that's not the captains fault. It's because we're Tottenham and we always sink. The blame firmly detached from the captain because the vessel is jinxed and has struggled to brave the waters in the past. Blame the owner that supplied the ship and the people back home wishing them luck on their voyage. It's their fault for desiring new land to be discovered and conquered.

We want Francis Drake. We've got Captain Birdseye.

That’s not to say he hasn’t done good. Redknapp that is (Birdseye has done wonders for my dinners). It’s not to say he isn’t a good manager. Look at the clubs above us, the money they have and the amount of years of experience they all share being in the same competitive positions year after year. Do we honestly think this is an easy achievement to be had? But then if the captain took a little more time to plan things out, fix the compass and navigate around the storms...

...then again, is that a pirate flag I see hoisted?

Fact remains, Redknapp has to be backed and be told clearly the objectives the club has, that’s your responsibility Mr Chairman. If he stays, there's no point everyone saying he's not committed if we're equally not committed. If it means we have to work with the short term ethics of Redknapp then back him in the short term by landing long term players that will outlive his managerial appointment and throw in a cheap signing, the type he likes to make to keep him happy. He doesn’t have a choice in the matter, make that so, if he doesn’t like it he can walk.

The stats don’t lie. During your tenure, has there been a more successful Spurs manager? In recent memory has there been one blessed with such a solid graceful squad of players? Have we played with such swashbuckle and assurance in the past decade as we do now? There will be no court case next season. No debate about England. Hopefully no heart palpitations other than the ones in the stands. So another season might prove to be the very best this manager can offer us, especially after so many harsh lessons learnt this past term. It might even give him the right amount of fire in his belly to once more prove people wrong. If it's better than 4th spot, then we're hardly going to complain. Unlike now. We're complaining now. It's strange, all these seasons in midtable, and we're...I can't wrap my head around what I'm meant to be feeling. Am I disappointed or not? Are we under-achieving? If so, compared to what? To the past or the immediate past we carved out from playing so well? Isn't this as good as we've ever had it? Isn't that enough..?

You need to...you need to...give him another chance. Yes...another...another...No...No...FFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU-

F*** this.

Who the f*** am I kidding here? I can’t do this.

GET RID OF THE CLOWN AND GET RID OF HIM NOW! We’re a shambles! Look it up in the dictionary. Shambles, picture of Tottenham being shambolic. It's what we are! We could have won the league man, the league! Yet we watched it disappear in a blink of an eye because our striker wasn’t born an inch taller! Who makes this s*** up? We gain a 10 point lead then we lose it, then we get ourselves back into a position where it’s in our hands and we choke up again. To add insult to injury an ex-player lets in three soft goals and Chelsea (the club Redknapp wanted to see beat Barcelona) win the Champions League final and we’re left looking into the abyss that is the summer wondering if Modric is going to be sold and whether we’re going to take the entirety of the three months to flirt with the idea of signing someone before giving Jenas a one year extension on his contract. I won't even go anywhere near the capitulation at the swamp.

I’m sick of this nightmare! Why can't I wake up man? Why can't I wake up? Am I awake or asleep? If I'm awake I want to sleep. If I'm dreaming I don't want to risk reality being worse than this so I'd prefer to have dreamless sleep. A coma. Do people dream in comas? How about if I'm knocked unconscious. Will I dream if I'm knocked out? Someone please knock me out!

I can’t take this pressure any more. Just sell Modric for £40M. Sell Bale for £40M. That’s £80M right there. Luka doesn’t score goals so what exactly is the point in using him as some form of statement of intent that we won’t be bullied into selling our ‘best players’. Defoe has been engaged more times that Luka has found the net, ffs. The bloke is over-rated. His image rights are hardly worth a thing. Take a look at him! Who cuts his hair? A DeLorean with keys to a 1970s barber shop?

“Oh look I’m Luka and when I get the ball I turn and pass it out to another player”

Amazing. We’re building our team around a player than can pass a ball that doesn't even want to be here. Astonishing stuff. What next? Loan a player that can kick a ball really hard and fast towards goal? Maybe in ten years time we'll buy us one of them. Or we just wait for Harry Kane to turn thirty.

£40M for someone who can recycle possession. Other clubs must be green with envy. I blame him for not qualifying for the Champions League.

As for Gareth. Well, he’s finished. His ego has consumed his talent. He had that one decent game in Milan and that was that. He thinks he’s Ronaldo, have you seen that? Have you seen him do his Ronaldo impression? You know, the copyrighted move where he sort of floats away from the left and roams into the middle and into space? No other player does that. That’s a blatant trademark infringement and to be frank this also cost us Champions League. Had he stayed on the left in every single game played we’d have finished 3^rd or better, what with all the crosses he would have supplied for our forward line attacking the box with intent. Such wasted intent.

Who else? Adebayor. He can’t trap or control a ball, his first touch is awful. In a match he might control the ball say 25 times but the 3 times he doesn’t? Christ, he hasn’t got a clue! It’s in those 3 occasions where he fails that's where we lose the game. Who cares about the goals he does score and the assists he gets. He doesn't always quite control the ball! He’s as responsible as Bale and Luka is for our failure. And he’s your failure, a testament to not splashing out the money for a long term forward.

And he’s a gooner. So is Gallas. Two key players in key positions both accountable and yet we wonder why we fail when we have players that do not have Lilywhite blood. The ones we do have in Lilywhite are not good enough when the team is failing. When we're doing well it's because that's how we're meant to be doing and if we're blipping it's because neither of you know what you're doing. I know these things, I read Twitter, so many unified voices can't be wrong. You're meant to do the opposite of what you do when you get it wrong before you get it wrong so you don't get it it wrong but get it right. Why can't you embrace hindsight once in a while?

And God forbid you spend that potential £80M on any new young world class players. How about you stick it into the NDP fund and we can sit back for another ten years whilst you and Haringey tickle each other’s bums. We’ve got no strikers, did you notice that? You’re going to sign a Belgian centre-back that nobody has ever seen play aside from You Tube clips but everyone is desperate to see signed just because he’s got a fancy name and isn't bad looking. In the mean time, David Bentley and Gio dos Santos are still star-jumping their way around the club earning thousands for what exactly? Fringe players? I’m going to try that at work, being a fringe player.

“Hi boss. What? No, no. I’m not going to do much work today. Perhaps an hour or so, nothing spectacular. I’m sure you’ll be disappointed with my output. I’m now going outside for a smoke, I’ll be six hours”

Money you do spend is spent on the likes of Pienaar and Khumalo for the sake of selling a few shirts in South Africa to cover the cost of importing prime meat into the club for the executive box five course meals. Does Khumalo actually exist? I tried to scan an image of his face with that Autonomy software thing but got nothing back from it. I claim he is nothing but a PR marketing ploy created by an out-sourced graphic designer to give the illusion of profit being spent on players. One for the future, right? Sure, whatever, maybe this will also be the year Jenas finally comes of age.

You are ruining our chances by hiding behind this fallacy of being a great chairman just because we compete on accountancy when our revenue and capacity is so much lower than so many other clubs. Stop hiding behind circumstance of stature. Why haven’t you sacked Redknapp for showing fragmented loyalty and disrespect? Why do you continue to employee a mascot that has a crack problem and deals in the stands on match-days?

When Redknapp does get his way, he signs Parker. Then proceeds to play him in every single game. Do you know why he burnt out towards the end of the season? Redknapp had him doing odd jobs all over the place. Chauffeuring to and from Sandbanks. Painting and decorating. Landscape gardening. Doesn't stop working that Parker, great work ethic, but Christ...give the man a rest!

King? Deadwood.

And as for Harry Redknapp himself, again I ask, why has a man that persists in palming off responsibility onto you still receive monthly pay cheques for his services? You’re paying him to blame you for everything that goes wrong. I’m not even sure Redknapp actually works for Spurs. I think he just turns up at training, walks around a bit on the touchline and then drives in and out of the car park to make it look like he’s being kept busy. He’s got Sky Sports News fooled with a simple roll down of the car window. He’s kept the façade up for so long you’ve just let it naturally play out. I'm right, aren't I? Ha! I knew it! It’s mental, utterly utterly mental.

Perhaps almost as mental as Fulop being paid off by a betting syndicate to throw the match at WBA. But that is ridiculous. We all know that is not the case. Far more likely you paid him off so that we would miss out on Champions League. My evidence? The fact that you’ve not written a letter to UEFA to attempt to force a rejuvenated precedence of complaint for them only allowing four English clubs into the competition. You losing your touch? No, never. It’s part of your game plan. Keep long suffering Spurs long suffering because it means you can counter all the cries for money to be spent with reasoned calm that we have to be fiscally careful due to loss of revenue. All softly softly slowly slowly making sure the ENIC investment isn't spunked on the risk that comes with pushing for progression. I’ve got you sussed out.

Yeah.

I lied Mr Levy. I’m not at home.

You heard me, I lied. Like you lie. We've got more in common than just our bald heads. I’m in your study, I'm using your lap top to type this letter. Earlier I used your downstairs toilet. I didn't flush. I had a curry last night. You do the math. That's right, I've broken into your house again. Screw the British justice system. I’m also naked. I'm sweating too. You'll have to have the place fumigated. Send me the bill, see if I care. Why am I naked? Because I can be. I do what I want. And yes, that's one of Chirpy's in the open pack of Chocolate Fingers. You'll work it out when you dunk it into your tea. Chicken and Earl Grey don't mix well. There's no escaping me Mr Levy.

By the way, technically speaking, I'm not actually completely naked. I'm wearing your socks. Well, one of them. You get the picture. Literally. I've sent you a text.

My blood is angered Mr Levy. Do something, prove to us you're in control.

I have to go now. Before I leave I’m going to drag my backside along the carpet like a dog does when its got worms. Because I too have worms. Worms of disillusion, eating away at this ring of fire that burns me so deep. No cream to soothe the heinous pain. Pain you have caused. We're all left scratching our backsides whilst you don't even come close to scratching the surface.

Yours betrayed once more,
Spooky

The regression of Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham - Part IV

The progression regression of Harry Redknapp's Tottenham - Part IV

Daniel Levy

Our chairman famously said that he did not expect Champions League every season. The reasoning was that the competitiveness of the league would see teams share qualification. I can't believe for a second he'll be happy to miss out this year. Not just because of the importance of the money generated from gaining a top four place but also because we've had it in our hands and dropped it and appear disinterested to pick it up again. New stadium and retaining our best players along with attracting new players can sometimes be reliant on qualifying for the CL. But then we've only been in it the once and I'm sure if we miss out we'll still end up signing new heroes to appease the faithful. The risk is losing out if another monopoly is created but (IMO) that is looking unlikely. Chelsea and Arsenal will improve next season - but so will we. It's whether we have it in us to best the both of them that remains to be seen.

We can't be doing with more cheap and cheerful makeshift stop gaps. We need that sexy world class striker we've been lusting after for years and we need to be balls deep in it. We have to show the same strength again when it comes to clubs sniffing around our players. Regardless of whether Bale is wanted by X team or not, the tabloids will no doubt kick up a storm to populate their pages over the summer (although the Euro's might distract them a little bit and give us a moments peace).

Bale won't be sold. Can't see Levy allowing it to happen this summer. Luka on the other hand? Refer to what I wrote earlier.

Centre-back, right-winger, midfielder, striker (or two). There are plenty of incoming signings we need. Get it done early. Which means get the new manager in early. If this drags across the summer, kicking and screaming, it won't make comfortable viewing. Every window we say the same thing, and we get nothing until the very end and then we end up with something which always seems to feel like a stretch. This isn't about asking for the moon on a stick. We've seen the consequence of squad depth (lack of) this season and the cost of it.

I just want to clarify again. Yes, we've rotated. Yes, on paper we do look strong and arguably far stronger than most. But we are set up to play one way and one way only and the rotation of certain players is not always the strongest of option available to us but the only option. And when key players are either missing or not rested, it eats away at the team in a detrimental fashion that the manager has failed to get his head round and fix.

Our first eleven? Brilliant. Take one player out, we start to struggle a little. If your argument is the players coming in are good enough then it comes back to structure, instructions and the gaffer. If the gaffer and the chairman don't see eye to eye on transfer targets, it's never going to end well.

As important as CL qualification is to grow stronger for a title push, we should still be able to compete for other competitions instead of deciding they don't matter. Even as a supporter of Spurs, I've done just that this season. I now look at Athletic Bilbao with green-eyed envy.

Everything has been an afterthought this season in comparison to the league and yet we've still managed to shag that up. If you don't agree and we do have depth then why do we look like extras in The Walking Dead?

 
Harry Redknapp

Our previous manager lost the dressing room. We had a strong squad of players but no team in the true sense of the word. No unity and belief. The players did not want to play for their manager. It had gone from stale to rotten. As for the present day? Shades of Ramos, then? How ironic that Harry has managed to birth the very same thing he saved us from.

What Redknapp has achieved should not be scoffed but we have to be honest and admit he doesn't seem to have the concentration/focus/knowledge/love to guide us shrewdly to the next level. The level we're at has seen him attain stability. That's a good thing. The next level is hardly a mountain climb away. Yet this mole hill looks it.

Levy might have you think that Redknapp was someone he had looked at before, in the past, but the reality is probably nearer to being an appointment of a trouble-shooter. A fixer. Someone to get the team away from the bottom three and playing to expectations (based on players at the club). Harry has always been that for some of us. A tad detached. There's Harry standing and next to him, Spurs...an abstract object (as someone elegantly wrote on Twitter recently) he will use to his advantage until a more shiny object presents itself.

He succeeded in not only attaining stability but also pushing us onwards and beyond what we expected from a manager that had never managed a club this big before. This made people sit up and think that Harry had been waiting for Spurs all his life, that finally he was proving what he can do if he has top tier quality in his possession. We shared humble pie. We still had reservations, we still disliked some of his characteristics and habits. All part of the Redknapp brand package - we knew what he was like, it was no surprise. The small print is in a large font when it comes to understanding what makes Harry Harry.

What we're left with looking back at the past and present day is a distortion. He's a good coach, a very decent manager but the lack of extra dimensions to his football planning has left him cruelly exposed. Again. Last season and this season has plenty of damning evidence. As for that gap? Choke.

It doesn't help that he disassociates himself often with the club and the fans. The fact he never makes any sense when he talks, contradicting and changing ambitions based on the last game. One moment we have depth and don't need any players, the next he bemoans lack of depth. He tells the media what he thinks the media want to hear. It's all very basic and obvious. When it's going well, he'll bask in it. When it isn't, he'll look to blame or scratch the head. Or praise the opponents.

In terms of transfers, he has done some good (on the cheap) but Levy is usually the one signing the bigger name players. Harry is for the short-term. It has worked (Parker, Friedel) but equally so it hasn't (lack of rotation).

The biggest mistake made, the one that has probably cost us dearly is the failure to draw a line under the England job. That's when he lost the dressing room. Forget about the 'In the Know' exclusives and whispers. Doesn't take a lot to have it figured out by witnessing the body language of both players and manager. The lack of deceive commitment has failed us. Had that not happened, say if Fabio was still in charge of the national team, even with his (HR) tactical failings he'd have probably got us that 3rd spot or at the very least made 4th comfortable. But he switched off because he losses concentration and can't stay away from all the lavish attention the press send his way. Even now he isn't being criticised to the extent any other manager would be having thrown so much away so easily.

Top 4 was the objective at the start of the season even though many didn't expect or fancy us to achieve that (what with the manner of last season's poor run of form towards the end). But thanks to the quality of other clubs dropping significantly its now looking a wasted campaign.

Not sure what he'll be able to offer England. So many of the reprehensible players that make watching England grating are the very same ones he never stops talking about. The tabloids will continue to love him though. That's probably what matters most to him/them.

Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham? This will never be Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham. He might have the statistics to back him up but he has lacked the grace and measure. Yet he's still the best coach we've had for a long time. Although the true testament to this is the standard the next manager is able to attain with (more or less) the same squad plus new additions. Managing might be easier than it's being made to look. Or not, we'll soon find out.

There were moments though when you just thought, maybe, just maybe. Then he tells us, "I don't remember people like Martin Peters getting rotated, and they played in ankle-deep mud in those days", which is admittance that fatigue is not something he concerns himself with in modern day football because back in the day nobody suffered from it. I guess that means what? It's down to tactics? Anyone in the press want to ask him? Walter Mitty, anyone?

He's hardly endeared himself to the fans (you might have noticed). Although during the court case and just after it we sang for him. He applauded us and his words were heartfelt in appreciation for the support shown by the fans and the club. But then that was ruined from within with special thanks to the FA and John Terry. A job that he might not even be offered now thanks to the distraction it's had on his current one. Unless of course he knows he's got it. Which would explain things equally well.

Everyone should be grateful for that stability, he proved many wrong. But we need someone younger and modern and committed. Someone for the long term. Someone that wants to be part of the club beyond a cheap soundbite. The players appear mystified and confused. Redknapp has exhausted his chest of ideas, flat out. There's nothing to grab hold of.

If Harry isn't into us anymore, then best we get on the phone to the FA, agree compensation and let him go. In fact, I don't even care if the FA pass him by for the job. He hasn't stopped to consider us, so why not honour him with the same gratitude?

More importantly, we need unity in the stands.

The sentiment in '...and we of Spurs have set our sights very high, so high in fact that even failure will have in it an echo of glory' is being ignored.

The need for success, it can be ugly and discomforting, removing the enjoyment and love for the football itself. Turning fans bitter and twisting perceptions, pulling us further away from what it should truly be all about.

Above all else, we are Tottenham. Get behind the team, sing your hearts out and support them with everything you've got. This emotive stuff, it actually works wonders.

Love the shirt.

The regression of Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham - Part III

The progression regression of Harry Redknapp's Tottenham - Part III

Ledley King

Long live the King. There was always going to be a time when not training like an ordinary footballer would finally catch up with him. Ledley is no ordinary footballer. If he had more than the one knee, he'd be beyond the extraordinary player that he is. He's proven us wrong before. He might well do again but I'm hoping the player finally puts his own well being ahead of the shirt he wears and considers his future beyond football. A walk in the park is what Ledley has made it look countless times down the years but he doesn't want to rob himself of being able to do the same thing post-retirement. Offer him a coaching role, keep him at Tottenham.

We are so reliant on King that this has stopped us from truly moving on with building a solid foundation for the future at the back. We cannot wait for his cameo appearances and accept other players to simply adapt accordingly. Yes, he brings composure, maturity and leadership to the back four but then when he's injured/resting someone else has to slot in again. This can breed uncertainty. Caulker might be the future, we won't know until next season. We have Dawson and Kaboul. That's three. Is that enough? Probably not. We need another. King at the moment is showing signs of jadedness, as you'd expect he won't be up to the fitness of others what with the lack of training finally catching up with him. For so long this all sat comfortably in his back pocket along with several top Premier league forwards. He has to now consider putting Spurs ahead of himself. We need to consider that too.

For the past five years, every summer we except King to announce his retirement. He may still refuse to give in. I hope he doesn't take any of it lightly and does what he believes is best for himself and Spurs. Whatever he decides, his legacy will remain untouchable.

Luka Modric

If Levy knows the state of mind player and agent, and it's not good, he should make the decision the moment the season ends as I don't want yet another cryfest Daily Mail induced melting pot of petulance from Modric and Sky Sports.

If Levy does not want to sell him, then do the same as last summer and let everyone know this. If Levy does not want to sell him but believes player and agent will do their utmost to rock the boat, just get rid. It's not worth the instability. It might yet depend on the next manager in to influence whether Modric finally gets to write up his transfer request. We'll have to wait and see. But considering the media hell mouth that is about to rain down on us, we have to make sure we display the same strength and control.

Modric is another player suffering from a dip in form/burn out. He's a brilliant footballer. He provides the bullet to our gun. He's the heartbeat of our side. But we can't spend too much time scared and concerned about the possibility of him leaving. If he does, he's gone and that's that. We've lost better players in the past. You move on. He may appear to be indispensable, but the next playmaker/midfielder will offer us another dimension. Something new, something different. The negative impact is the possibility of making one of our rivals stronger.

 

Gareth Bale

Bale ties in perfectly (not so) with Harry’s flawed tactics and management. I’ve discussed this before. Remember Bale is only a kid and he’s one that went through a ridiculous amount of upheaval with injury and bad luck and was almost sent out on loan before catching his lucky break and then going from left-back to left-wing. No development or skilled managerial acumen here. Sheer luck found him back in the first team. It was lucky that we caught the kids rise to prominence before he disappeared into possible obscurity (or fame elsewhere). Confidence and self-belief has driven him forward. Do not under estimate what this can do for a player. He blossomed from a delicate flower into a rampaging monster.

Has he been consumed by ego and hype? Let’s think of this way. The more he plays the better he gets the more he learns to adapt. His development is key. The manager selects him and gives him instructions. You can see where this is going, right? When Bale destroyed Inter and surprised Europe in the Champions League he got doubled up on the league. He’s still found a way through and improved but the emphasis has shifted from left flank to roaming and what our manager is failing to grasp is the simplicity of discipline. Also, with Bale voicing the fact that he needs to be able to roam, the manager has influence over him. Which is something you would expect. But if the managers advice is not on key?

He should be an outlet on the left flank as a marauding winger. There are times when cutting in or running through the middle (or swapping wings) works and then there are times when spending most of the game doing so doesn’t. There is no control here. Bale has to believe he can be the best but this isn’t about believing the hype and having an ego. I’m certain he doesn’t go out there and think it’s all about him. That’s an easy punch to throw.

What we’ve seen is a drop in confidence because of the lack of impact when roaming which has made him lose composure and when you think too much the edge you get from instinctive play is lost. You end up attempting to do it all yourself because you're so self-conscious that you're not influencing the game.

It's all part of the learning curve.
 
Bale has phenomenal potential. Can’t see Levy letting him go this summer, so its best you support and defend the lad rather than allow the weight of expectation on your own shoulders weigh him down as long as he desires to wear our shirt*.

This could be evidence enough that Redknapp can't man manage a particular quality of player.

* Update: Bale on Football Focus today (Saturday 28th) saying he would review his position if we fail to qualify for the CL, the suggestion being he would consider leaving. Does the Spurs PR department have no control over player interviews? Is this the right thing to be speaking about at this point in the season considering the mess the manager and players have made of it on the pitch? What's best for yourself Gareth is to shut the **** up and play football for the club and fans you represent. Modern football is a self-preservation society for most where responsibility is an easily detachable commodity. Transfer request at the ready then. Get rid of them all and just pluck eleven fans from the stands.

Where's the heart sign now, Gareth? Too busy mugging me off.

 

The Rest

A quick run-down of the rest of our players.

Friedel - Quality. Has been one of most consistent performers. Short term. We need to resolve the issues of Gomes and the long term.

Kaboul - When confident in a confident defence, he's superb. Has shown great resolve this season.

Gallas - Thank you but time to move on.

Dawson - Might turn slower than a brick, but he's got the wallops about him as a defender. Brave and at times, alongside King, has looked composed. Can be left looking anything but at times. Injury hasn't allowed him to push on and prove people wrong/right.

Walker - Deserves his Young Player of the Year award. Development, from a defensive standpoint (positioning) should be the priority of the next coach. Not surprised he is making mistakes at this late stage. Hasn't stopped running. It's key that we have cover next season and actually use that cover effectively rather than ignore it and then send it out to Germany on loan.

Assou-Ekotto - Same with Benny. Hasn't stopped running. Re: cover, as above.

Nelsen - Stop gap. Can hardly criticise him. He is what he is. All our Jan signings were stop gaps.

Khumalo - Signed for the South African market? Makes a mockery of our transfer strategy. I'm sure the lad is a good bloke, seems honest and hard working but what role exactly was he signed for at Spurs? If he was any good he's have gone to a Prem side. He's struggled on loan.

Huddlestone - We've missed the options he can give us to aid with unlocking defences in those tight tight games. Apparently Redknapp wanted to send him to the MLS. Has he not been out injured all season?

Lennon - Liking the treatment room far too often. When he's at full fitness he can be one of our best players, running at the opposition. Also tracks back. We just need to give him help out on the right wing as he can't be the only out and out winger on that side in our squad. Pienaar was hardly like for like and not much liked by manager.

Parker - Tremendous signing. Gave Modric the freedom to recycle the ball to his heart's content. Burnt out.

van der Vaart - Fitness still an issue. Non-effective anywhere but behind the forward or in a three-man midfield ahead of the defensive players in the middle. A true professional who can and has galvanised our play on so many occasions. We need others to match his desire to be a winner.

Kranjcar - Not utilised to his strengths. Cruelly exposed when asked to play in the middle of the park.

Rose - Not enough games, we should continue to give him a chance. Might not be spectacular in any given way, but then how can you possibly ever follow-up on that volley?

Livermore - Determined. It's good to have someone promoted from the youth ranks into the first team and he's showing signs of making more of a career at Spurs than O'Hara managed. His future is probably dependent on the next manager.

Sandro - Not that much game time this season due to injury so not selected often enough and has looked out of sorts when he has. Might blossom in the middle as a direct replacement for Parker. That's if he sticks around and doesn't join Madrid/Barca/Milan. Has the tools, love his personality.

Adebayor - A forward that can play as part of a footballing side. If he scored more we'd be set. When he doesn't play, it shows up how one dimensional we are.

Saha - Short term cover. For the sake of a handful of game time.

Giovani - A mistake that the club just won't admit to and thus here he is, still at Spurs, priced out of moves away.

Defoe - Will never be first choice. Impact player.

Pienaar - Why did we sign him? Why did we let him go out on loan? According to Bill Kenwright in the back of a black cab, he's never coming back.

Bassong, Bentley - To be gone.

 

continued...

The regression of Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham - Part II

The progression regression of Harry Redknapp's Tottenham - Part II

Momentum and Mental Strength...dressing room lost?

Our form, aside from the opening two games of the season, was sensational. Here was a Spurs side winning consistently home and away and if we came unstuck (Stoke away) we bounced back. It's all very muddled currently. It’s a combination of ineptness and a devastating disappearance of belief.

The court case will have distracted everyone at the club. It would have taken a lot out of the manager and regardless of what the players have said in the past, its birthed uncertainty. Our form began to display signs of degradation around the same time. We kept winning games but the victories were not always convincing, although it’s always good to claim a win when you’re not playing well because that’s the sign of champions. Enter another variable. The media. Everyone was appreciative of Spurs. The pundits, other managers and even opposing fans. It’s how it works. Much like Harry Redknapp, everyone is reactive to what is happening at the time, so naturally everyone rated Spurs and talked us up.

I have no idea what Harry is like in the dressing room and whether enough was done to keep us grounded. Equally so, not sure Parker is one for the rousing speeches at Spurs. Easier done at a club like West Ham where he was infinitely better than the quality of players surrounding him. We have no Roy Keane type figure. King is a leader by virtue of his football (and his football has not been great this season). Did we start to believe in the hype? If so, surely the experienced players in our squad took responsibility? From the looks of it they either they haven’t or it was beyond their influence.

The City game destroyed us. An inch away from winning it and in the blink of an eye we lost it. There’s no doubt there is a lot to be said for experience (take a look at United and Ferguson). But we reverted back to the fragile Spurs of old when as opposed to the past when we didn’t have the players to back it up, we do this time and yet somehow we’ve still managed to p*ss it all away.

To compound things further, Harry’s tactics started to have a clear detrimental effect - as witnessed at the Emirates. Our first major run of form that was underwhelming saw us play okay in some of the games, but we were powder-puff up front and lethargic at the back. We lacked that much needed leadership at the first sign of trouble. There was no team reaction. With every game we waited in anticipation of there being a battle cry, a want and desire to reclaim some pride. But it hasn’t been forthcoming. The semi-final was the concluding cluster of catastrophe which has summed up the second part of the season with the QPR game an encore of hurt.

D Wolves 1-1 - Dropped points
L Man City 3-2 - Toe to toe, could have been 3-2 to us, wasn't, footballing Gods say 'no'
W Wigan 3-1 - A response
D Liverpool 0-0 - A stutter
L Arsenal 5-2 - A capitulation aided by naivety and a distinct lack of belief
L Man Utd 3-1 - Mugged by a patient experienced side that knew just how to pick us off on the break
L Everton 1-0 - Woeful first half followed by a clueless second which entailed just 'attacking' them with no game plan
D Stoke 1-1 - Dropped points
D Chelsea 0-0 - Congested the midfield then took a stranglehold of the game. Should have won. Since then we've gone to pieces, they've got two Cup finals
W Swansea 3-1 - An anomaly that had us believing again
D Sunderland 0-0 - Could not break down a team that just sat back and defended
L Norwich 2-1 - Pathetic display
L QPR 1-0 - Equally gutless, shapeless

DLWDLLLDDWDLL

Add to it the Chelsea 5-1 for good (bad) measure.

The drop in form crept into our game prior to the City game but that match at the Eastlands felt like a boxer coming off the floor from a technical knock-out to then win the remaining rounds only to lose the fight thanks to a late flurry of punches giving them a split decision. It was demoralising. If that game robbed us of our belief and that the Gods were against us, we deserved nothing from a game that meant everything when it come to visiting Arsenal. Here we witnessed a strange selection and an absolute joke of a choke. Unlike anything we’ve seen recently in league meetings against them. It was an unequivocal surrender. Tactically shambolic. Players switched off too.

We were ‘okay’ against Utd. This found myself (and one or two of you) thinking we simply had to find a moment in a game to rejuvenate ourselves. Confidence comes from winning but if you feel hard done by and you come through it against the odds it can inspire that spirit and fight once more and with it will return momentum. Except, with each passing game it never happened. Aside from the Swansea win where Harry actually showed some astuteness and away to Chelsea in the league the rest have been near diabolical. Nothing has changed sufficiently enough to warrant that all it will take is such a moment.

We look like a side that has lost sight of the grand prize and have given up. There hasn’t been enough coaching or hands on management to aid with navigating the players through this. And the players, for them to react in this way by not reacting. It has the touch of the Ramos about it. Now that’s irony we could do without. Has the dressing room been lost? Yes. Lack of decisiveness and commitment from the manager whilst he flirted with all concerned regarding the England job has impacted team morale and has deflected Harry’s thoughts away from Spurs to the FA headquarters. He hasn’t given us his full intention, so why would his players do the same? A teacher that sits at the front of the classroom, playing guitar and singing a sonnet to himself is hardly to going to capture the attention of his students who are too busy throwing conkers out the window.

The players haven’t exactly covered themselves with glory either but as witnessed under Ramos, good players can turn to bad players because of lack discipline and focus and belief in the man in charge.

Whatever happens on the training pitch isn’t good enough either. Forget set pieces and corners. This has been a problem for years (next man in can fix it - ha!). The lack of planning and preparation for each opponent seems to be non-existent. i.e. Let them cope with us. If they cope with us, break them down. If we can’t break them down, make sure you mention it in the post-match interview that we couldn’t break them down.

Who knows what might have happened had John Terry not allegedly said what he said to Anton Ferdinand. He should have gone. Instead Fabio did and the rest (Harry for England) fell into and then out of place (Spurs).

Fact is Harry Redknapp has already left Spurs. He left the moment the England job became available. The issue is not that the job has distracted Harry, it's the fact that Harry has allowed it to. Not sure what has been said by Levy on this matter in-house, but it would have been good for the club and the manager to have released a statement immediately off the back of the rumours to draw a line under it. They didn't. Harry whored himself as Harry does. It's impacted us but it's not the only reason. It does however illustrate the undying loyalty he has to himself.

Regardless of the 'outside of Spurs distractions', they mask the real problem. Harry hasn’t got the edge and he bottled it. We’ve got a manager who can control his own destiny when it’s going well but is limp when adapting to the occasion of elevated expectation and fixing problems of his own creation. Players, teams...they need instructions. They simply can’t completely rely on running around and kicking the ball forwards. As good as we can be when it flows, we’re not exactly reinventing push and run.

continued...

The regression of Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham - Part I

The progression regression of Harry Redknapp's Tottenham - Part I

I'm working towards something. It's fairly drastic but considering I've managed to contradict myself with a number of footballing beliefs I can only find redemption by first cleansing myself of this season's dramatics. This means I have to get it all out of my system.

It would be easy to give a knowing nod of approval towards hindsight and then dissect Redknapp’s tenure in relation to the 2012 season and our mental and physical collapse. Except most of the subject matter I’m about to discuss has been discussed before and many of us have/had given the manager the benefit of the doubt on numerous occasions.

He has built Spurs up to be a competitive team. There has always been fragmentation of opinion regarding his transfer dealings and his tactical prowess and in addition his working relationship with Daniel Levy. We’ve tolerated his sound-biting and the manner in which he displays loyalty to himself above all other things. Most take it for granted that anything he says publicly for the camera or mic is reactive to whatever is going on at that precise moment, suiting his own agenda to protect himself and whatever predicament we happen to find ourselves in. Except it's hardly ever 'we'. It's mostly 'them'.

The media adore him, a comforting extra shield of protection he wears like a badge of honour. Never heavily criticised, unlike some of his counterparts at other clubs. This isn’t to say that he should not take credit for what he’s done. He’s taken plenty of that already. Also, he deserved the right to give it a go at Spurs post-Champions League season. He’s failed. Even if by some miracle we suddenly start playing like a team and other results go in our favour and we qualify in 4th spot (which might not happen thanks to Chelsea), he’s still failed. I’ll explain the reasons why I feel this to be the case. I will also work my way through one or two other talking points.

I guess I should add a caveat here that I'm not setting out to knee-jerk or promote propaganda against Redknapp just because things have turned sour. There's a popular misconception that we're fickle and don't complain when things are going in our favour. That's partly true in some instances (don't change a winning formula for example, was one way of us attempting to deal with the lack of genuine consolidation in the transfer windows) but in most cases we've always admitted to weaknesses and shown concern in some of the decision making. Even when winning.

It's lengthy. So I've broken it up into four blogs. Read at your own leisure.



Transfer Windows

We are never going to know exactly what happens behind the scenes. Sorry to break the hearts of the ITK community but aside from leaked info from football agents its tricky to guess with any certainty what the dynamics are between chairman and manager when it comes to scouting and signing players. If we go by what Redknapp has said in the press (take the Scott Parker saga as an example) you could wager that the chairman wasn’t too keen on signing an ‘aging’ midfielder. With no technical director of football I imagine that Levy keeps an eye out for players that fit into the mantra of who we should be signing (ideally top class 20 - 26 year olds players for example that can provide longevity and that infamous sell-on potential to keep the accounts happy). Levy signed Rafa van der Vaart as a consequence of talking to Madrid in the past. We were given the chance when the Dutchman’s move back to Germany fell through. Opportunistic. A case of manager agreeing to it because the player is ‘top class’ and cheap and the window was about to close.

Did we need Rafa at the time? Maybe, maybe not. You can't say no to such a gift of a transfer and you therefore find a way to accommodate him. That’s what we had to do. For £8M we made it work (although his fitness has always been subject to a variety of question marks). Rafa has a winners mentality and we should have no regrets. But during that window, it was a forward we wanted more than anything. So in truth, we signed someone without having a strategy.

We’ve wanted a genuine forward to lead the line since the Berbatov/Keane partnership disintegrated. Seems to be the most difficult of tasks to accomplish, as with every passing window we shrug despondently at yet more tentative links that turn out to be nothing more than rumours and clubs using the media to leverage price tags or look strong in rejecting.

We’re stuck with a loan player, an old player and a player that’s in and out of the side.

In January we wanted/needed consolidation. Either the money isn’t there or it is but Levy doesn’t want to commit to spending masses of it because of the uncertainty of Redknapp’s future (even back in the new year this was a reason discussed). The money might well be available but chairman and manager are not on the same page if you go by consensus. Harry has turned his nose up at suggested Levy signings and vice versa.

I get the distinct feeling that most of the big name European and South American players we are linked with and supposedly interested to sign are ones that our scouting system target and report back to Levy who then presents to Harry. Harry has his own list of players he targets via expertly not tapping them up via the media.

Fact is, Redknapp thinks in the short term. Literally, from one season to the next. As witnessed by the players he has signed. Some of which have worked. The rest (the ones that arrived in Jan) appeared to be nothing more than cheap cover for the players we allowed to leave. Players that had to leave because they were simply not in the managers plans. Discarded.

To be fair he has got the 'money ball' touch about him. But we should not always be so reliant on cheap options. We've failed in the past when spending big but that doesn't mean we should not be brave enough to speculate in the present.

Our transfer strategy is lopsided.

It's a cluster of crazy if you take the words of Bill Kenwright (Everton chairman) to heart. He spoke to my brother-in-law (cab driver in London) this past week and stated the following about the Steven Pienaar transfer:

- Pienaar was desperate to join Spurs and only Spurs
- Kenwright offered him an increase in wages/new contract, the player rejected any further talks
- Signs for Spurs
- Within 6-8 weeks is back on the phone to Everton saying he hates it at Spurs, he's made a mistake and wants to rejoin Everton. Begs to be signed back asap
- Everton sign him back on loan
- Pienaar will never return to Spurs

Bill appeared to be genuine when discussing this and not that bothered with sharing Pienaar and Everton's experience. Equally interesting and damaging is the alleged comment he made concerning Levy and Redknapp. Pienaar was signed by Levy without Redknapp's knowledge or approval. Crux being that Harry didn't want him or even know he was about to be made a Spurs player.

The worst thing about all this? It's quite believable.

 

The Squad

This brings me onto the actual squad. We are so finely tuned a side that a single players injury can cause imbalance. We have a wealth of talent, audacious and vibrant and for most of the season hungry and determined. But there are some fundamental flaws in the squad. Again, nothing we don't know but concerns that were very easy to box up and place under the bed and ignore when we we’re jumping up and down on said bed having fun. Now the springs are broken we find ourselves on the cold hard floor without a clue what to do for entertainment.

Pound for pound we have a fantastic first team. Let’s not pretend otherwise. But our squad falters to deceive because it's not been handled with care. We’ve been unfortunate with one or two injuries but this happens to everyone and has happened to us every season for as long as I can remember. It’s no excuse. It does link in with our transfer strategy because say for example, in Lennon’s absence we had no natural cover for the right-wing. Playing Rafa or Bale there is not the answer. Playing either in that position is a solution to a problem created from within. Almost feels like we didn’t think about every position pragmatically and decide where our weakness might hurt us during the course of the season.

We've let players go out on loan which would have been better suited to rotation. Some of our first teamers play if their fit to play rather than being rested periodically to allow for a more sustained challenge across the season and avoid fatigue/burn out.

We have problems in key areas because of the risk that comes with the (successful) system we play and that lack of rotation early on has cost us. I guess you’ll argue why tinker when we’re winning games? Why should players struggle with fatigue in the latter stages of the season when we’ve shown disdain towards the League Cup, pretty much the same towards the Europa League and mis-mashed sides in the FA Cup? Well they do and they have.

You know how you've probably thought 'play the strongest line-up' a few times this season? Works when you show intelligence with selections rather than being completely reliant on certain players and combinations. Harry has rotated players but this is about rotating key players, something he's failed to do.

Parker has old legs. A brilliant signing, one that proved the Harry doubters wrong and equally the ones that did not trust Parker was up for the job (i.e. me). But when there was opportunity to perhaps rest him Harry didn’t. Sandro was injured, Livermore did came into the fold and Huddlestone won’t be back until next season. So with all the graft Parker provides if he’s out of sorts we are instantly weakened in the middle. Playing Niko there has proven to be suicidal. The same principle applies with Lennon on the right as mentioned. There is no genuine depth. And if there isn't you need a workable plan B which we don't appear to have. This in-turn affects tactics and fluidity which ends up with us constantly banging on the door and trying to kick it in rather than simply take the key out of our back pocket.

Up front we signed Adebayor (another Levy signing). A footballer in the true sense of the word that fits into our style of play. He can work the channels and link up. Sadly, he’s not a clinical finisher. If he doesn’t play we revert to two up front and all shape is lost and the midfield surrendered. We are smooth when it works, stutter when important elements are missing.

Our defence has a variety of question marks, prominently the centre-back positions. We need rebuilding here for the future. We were keen on Cahill so the Levy/Redknapp are more than aware of the issues at play here. We ended up with Nelsen. That sums it all up. King and Gallas look spent. Dawson’s injury hasn’t helped. Kaboul has shown promise but needs to play as part of a settled pairing. Caulker will no doubt be part of the squad next season having shown he can cope with the Prem at Swansea. Although we (club and fans) should not weigh him down with expectation. Which is why it's key to sign a new centre-back to give us complete strength and faith at the back.

The squad is light because of the way certain players have been dismissed and others ran into the ground. Our fringe players moved on. We've got no reserves, so our younger players are loaned out. The simple philosophy embraced by Redknapp is not a forward thinking ethos for success.

When things are going well you naturally build on the confidence and rhythm attained with each passing game. When you suffer injuries your resolve is tested. We’ve come through several tests during the first part of the season. So why has it gone so horribly wrong?

 

Tactics and Formation

Not really sure Redknapp believes he knows what our best line-up and formation is. He has enough about him to take a talented squad and make them play for each other. Back to basics, players in their best positions. Well, for the most part players in their best positions. He seems far removed from this particular trait currently. There is a naivety that sees him struggle with retaining shape. There are times when he has delivered (recently against Swansea). And his record at Spurs is a very strong one (in terms of win %). But he has limitations. Whether this is heavily influenced by outside story arcs or not, on the pitch we have failed when it was so easy to succeed (taking into account our pre-new year form).

The persistence with 442. Accommodating players when perhaps they are better dropped to the bench for the sake of team fluidity. Making decisions based on basic logic rather than tactical engineering (i.e. we can't break opposition down, so change to 2 up front). And so on.

Harry has no patience. He can’t wrap his head around the long game. It’s always a sprint, never a marathon. Everton away is a perfect illustration of ‘just go out and attack them, a goal will come’ team talks. No guile or intelligent game plan to break them down. Just keep on plugging away and it might just happen. The more it doesn't happen the more difficult it becomes to shake off the rust and morale will consequently drop.

There’s no doubting that we’ve played some of the best football in the league this season. When it works, it works. It’s easy to send out a confident team and just get them to keep working the way they’ve been working. Not much in this football lark he’d have you believe. Players need formation as much as formation needs players. When we don't play well, it's not because we're so miserable and calamitous in our performance (okay, maybe once or twice this season) but because we are not functioning correctly. You can almost see where it's going wrong, endlessly, without ever reaching a satisfying conclusion.

On paper and in practice we have been majestic at times. Then the same set of players look like headless chickens in a chaotic den of madness. I guess when Rafa said we never discuss tactics he was telling the truth.

One up front, three men behind the striker with Bale on the left and Rafa as the most forward midfielder. It works. It did work. Parker was a revelation protecting Modric and allowing the pixie playmaker to dictate possession. When it does work its magic. When it doesn’t nobody can find the wand.

The fundamentals are all wrong. There's no balance. There is stagnated application and misfiring effort. The midfield is isolated and without influence. The most forward players are detached from the rest of the team so we're left with few options when attacking. It always looks desperate rather than calculated. Adebayor ghosts to the already over-populated flanks where he finds our over lapping fullbacks running into space (have they actually stopped running this season?) and leaving plenty of available space behind them for the opposition to run into.

We've gone from the side asking all the questions to one struggling to answer them. It's comfortable for teams to have a go at us. We're making it easy for them. The manager is struggling to mix it up and refresh the team to bring back that lost belief. Obviously, there's always room for desire to impact the side, but even that appears to be AWOL.

 
continued...

Dear everyone. Zip it up. Don't mention 'you know what'.

Morning.

Some bits I missed yesterday.

The FA Letter

The Football Association have sent out letters to all of its managers asking them not to talk about the vacant England job meaning the journalists will have to ask relevant questions regarding team selections instead of citing Harry Redknapp every five seconds. Considering how its only ever Harry Redknapp's name that gets mentioned when the England job is spoken about, I get the distinctive feeling that a certain bald headed spectacled chairman has had a quiet word on the side with the big wigs at Soho Square and asked them to do him (and us) a favour. What with the inevitable on the cards in the summer. So on that bombshell, it's time for all of us to shut up shop and ignore it all until the season ends when it can restart with fireworks and hefty soundbites.

Redknapp and Levy

As if bloggers can be gagged (unless its a Thursday evening and I've paid Madam Majestic a grand to tie me up). Let's chat England job. Redknapp telling us that the chairman wants him to stay but no offer has been made yet (Harry not received a letter? No? Lost in the post?). No summer transfer war chest has been confirmed either. No bombshell here. Would be far easier to retain the manager, not rock the boat. At the same time, an upgrade will hardly be scoffed up if Harry forces our hand. A nice comfortable handover of a side that's taken 3rd place and the FA Cup would smooth things over nicely for the next man in charge.

Saha and the Gentleman's agreement

I love this one. Apparently Harry (he gets everywhere) and David Moyes agreed that when we played Everton, Saha would not make an appearance, not unless we were down to the bare bones.

"Harry told me if he is short of players he will play but if he is not he might not use him." - Moyes

Probably something that should not have been shared in public considering there is no legally binding contract (it's a gentleman's agreement, right?) and isn't permitted. This was upped and then removed from the Everton website when cited there.  If we start with two up front, expect him (Saha) to come off the bench. If we start with one up front, then Moyes will wont be nodding his head disparagingly with rolled up fist shaking towards Redknapp about something that wasn't even scribbled down and signed on a napkin.

Everton v Spurs match preview here.

D-Levy wants to D-List

Morning.

You'll have seen the financial results and club announcement from Spurs. We plan to 'de-list' the club from the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) and cease to be a public limited company, mainly for the reason that this (remaining a PLC) restricts us from gaining private investment in order to aid the NDP financially. A private company is the long and winding road we choose to skip down.

"It is clear to us that increasing the capacity of the Club's stadium is a key factor in the continued development and success of the Club and will involve the Company in considerable additional capital expenditure. Given this requirement, we believe that the AIM listing restricts our ability to secure funding for its future development. We are ambitious for the Club and have always taken the steps that we believe to be in its best interests." - Levy

The AGM is on December 13th, so the majority owners of ENIC will propose then that we are de-listed. Won't be an issue, ENIC own 82% of the shares (the remaining small shareholders will be able to sell their shares if they wish).

Long term, ENIC and Levy are positioning themselves for the money shot. Build a new stadium. Maximise potential profits. Sell the club.

No shocking revelation there. ENIC are an investment company with shareholders and as long as the club is left in a healthy state nobody is going to complain when the time comes for Levy to move on (other than myself as I'll have to register a new domain name and writing letters to Daniel will hardly be relevant if he's no longer at the helm). Although hopefully the caveat will stress 'do not sell to anyone with oil money and playboy traits'.

Point is, ENIC are custodians and there is little argument against the fact that we have (in terms of business) been run supremely well in recent years considering we are not a seasoned CL club and still play in a below 40k stadium. That's mainly down to Levy and the fact he has the Tottenham brand to play with and a massively loyaly fanbase to lean on. But that next step is imperative to the ethos of being unequivocally competitive with other clubs that are richer thanks to ticket revenue and over-priced Coca-Cola.

The following quote below doesn't quite inspire, although again this might simply be Levy's siege mentality on gaining the necessary monies the club needs to push the NDP into its phase of reality:

A financing package will need to include bank finance, enabling development and sponsorship. Quite clearly any significant, further investment by the Club would need to be in the context of a commitment by the public sector to undertake public infrastructure works in order to create the environment and confidence to commit further.These would include public sector improvements such as public space upgrades, improved public transport and public realm works, to be delivered in the surrounding area and to contribute to the general uplift of the borough, thereby creating an area in which the Club can justify an investment of hundreds of millions of pounds, secure funding and be a catalyst for further regenerative investment. We are continuing to hold positive and constructive discussions with local, regional and national government as we seek to move this scheme forward.

The rumoured £7.5M Boris has promised is hardly game-changing and we still await to see if a new tube station is forthcoming. A game of Thrones.

Fact is, the club (ENIC) need to push on. We need that new 55+ ground and I have no doubts that's what we'll achieve. Otherwise, there is no progression for Spurs or Levy and therefore nothing for ENIC's shareholders to feast on in the years ahead.

As for the financial results:

Champions League football revenue rose almost £44m to £163.5m

Operating profits up 42% to £32.3m

Costs of maintaining the squad up 35% to £131.2M (compared to 2010 £97.1M)

Club recorded a pre-tax profit of £400,000

More money made thanks to CL, more money spent on general costs and outgoings (new training ground, NDP, debt reduction, player bonuses etc), less tax wastage. It's all good. We're a slick machine in business operating terms, almost as slick as the manner of our football.

CL football will keep us happy and the chairman focused. For now, progress for the NDP is still lost in politics and posturing.

In amongst all the figures, worth also citing the obvious fact that the OS bid is dead. Dodo dead.