Spurs; hard boiled round the edges, gooey centre needs nuts

Jan Vertonghen has signed. He’s been in a perpetual state of signing for what seems like months. You can trace this transfer saga back to Friday 2nd December 2011, when we were first linked. Regardless of how long it took for it to become official at no point did I find myself thinking the usual knee-jerk thoughts as this all played out. You know, the usual agent-mind games that haunt and tease us where we get used in public to drum up interest elsewhere. Here was a player willing to come to Spurs, wanting to be part of our club. Thanks to a technicality, nothing shifted until the player shook hands with the Ajax over a contractual obligation owed. So seven months on, he belongs to THFC. Although until he parachutes onto the high road riding an inflatable cockerel singing Chas’n’Dave I’ll hold back from getting his face tattooed on my back.

12 million Euros the alleged fee. Yet another signing and it’s not even the middle of July yet. Whatever will Jim White and Sky Sports News do when that final fifteen minutes starts ticking away on deadline day? Pre-season kicks off on Monday and the message is one of relentless desire to get all our business done. Although I’m being a tad colourful with the truth as both Sig and Vert were ongoing deals that concluded regardless of Villas-Boas being appointed. It’s the signings made now onwards which will be most telling in how we plan to shape up for the new season.

Vertonghen truly adds another dimension to our centre-back horde. Intelligent, drives forward out of defence (eye for a goal) and a talented left foot - we’ve got ourselves a glamour boy that lives up to the hype. Ajax captain, Eredivisie Player of the Year and (according to Wikipedia) ‘Male Performer of the Year’. Those Dutch love putting it about. He will bring with him not just experience (title winner) but pace – something that Villas-Boas will no doubt require if we plan to play with a high-line (which failed at Chelsea thanks to their distinctive lack of it). A defender that can defend, attack and most importantly consolidate strength at the back. What with Ledley King’s future as a player in doubt. A back four of Walker – Kaboul (Dawson) – Vert – Benny is looking good (full back positions requiring sustained cover).

The key area (thanks to complete lack of depth) is up front. Defoe being the only recognised forward we currently have on our first team books. Adebayor continues to be linked and is on the cards thanks to the success he had with us and the fact that he’s open to returning (the player confirmed this himself back in May that Spurs and City were in talks). This has probably dragged because of the asking price so much like the Vert transfer, it’s going to happen but it might take a few more shrewd manoeuvres from our chairman. We’ll still need another. I’m not too concerned with this conundrum because there is no puzzle to be solved. We might play a 433, we might only need the one ‘striker’ but across the season? Three is the magic number. The ultimate would be a forward that can play on the right hand side, therefore fixing two problems (cover and alternative to Lennon, able to also spearhead the attack). I can remember thinking we needed this last season.

The biggest question however is the one in the middle. The heartbeat of the side is its centre. The phrase ‘build a team around him’ is not something you hear too much of in these modern times. Mainly because there’s no loyalty and players are very career driven meaning everyone is a stepping stone till they reach their ultimate goal. With Luka Modric, you’d love to do just that. Build the team around him. Although building a fence around him so he can't escape would be more apt. He attempted to tunnel his way out last year, but I expect this time when he gets to the barbed wire he'll jump it without crashing his motorbike. The great escape complete. We're left bouncing a ball off a wall in deep thought on what to do next.

Doesn’t score much? Placing that aside, he completes a ridiculous amount of passes and creates chances from open play, more so than most. He is prolific as the heart-beat of the side. Starting from deep, recycling possession and attacking forward space with effect. Under Villas-Boas he, in theory, would be phenomenal as I expect he would be used with far more astuteness. He’d benefit from a more structured system. But alas, it’s all theory because he will end in a different ilk of white shirt next season kicking up a storm. So what do we do?

Thankfully we have our holding midfielders. Scott Parker (the Jedi) and Sandro (the Padawan). We have the industrious ball winners and walls that you shall not pass. Bale will play out left or perhaps inside left. Sig is an attacking midfielder, van der Vaart is talismanic  - but what we need is a player similar to Luka. A conductor. Oscar, the Brazilian kid, is one name touted. More of unknown to most of us, a midfielder that pushes into the penalty area with an eye for goal. Hugely talented and highly rated.

Joao Moutinho is the more obvious target. He’s a Porto player. He knows Villas-Boas. He’d like to work with him again. And, apparently, wants to leave Porto this summer. Central midfielder, adaptable and not too dissimilar to what we currently have in Modric in terms of sheer talent but perhaps with a touch more all action box to box about him. Like Modric he can get stuck in (something that people tend to forget then act all surprise when Luka does it) is disciplined and reads the game extremely well.

He’s a top target for a fair few clubs but if he is available and if we are interested, we’ll have the money to spend and in Villas-Boas we’ll have a potential transfer winning wink and hand shake.

It’s going to continue to be an exciting summer. We’re getting our work done early. Villas-Boas has given everyone currently at Spurs a clean-slate which might impact what players we target in terms of covering the key positions. The return of David Bentley? I’ll believe it when I see it, preferably with no feet on fire and not a skip in sight.

So far so good.

We need a new Plan A to go with our Plan B (cheeky bids accepted for Plans C and D)

20^th Jan. The date. Today. First month of the year heading towards it's conclusion. Not long then until the transfer window shuts again and all we’ve learnt thus far is that we don’t really have an outstanding target with regards to resolving the forward conundrum.

Has Keane gone yet? Nope. Pav is apparently a Sunderland hopeful. Crouch – well, most of you want him sold but there’s little chance of Harry ridding the squad of his Plan B. Which leaves us with JD playing up top as our main man. Defoe, a sort of Plan B+ rather than a fully fledged Plan A. 

So we’re left with the usual rehashed links (Fabiano, Suarez, Rossi) to add to the likes of Carroll and...actually I think that’s it. No other available strikers in world football currently. Just the aforementioned mob.

Which is why I’m beginning to settle back in the comfort of my sofa and ignore all the hype and stories and ITK nonsense, because from the looks it, we are in for another last minute wheeler-dealer moment of magic from the chairman, with Harry on the sidelines giving the nod and thumbs up. I’d place actual money on a new major signing if...if Keane and Pav go in the next two weeks. If it goes down to the wire, if we’re on deadline day and Jim White has his beef in his hand behind the desk at Sky Sports News, then that last minute moment of magic might wholly rely on plenty of last minute cheeky bids for the two forwards that our gaffer doesn’t fancy.

  Plan B. Good mic skills for a white man.

Keane is gone in mind. West Ham perhaps. Doubt he’ll get away with claiming them lot as his (other other) boyhood club. Pav is the key to all this. But, like I said, if it goes down to the wire and the club await the Russian to be sold before making a move then it’s going to completely depend on magic.

Or perhaps foundations have already been laid down in preparation and the last minute transfer deals are never as manic and desperate as they seem. Just chairman and managers waiting until it’s too late to do anything but take a risk.

And what of the player we’ve actually signed? Piennar?

Two things to muse about here.

I quite like the theory that the only reason Chelsea bid for him was to force us into spending some of our treasured money from the war chest (to weaken it) when the ideal (original scenario) was to bring in the player for free in the summer. Conspiracy theory anyone? Honestly, make up your own ridiculous story arc, I don’t know, maybe about one where a player rejects Chelsea to join Spurs instead. Craaaaaazy!

The other point is – it’s a good signing. It’s not the big sexy player Harry wants to aid with pushing us onto the next level, but he’s a player who will cover in key areas. Seems Niko has joined dos Santos in the forgotten lounge of...sorry, who was I talking about again? And Piennar is/was Everton’s player of the season (2010) and we all know that Everton are more work ethic than glitz and glam, so for the money paid – I’m happy with this. Gut feeling, it’s going to be one of those almost sort of under the radar unspectacular types of signings that just does what it says on the  tin with additional thanks to little expectancy or pressure from the stands.

But alas, we still await that game changer. Best transfer story of non-eventfulness has to be the one about us 'saving' Joe Cole from his Liverpool nightmare. That takes the award. Standing ovation.

Shame feeder club Real Madrid don’t have any players to throw our way this time round.



Transfer deadline day brain Vaart

Chaotic. You have to scratch your head and wonder about it all, mainly because none of it appears to follow any type of outlined plan written up in the THFC War Room long before battle commences.

"The Premier League are understood to be investigating what Spurs claim were difficulties involving computer servers used in the transaction between themselves and Real, which hindered their attempts to submit the relevant paperwork on time."

Dead line missed. Special dispensation requested. 25 man squad to be named by 5pm. Tick tock tick tock. Drama.

Let's review.

We've been chasing players for a while. Harry wanted Bellamy. Harry wanted Parker. We supposedly inquired about Fabiano. Adebayor another linked one. We've signed a defender, a goal-keeper and a central midfielder. The defender on a free (Gallas), the keeper is extra-extra cover (Pletikosa) and the midfielder was tied up an age ago (Sandro) so good to see him finally arrive from Brasil (having just won the Copa Libertadores title with Internacional).

We've plugged the holes that needed plugging. Perhaps not perfectly, but plugged nonetheless. CB cover was imperative. We probably still need to look at this area going forward, what with Woodgate on the verge of retirement and King's knee. But for now, for the present, the signing of Gallas might yet prove to be one of shrewd astuteness that will bring much need leadership and experience. Tantrums and tears the risk.

Pletikosa is there just in case he's required, what with all the extra games to be played this season and Gomes softy soft skeleton. Sandro is someone I'm immensely looking forward to seeing. I know there is plenty of talk about him taking time (understandably) to settle in England, acclimatise and gradually be introduced into the fold - but he strikes me as a strong personality, one that won't need to be wrapped up in cotton wool. He's built for the EPL. And with Wilson still struggling for composure, the sooner the better.

So, here's the crux of it.

The main hole to be plugged should have been upfront. There is nothing wrong with what we've got (opinions will vary on this from one fan to the next) but we could have really looked to make an impact with something fresh and new. Robbie Keane is spent at Spurs. Although if he's stuck with us until Christmas, he might get the opportunity to shut a few mouths by reclaiming some past form in Lilywhite. Pav (did he reject a move to Anfield?) remains an in-betweener. Sort of okay, sort of not. But he still scores but can sometimes appear to do very little else (Darren Bent anyone?). Crouch is important, as proven last season and this early this term too. And Defoe, for all his minor faults, will always score goals for us. Again, as witnessed last season.

But had we got hold of a brand spanking new forward, someone who could have offered a new dimension to our play, then we'd have been near enough complete. In the eyes of our manager. What with us quite blatantly going after Bellamy. It's an area he knows needs improving.

So no new striker. And to be honest, I'd rather not if there was no viable option for us. Although my argument would be - where are the scouts? We plucked Berbatov from the Bundesliga. Are we to believe that every potential new superstar forward out there is not only known to all, but also demanding excessive wages? Perhaps the risk here was too much. Hence the Bellamy chase.

And there is a distinct lack of targets at home. Babel? On his was to Upton Park in a helicopter apparently, but didn't fancy it, although we (according to Harry) were interested, but didn't get anywhere near discussing a deal. All very meh. Half-arsed. Potential panic buy. But then football is made up of last gasp signings (did we not fail in our bid to sign Ricketts and eventually end up with Keane?)

The Parker Saga is one of much confusion. West Ham friend says he's hardly an update on Palacios and wouldn't offer Spurs as much as he offers WH, because at WH the player is so much better than the ones who line-up alongside him. But then in Harry we trust, and we've all seen players leave one club to turn it on for another, and prove people wrong. How exactly and where exactly was he meant to fit in, I don't know.

Nobody has actually left us, from the list of players tagged with the deadwood label. We can't argue that we don't retain depth, probably too much now. No reserve team for the fringe first team squad players to run around and kick a ball in. So our gaffers man-management skills will be worked over-time. Still, I expect plenty of activity with departures come Jan 2011.

So what exactly was our strategy with consolidation and squad improvement?

The conclusion of the crux is that once more, deadline transfer day proves that when you fail to sign the players you actually wanted in the weeks/months leading up to the 6pm deadline - you just hope for some form of luck or inspired out-of-the-hat unplanned signing, not to appease anyone or just for the sake of it - but end up with something unexpected, which is too good to turn down because it will work in our favour, and do so wonderfully well. One new player at the Lodge, several new options on the field of play.

Rafael van der Vaart. Out of the blue.

Well actually, out of the white storm of Real Madrid. 6pm deadline gone, but since around 4pm on the day, we were attempting to fix up the transfer and get all paper work sorted to beat the clock to sign the player up.

Had we not gone in for him, we'd be all pretty much dejected that nothing much happened on a day of untold expectations. Apparently  it was a loan deal initially, then a transfer, although the other suggestion is he was on his way to Munich for £18M (denied by Real Madrid) and that he was then available for just £8M. Levy told Harry, Levy asked Harry if he fancied it. Harry said yes.

Some of you might ask - why? Is it because of the quality on offer, for so little? Did Harry stop to think where and how he would play VdV in our line-up? Would signing the player have a detrimental effect on other players in our squad and their status? Is there a list Levy has drawn up of potential players we'd be interested in if they are suddenly available (not the first time we've flirted with players from Real - so perhaps they've kept in contact with us and vice versa) and Rafael was on that list?

I doubt very much we'd buy a player and not actually consider the impact on first team selection. VdV in the hole behind the forward(s)? On the left hand side (as played by Madrid before Ronaldo was signed)? I hope Harry plans to put his arms around Niko and give him a massive reassuring hug.

We have ridiculous options in central and midfield attacking positions now. VdV is the type of player who can bring some dynamicism to our play. And set-pieces. We have an abundance of creativity of differing guises. The craft and dinking runs of Modric, the beastly power yet sublime touch of Bale, the majesty of Huddlestone's long range to feet passing and disguised angled balls, the speed and tricksy twisting and turning of Lennon and now the technical guile and the versatility of VdV. 4-5-1 would be sweet, but we don't quite have a lone man striker good enough to slot into that spearhead position.

We're not short with other backups. We've got box to box midfielder Jenas. Ball in a skip Bentley. And Jamie Tenacity O'Hara. Hell, dos Santos might even turn into more than just a wildcard this season.

DM wise, you'd think with Sandro and Wilson (if he recovers from his current fragmented play and loss of confidence) we are fixed up. Harry has to sort out the Palacios conundrum because if we're going to hold down our place in the Champions League, we need him to regain the form he possessed when we first signed him. No good having superb footballers if we haven't got a protector screaming you shall not pass at opposing players, standing firm behind them.

It's now up to the front men to find that ruthless streak. One player short of the perfect deadline transfer day. But considering the lack of activity at certain other clubs, I'm not half as disappointed as I should be. We've ended up with a game-changer, perhaps even a talismanic one (something I've banged on about all summer long).

Is he world class? For a long time he was all hype, plenty of promise, but little fulfilment. The defintive under-achiever. But there is no doubt he has allowed his quality to shine through in recent seasons. He's worked hard at it. This will work out just fine.

Can you imagine the carnage we'd have dished out to the EPL had we also got hold of a Fabiano?

Actually don't. Dreaming is so circa 2006.



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Gallas, again

I'll get straight to the point (rather than cryptically dance around it to incite discussion).

Spurs fans are split down the middle on this one. You've got half of us saying he's a bad apple and the rest believing that he's exactly what we need (as far as his player qualities are concerned). But then there's debate about just how good he actually is and how far experience can carry him. Also spoken to some gooners today (who hasn't), who are in complete disagreement with the 'he's poison' line and others who suggest he will be rosey for the honeymoon period, then turn into an utter **** and end up isolating himself from the rest of the squad because of his demands and his conquering personality and lust for authority and control.

Wenger talking him up I see today also, not that I believe what he has to say without some scepticism, but he reckons Gallas alleged negative attitude is exaggerated.

Then I remember how he said he'd score an own goal for Chelsea to get away from the club and shrug despondently.

If we get Gallas the leader, barking orders and displaying composure at the back and intent going forward - then we'll be applauding the master-stroke of a free transfer. He will bring vast experience, a winning mentality, a **** mentality which we lack in abundance and the type of assurance at the back we need to allow us to sleep better at night (Dawson by the way, isn't suddenly shit because of one lacklustre England performance and his slow-mo no-go movements away to Young Boys - but there is that scratching of the head and chin when debating whether Daws only works best with a King by his side. I'm just not happy at this juncture to write off his form from last year as some type of fluke).

If we get some of the more repugnant traces of his (Gallas) personality, I hope poison is easier to rid from our system than a dodgy lasagne was.

Gallas is paradoxical. You can see that with the way we all appear to be in disagreement with each other.

So - there's only one thing to do. Back him in Lilywhite.

Until of course, it (if it) goes to shit. Then some of the vocal ones amongst you can say 'I told you so'.

Sandy signs

Transfer sagas. We do them better than anyone. During the duration of the deal that appears to have taken Sandro from Internacional to White Hart Lane (pending medical and the dreaded work permit) we've done little talking out in the open. Other than Harry's rehearsed sound-bites to questions from the media about how he thinks 'the chairman' is working away at it, we've not given much away. It's been impressive from our side. No need to be in the know until everyone is made to know.

All the hullabaloo that has kept the guessing at Richter scale 8.0 has come out of Brazil (not quite epic - that honour belongs to The Sock aka Diego who hit around 10.0) with the deal - on the surface - yo-yo'ing from collapse to maybe from one week to the next. I even got distracted with suggestions that Real Madrid were sniffing around, which is believable considering the noise made was loud enough to attract their limitless pot of money and acquisition greed. That and someone saw some documents, but let's not talk about that.

As per usual we all take every written word as variants of gospel. Sort of. Not always believing it to be factual but still deeming it worth of commentary and making assumptions based on the half-truths (gospel) in the aftermath.

Politics, deflection, mis-quotes, lies, guesswork…whatever you want to tag them as, you never quite knew how far-gone the progress of signing this young rough diamond midfield player was because of all the hype. I'm sure a representative from Internacional (or was it their chairman, I forget?) suggested that the clubs partnership (to loan players to us) was not even finalised. There was always a lopsided viewpoint which for the rest of us translated as: This is a difficult transfer. Even the player got involved and in the end the clue was in the statement about learning English in preparation for a possible move. The words 'done' and 'dusted' finally whispered quietly for the first time.

All very colourful and erratic. Which is what you come to expect from the boys from Brazil. Regardless of how we've got here. We are here. And if you strip away all the message board discussions and red top twist and turns, you might find yourself believing that this deal wasn't as tricky as it looked.

We showed interested. We signed him. Months later, but still, signed.

73 appearances for his club. Three goals. And one full international cap (and has captained the Brazilian U-20 side). I've not seen enough of him to form a true opinion. I'm sure most of you are in the same boat, and tbh, when it comes to players from abroad there is always a risk element, mostly around adapting to the culture and EPL. And the types of Brazilians who travel over here are never the sexy types. But then we don't want that. What we need is more steel.

So, who is Sandro?

He's young. He's athletic, very strong but perhaps not the best passer - so they say. We wanted an understudy for Palacios - we've got one. Uncanny. And to bring in a player of this ilk means that he must have some potential because we're going to have to be patient (look up the word in a dictionary) for him to bed in. Unless his mental strength and confidence is such, that he will be happy to be thrown into the deep end and come to terms with English football quickly.

Does give us options in the middle now, and quite possibly spells the end of Jenas. Yes - JJ is a different type of player (not sure what type he is - I'll let you know the day he reaches his potential) but with Huddlestone, Palacios, Modric and now Sandro - we have enough in the middle to swagger it up even more than usual. New cult hero in our ranks?

/prays

The more cynical amongst us might think this deal is part of the relationship we have with Internacional and them loaning youth players to us in preparation for any potential move they make to Europe. Is this a sweetener? A long term deal? Does the player see the next five years of his career at Spurs? Does his former club get any % of any future transfer?

The even more cynical amongst us would go one further and question why the likes of Kleberson, Denilson and Lucas are supposedly ahead of him in the defensive midfield pecking order for his country.

Where's that dictionary?

Talking of cult heroes check out Spurs' Cult Heroes - the first published book from All Action No Plot blogger and writer Michael Lacquiere. I'll give it a proper review when I get my copy delivered. Be sure to check it out anyway, available from the Spurs official site, WHSmith, Amazon, Tesco, Waterstones and Play…to name a few. Shop around.

Blanchflower, Mackay, Jones, Chivers, Gilzean, Jennings, Hoddle, Perryman, Greaves, Mabbut, Ginola, Nicholson, Gazza…list is endless. Well, it's not exactly endless because he'd never have been able to get the book out, but its jam-packed with legends.

Will be giving away a copy soon. Stay tuned.

Have we come out of January stronger or weaker?

The incomings and outgoings:

IN

Gudjohnsen (on loan)

Kaboul

Walker (recalled from loan)

Out

Gio (on loan)

O'Hara (on loan)

Hutton (on loan)

Naughton (on loan)

Keane (on loan)

For all the players linked to our club over this transfer window and the summer one, we've seemed to done pretty much nothing in the way of filling the (alleged) gaps that need filling. From my perspective, and possibly from yours too. It's been a dull non-event of a window and granted, you don't always do the best deals in the month of January and it's best not to panic buy. Although arguably, if we've had targets since the start of the season, all the ground work should have been done in the months between the first window and this one. Seems for all the talk about lacking depth in the CM positions and allowing for the possibility of certain players being sold (Bentley, Pav) - nothing has actually happened of much significance. Well, nothing other than quite possibly failing to consolidate 4th spot.

Best chance of finishing 4th, theoretically that is if we injected something extra into the squad to aid us chasing City who will probably win their games in hand.

So what have we done exactly? Are we stronger or weaker for it? Depends on your perspective.

Good Stuff

One for one

Keane is gone. He's been a shadow of the player he once was and there's no doubt that regardless of the obvious personality he brings to the dressing room, he seems devoid of it out on the pitch. Rumours (as ever) suggest that he wasn't displaying the right attitude having been handed back the captains armband on his return from boyhood club number I. He's never been the same player after that particular shambolic adventure. And him on his way (to boyhood club number II) is in no way detrimental to the side because we've signed Gudjohnsen, who might not be as prolific as Keane once was - but he'll link the midfield with attack as good as anyone meaning he can play alongside Defoe or Pav. With Crouch back to being Plan B.

Keane might come back refreshed in the summer, or score enough up in Scotland to aid a permanent move. Either way, problem solved.

Cover for two positions

Kaboul. The utility player. He'll cover CM, DM and RB if required. One player, three positions and no prolonged Brazilian style negotiations (Sandro) or ridiculous transfer fee demands (Sissoko). He's improved, matured and will quite possibly blossom in our decent side (rather than struggle like he did first time round). And Kyle Walker is back to cover the fullback position. Must have impressed at Sheff Utd.

Squad consistency retained

Could have done with a goal keeper just in case Gomes does get crocked. But we tried, it seems, on three different fronts to sign one. But otherwise, we've got rid of the deadwood and players who simply wont be getting near the first team and therefore are better spent playing elsewhere.

WTF?

Upfront

We've got 4 forwards. One blows hot and cold. The other hardly scores consistently. The other one hardly ever plays. The new one isn't match fit yet. Letting Keane go, regardless of his lack of oomph, is hardly the best thing doing when you consider we are about to enter a proper ding dong battle to keep our noses that point or two ahead of the teams chasing the same thing we are. He's worth a bundle regardless of his tainted mojo, so sending him out on loan to a Scottish team seems to imply trouble at the mill. Plenty of pressure on EG then.

No DM

Go back to the summer window and remind yourself of when it closed and Harry admitting that letting O'Hara go to Pompey had left us without any true cover in the middle. And yet, here we are, after the closure of the winter window and once more - no cover. If Sandro is genuinely the target and we have to wait until June/July that doesn't change the fact that if Wilson gets injured we're in a spot of bother. We've been crying out for an understudy for an age. Massive risk by Harry and Levy IMO.  Looks like Kaboul is our DM cover for the time being. I'm scared.

CB looking good

With Woody MIA and attempting to find some way back from injury and King playing part-time, signing Kaboul has fixed our CB cover out for now. Dawson, Bassong, Kaboul, Corluka. It's all good. Except that Kaboul once upon a time made an awful Daws look good as he's the type of player that manages to make massive mistakes in games that are costly. Corluka never really does it for me at CB and if either Daws or Bass get a knock, we're once more biting nails.

No RB cover

We've gone from having 37 right-backs to one. Kaboul looks like he's in for a busy return shift. Hutton and his cameos are no more with his loan out to Sunderland. If Charlie gets injured...well, you know the drill. It's Kaboul Time. Again. Unless the young lad Walker is going to play a proper part in the squad rather than watch from the sidelines much like Naughton has done.

So, good stuff of wtf?

Is there a lack of quality out there at the moment that has left us having to look for a bargain rather than a newly discovered gem? The Keane situation is a mess. I did laugh reading Harry's comments about Robbie being a Celtic man and how this is a dream move for him. Plenty of blag in his words, it's obvious he's building him up and hopefully Keane can have a positive spell up in the SPL - but no matter the great times he's had for us down South, he's tainted his legacy with the whole Liverpool episode. But I guess given a once in a life time opportunity - which is how Keane perceived it - he took it. Shame he didn't stop to think what he had and the rather obvious fact that Rafa wasn't really interested in him to start with.

One of my favourite Spurs players of recent years. When he was on form he was excellent. His partnership with Berbatov in that first season was ridiculous. Scored a bundle for us.

I guess these things happen. The fact he was only ever re-signed because Defoe got injured sums it all up. One booze trip too many in the end.

Conclusion

Simply this.

We have the players to finish 4th. If people think Liverpool do then there's no reason we can't. The problem is, so do Man City and Villa. All our hopes are on the players - the ones we're left with - pulling together and believing. Enough with these points being dropped. If they don't step up together, then the dream is over and we should all agree that we don't have the right balance of players who can give the right level of application when it matters.

You'd think considering City will spend around £200M next summer we could have done with some of that consolidation right now.

But it's not all grim, is it? We're enjoying one of our best (if not the best) points accumulation in a Prem season we've ever had and the problems we are having are ones that are fixable. If Harry has the right amount of cello-tape to go around.  Game for game, pound for pound, we're not doing too badly at all. It's just frustrating that we could have been 5-8 pts better off. I guess one or two other clubs would say the same thing about their predicament.

Onwards, upwards.

COYS

Gudjohnsen

So apparently we've signed Gudjohnsen. On loan. He's definitely not a defensive midfielder (sigh) nor a prolific striker. He's a link man. Superb player at Chelsea, but not sure exactly how he's progressed since - other than the odd cameo during his time at Barcelona. No problems, it would seem, in getting him to sign on the dotted line as there was no competition for his signature.

Pause.

Nah, just kidding. West Ham apparently offered him a contract and the player had a medical there too. We then offered the same contract (wage wise according to honest Harry) and he's chosen us. Not sure why the claret and blues are in melt-down over it. He had two choices, he made a decision, end of story. Why do chairman/owners always try to re-invent the wheel in the hard-done by stakes? It's not like this type of thing is rare in football.

Sullivan spouting about karma just adds fuel to the perpetuated obsession that is directed towards us and thus by mentioning it our obsession with them…it's complex stuff this rivalry business.

Birmingham recently stole a player from the clutches of Wolves, so perhaps that's the karma Sullivan is referencing. Otherwise, let me remind you about a certain French player we spoke to who then got into a cab we paid for, drove to the cesspit and signed for the enemy. Karma? We've had plenty of it rammed down our throats with excessive dollops of lasagna to last us a life time.

Still, I'm not stripping down to my y-fronts and moon walking across my office desk just yet. Perhaps it’s the collection of forwards we now possess that has me wondering where they will all fit in from one game to the next. Although plenty of time for one of them (at a stretch two) to be sold on between now and the 1st of Feb.

I still believe that another DM is a necessity if we are to consolidate and take that 4th spot. This is a massive chance to claim CL football because next season the likes of Man City will have spent another £200M or so in a single summer and Liverpool will probably rediscover their form - leaving us scratching our heads and wondering about 'what ifs', and in addition relentlessly trying to hold onto Lennon and Modric, before accepting a donation to the Tottenham Foundation and accepting defeat.

Good luck Eidur. Once upon a time, it was Keane who spent the game linking the midfield with the forward line. Hopefully Harry has a plan about how this will work, but considering the issues we have currently with unlocking defences and thus making a meal out of it, we might have just got ourselves a rather worthy key.

Happy with Bassong?

He's big, he's French, he's sitting on the bench, Seb Bassong, Seb Bassong...

Might have paid Newcastle a little too much for the lad, but it's a good solid signing, one that's a requirement to our steady progression. We signed Wilson Palacios last season (substance over style) and we've done the same in acquiring the signature of the French defender (or should that be Cameroonian?) to give us some much needed bite at the back. I've heard one or two Spurs fans bemoan the signing, suggesting Distin or Dunne as better alternatives - both of which are not exactly players with their careers in front of them. Bassong will no doubt grow in stature, thankfully (hopefully) for having better quality players around him rather than the utter dross he had to carry on his shoulder at St James Park and although he's cover for the moment, for the £8M we've spent, he has to be nurtured into a long term solution.

Ok, so we might lose him to the African Nations Cup early next year (Fulham, Birmingham and Villa are the games he might potentially miss) but Woodgate and Dawson should be there to aid King at the back. Corluka (not always convincing at CB) and possibly even Huddlestone (gulp, bit slow innit) can cover if we are really really (REALLY) desperate, but I don’t think it will come to that.

No doubting the masterplan is to have Woodgate and King as our first choice pairing and Dawson and Bassong to cover when we rest one or both of them. Daws (bless him) was possibly one of our most consistent performers last at the back, always doing his utmost to impress when called upon. Only concern is that he's yet to stand up alone in the big, bad scary world of the Prem, as he's confidence and belief is reliant on just how good the person standing next to him is. Which is why Dawson paired up with King tends to be so bloody good.

So, with all players fit, we have a strong and resilient selection of defenders to pick from. Considering this is Tottenham, it's nice to see as have such a strong spine to the side. Not quite perfect yet, but it's getting there.

Forgetting the over-priced transfer fee which is now a given with most Prem signings, this is a good move from Redknapp and Levy. Now all we need is a CM and we're fixed up for the season.

Transfer shenanigans

Sabastien Bassong to Spurs. Medical passed. Only a matter of time. £8M for a relegated defender. Look away now if stats scare you. Newcastle were better off without him in the side as they lost more and conceded more when he played. Add to it his record at Metz before signing for the Toon (22 games, Metz lost 14, drew 7and won 1 – two of those draws were achieve whilst Bassong went off injured due to injury). But we all know stats are misleading. Look at Darren Bent, great scoring ratio, but you won’t find a player more maligned. Bassong stood out in a very poor team, that mostly failed to match his determination. But at the same time, an inanimate carbon rod would have looked good playing for Newcastle last season.

We need a centre-back desperately. Woody is going to be out for a fair bit of time and Daws won’t be available for several weeks. However Bassong will miss the opening game of the season due to a red card offence from last term, so let’s pray King is fit for the big kick-off. Not sure where he fits in once everyone is fit and able to play. He must have been given some assurances over selection, so will be interesting to see what we do with Dawson once he’s available. May well be the case that Woody is out long term and with King’s troubles, there will be plenty of games available for the three of them to get along just fine.

Still, £8M? Wondering how good a prospect Beevers is at Sheffield Wednesday – who wouldn’t cost too much in comparison. Bassong may well prove to be a great signing for us. The stats I quoted above (and the ones SSN are displaying every half and hour) can be ignored. We all know that if you are a decent player surrounded by utter shit, you’re bound to suffer a little, mainly because your team-mates are not on the same level and can't offer support, so you end up having to do more than you should be doing.

£15M Rod bid rejected

We’ve had some defenders here at Spurs go through the same type of thing. King survived it. Gardner didn’t. Still, as discussed several times on this blog and currently cited in one or two message board threads – why does our scouting system not pick up players that would cost a fraction of the £8M? There must be plenty of undiscovered talents out there. We seem to do well picking up academy players and youth players – but when we want to fill a gap in the first team squad, we always go for the obvious.

Still, welcome to the Lane Sabastien. Good luck lad.

-

Darren’s a Sunderland player now and he looks rather happy, and as expect he fired a very subtle dig at Spurs (I’ve seen his interview and he isn’t resentful in an obvious way and good luck to him). His dig concerned what goes on behind closed doors:

'There is a lot of politics at Tottenham, but that's Tottenham as a club’

Basically, Bent never believed he would start the next game even if he scored in the previous one. My guess? Probably has to do with Robbie ‘undroppable’ Keane. Rumours of the Irish windmill having a little clause in his contract. I'm sure this myth will be dis-spelled cometh the new season. Unless that's the reason Robbie isn't too happy at the moment. I'll stop now before I drown myself in ITK whispers.

-

Talkng of which, a lovely piece of ITK information for you, this concerning Pascal Chimbonda (from rocknroll11 over at GG.co.uk):

Just wanted to put to bed all the random theories that are going round as to why we resigned Chimbo and what a pointless signing it is...

Sunderland never ever paid a penny for Chimbo, they were scheduled to pay after the first season. 6 months in he's obviously unhappy, missing the team bus, pissing off Keane etc... and 6 months in Harry's here thinking we lack a bit of steel and have a very small squad. Levy suggested we could get back Chimbo for nothing... so we went to Sunderland and said if you give him back we'll cancel the outstanding payment you own...

and that's what happened.

Lack of a bit of steel? Really? Still, it’s almost believable, although if true – I’m not sure anyone would have made any money out of the ‘transfer’ back to Spurs which is hard to believe considering the people involved.

-

And finally, the dream is over. Klass-Jan Huntelaar is off to AC Milan. Negredo is being linked with a move to Roma. Then again, so is Pav. And it’s all gone quiet on Sissoko. Perhaps having aided Madrid in creating interest for Huntelaar, they’re let us talk to a couple of their players.

Madhamadou Diarra anyone? Gosh, I’m dreaming again.

For the record, he’s not on Madrid’s transfer list. Neither is Gago (who some of you don't rate) but he's a far more likely target if we do plan to look that way.

We could still do with a midfielder. Don't think we're quite finished yet.

Harry's £9M gift for JD

No Income tax, no VAT

A lovely nine million pound transfer fee

Lilywhite, and never red

Peter Crouch has a funny head

We have ourselves a signing. He might not be a sexy one, but he’s accomplished in the Premiership and a team player. The type who can hold up the ball, ridiculous that such an ability is lacking from our current lot. Welcome to White Hart Lane, Mr Peter Crouch. Miss Clancy too. He aint a pretty picture (she is) but at least he has product and industry. This is not a Berbatovesque type of swaggering signing that we love down at the Lane. We are sacrificing quality of the ilk we usually expect (Modric anyone?) for someone with a very specialist purpose. The purpose to serve little Defoe who can now place aside his grievances with those pesky Essex Keystone cops and start salivating at the prospect of having the perfect foil standing tall alongside him once more.

£9M the fee. Which isn’t shabby at all. Well it is, I guess, considering we sold him for 60K many moons ago. No sell on value, how times have changed hey Daniel? Granted he won’t score as many as Bent (still Sunderland bound hopefully), but there is no irony to be lost as we all know he’ll create more and cause more havoc for opposing defenders than the apologetic Darren would ever dream of doing. A team who wishes to accommodate Bent will get the best out of him. And good luck to him wherever he ends up at. Crouch is far more of a fit for Spurs. That's compared to Bent. I guess the market is a little dry at the minute.

As for our spanking new forward, I’m making the assumption that ‘arry’s masterplan is to feed Defoe and have him as the main man (30 goals please) in front of goal. It has to be. Add 15+ from Crouch and we have plenty of goals – although it’s not quite the enterprising free-scoring flair play of the Berba/Keano partnership, is it? Bit more of that Lilywhite swagger that was.

Sigh.

Would I prefer a sexy younger player with the potential to have Man Utd looking down at us in a season or two ready for the plucking? Let’s face it, Crouchie joined us ahead of Sunderland and Fulham so it appears we are doing things a little bit differently this summer. Unlike, say, when we signed Darren Bent when he was completely unnecessary to the improvement of our squad, we’ve gone and signed a decent player (never to be world class) who will do a job for us – but nothing overly exceptional enough to take us to the next level. Arguably, signing a potentially world class player has never been a successful ploy to make it to that next level anyhow, so I guess it’s time to swallow a little pride and cross your fingers and hope Aaron doesn't ping too many balls to the head of Crouch.

I’d still have preferred us to bring sexy back. There must be someone out there, young and handsome with a little shirt-tucked-out-of-shorts flair that can hold the ball up and knock a few in? No? I guess I was right about it being a dry market.

Faith in the Redknapp masterplan I guess.

So, the brand new era currently stands as: Defoe, Crouch, Keane and Pav. The latter two are the ones that will have to prove themselves, as it’s blatantly obvious who Harry is going to opt for come the Liverpool game. Keane - as discussed - needs to wake up. Pav has to put an end to all the his tired/he's not 100%/he can't talk English excuses and start playing with intent and composure and confidence.

There is still time for more movers and shakers. I’m still hoping for Negredo personally. As for KJH - he's a little bit too Defoe-esque, is he not? Had we signed him, who would he have replaced? Keane? But anyway, enough with the speculation.

At least this weary transfer window has given us something to talk about.

Happy?

Blackwood signs from Arsenal, but is he worth 50 cents?

Ricketts.
O'Hara.
Bentley via Blackburn.
And now Blackwood. Anton Blackwood.

The 17 year old defender has signed a one year deal from them lot from Woolwich. He travelled with the academy team to Switzerland and played in the final of the Tournoi International trophy against Hajduk split (3-0), even managing to get himself onto the score sheet. The only thing I know about the lad is that he can run 100m in around 11.1 seconds (at least he did so at the age of 14).

Other than that, he joined Arsenal from Northampton but has had injury issues in the past two 'seasons'. He wasn't offered a new contract due to his poor performances.

SPURS TO THE RESCUE! It's a one year contract and apparently its incentive based. We'll see how this one pans out. You have to be a little concerned with us picking up another Arsenal youth reject. But in the grand scheme of things, its a non-story. Although it would be nice if he turned out to be a gem. For larfs.

I guess covering this story was just an excuse to post these pictures of 50 cent in a Toronto shirt with the name Ricketts on the back. Yes, Ricketts. Rohan Ricketts. Remember Rohan? I'm sure you do.

He's apparently a bit of a super-star in the MLS. Which should more or less tells you everything you need to know about the game over the pond.

Football. Funny. Old. Game.

Defoe recalled from loan

£15M collection fee. Medical is all that's left to make sure our goods have not been damaged during the rehabilitation period spent by the sea-side.

Brilliant signing. JD can play deep, hold up the ball and help out the midfield when the opposition overload that part of the pitch. His skills at beating the offside trap and playing clever quick thinking passes in and around the box will fill the void left by the departures of Keane and Berbatov.

Astute transfer this. Great bit of business. Chuffed.