Transfer Rumours transfer thread fact and fiction
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The club is worth half as much as it would be if it was consistently winning trophies. All the other things going on are to raise money to make the football team more successful which is the only thing that will bring ENIC bigger rewards.
All I can see are a number of self entitled fans who are prepared to sabotage this.
The fixation on signing a CB or two and how that will fix our defence overnight simply does not stand up to the eyeball test, let alone any statistical or data-based test
The primary issue with both the ubermensch and Conte is both of their tactical plans were based on giving up possession for large periods of the game, and yet in neither case did we have a midfield that was capable of operating under those conditions and so our midfield was frequently overrun due to a combination of not having a rock of a DM like an Essien or a Matic who could screen the back line, coupled with our midfield failing to cope with being under pressure leading to a lot of backwards and sideways passes that were often picked off or led to a brainfart from a defender (the only exception being Bentancur, who can relieve pressure on the midfield with either a pass or just taking it around an opposition midfielder)
Add to that the amount of costly errors that had nothing to do with the CBs, be it Porro being caught miles out of position and putting us on the back foot, Lloris' decline starting to take hold, or the fact that Romero, Lloris and Dier were all playing through injuries in spite that obviously taking the edge off their game, and yet the incessant repetition of "We conceded 63 goals last season" places the blame entirely on the CBs and not other parts of the squad or ignores various circumstances which would contribute to this
Do we need to sort our CBs? Obviously yes, as we can easily jettison Sanchez and Rodon in favour of some replacements that will mean we won't be looking on with concern if Romero appears to have picked up a knock during a match less for his sake and more because we realise that Sanchez is the only CB we have on the bench and we may as well have played Danjuma there, but the way a section of our fanbase are apparently having psychiatric episodes over not having a CB signed yet is not only tiresome but also demonstrates that they really don't seem to be paying attention to the market, given how slow a lot of teams have been this summer, not least The Sheikh Mansour Team and Liverpool
Our defence also got us top 4 the season before with largely the same players when we had the 4th least goals conceded in the league. So it is a fair question to ask what other factors (IMO coaching and the behind-the-scenes malaise that several players have now described) caused the issues last season. Ange will have wanted to take a look at players too, which is fair and to be expected.
With that said, the inactivity at this point is ridiculous. We started the season promisingly, implying we had a list of targets for each position when we moved quickly on from Raya to Vic, Maddison was an excellent pickup, and I think Solomon was smart business because he fits what Ange wants from a winger to a tee. The CB situation throws this supposed sensible approach into doubt though. Why haven’t we got a different target to VdV, Tapsoba and Tosin? Did we just snap up a player Paratici liked when Brentford got stubborn on Raya, or was Vicario actually on a list of alternatives? Ange seems very happy with Maddison but he was also a long-term club favourite - we had tried to get him before over the years and reportedly had everything agreed for him as recently as last summer only for Conte to say he didn’t want the player, so we got Richarlison instead. And is Solomon a smart pickup on a free or just classic Spurs opportunism?
Levy is dealing with a number of issues, some of which are his own making. It is difficult to sell to clubs abroad because the PL offers such high wages, but Levy seems to refuse to deal with PL clubs. We have a bloated squad which is a mishmash of players recruited for different managers playing different football. The long-term lack of a footballing vision beyond simply ‘success’ is rearing its ugly head in a big way. I do think it’s fair to say that when it comes to football, Levy hasn’t managed to move with the times. Spurs aren’t the playground bully he seems to think they are. We had all hoped I think that Scott Munn would bring a more modern way of thinking to the football club but he’s nowhere to be seen because we can’t even seem to get an appointment sorted correctly.
Something is rotten at Spurs still. The goodwill for Ange is still there and I’ll be excited come opening day regardless but the momentum we had early transfer window has ground to a halt in a fit of radio silence on transfers and other appointments, a mess of a pre-season tour, tone-dead decisions on pricing of tickets, and of course the Kane saga which rumbles on. We badly need some direction and action. Ange’s vision for what he wants on the pitch is clear. Delivering it was always going to take multiple windows and a painful changing of the guard but too much is stagnating at the moment.
Spurlock you put this out every transfer window. I think we have to start by saying that people are on here because they support Spurs, correct me if I'm wrong, but no one is here to support Levy. What you describe as support for Levy is simply the counter argument to people who think it's all Levy's fault when transfers don't happen or the team fails. I think it's easy to define Levy's area of control. He is responsible (with the board) for picking managers. He is then responsible for making funds available to support that manager. The decisions on individual players clearly vary and we only have the media to inform us and the odd snippet from people like Harry Redknapp.
To accuse Levy of lacking ambition defies the facts which are available to us all. First he wouldn't be in his position if he lacked ambition, but yes that's personal ambition. Ambition for the club? A new stadium and training facilities for a start. Just to raise the value of the club so he can sell, people will say. Yes that's what has happened but Levy is always reported as wanting to stay in any deal agreed for a takeover. That suggests a commitment beyond just money. You don't employ Mourinho and Conte if you lack ambition.
I would argue that Levy buys into the cult of the manager, that permeates football, too much, but he has also employed Pochettino and now Ange and those IMO are far more football orientated decisions. It's probably easier to sign players with a high profile Manager like Mourinho or Conte in place but's it's not proved to be good for Spurs as a team.
Levy's desire to employ Directors of Football shows an awareness of his own limitations on matters of football and again flies in the face of those who claim he interferes too much.
Every transfer window we wind ourselves up by reporting and discussing every rumour, most of which turn out to be bullshit. It's clear that most of us think we need CB's but this transfer window has another month to run and we might suspect that a lot of decisions will depend on whether Kane stays or goes as well as any number of departures from the squad.
You have to take into account the complications of transfers, it's not simply a case of deciding who you want and getting him. The selling club is the major factor with most of the cards in their hands just as we are showing in the discussions with Munich. It's not ideal that we are still trying to sign players and offload others but to blame Levy is too simplistic. Sure blame him for his managerial choices and financial decisions some to do with transfers. Grealish clearly being a bad mistake for example. On the other hand we had no expectations of a top 4 finish for many many years before ENIC so it's down to Levy that we do now.
It's also as well to remember that football is not a democracy, it's not about fairness, it's about MONEY and who has the most and thanks to Levy Spurs have more than most AND in a legitimate way not like the models at Chelsea, City and now Newcastle. Whatever you think of him it will be Levy who decides his fate not us.
Absolutely incorrect. A manager is so much more than a glorified cheer leader. Especially the elite managers will have very specific tactical systems that will suit certain players better than others. Anyone with eyes can see how Harry Maguire looked like Alessandro Nesta when at Hull and Leicester - both of whom played deep back lines and asked their defenders to dominate in the air. He picked up where Robert Huth left off. But the idiots at Man United decided to spend £80m on him and then play him under OGS and then Ten Hag in a system that plays a high line and asks its defenders to dominate in possession on the ground. Suddenly his lack of pace and mobility are horrendously exposed and the man has literally become a meme overnight.
Poch, Bielsa and Ange prefer an all-action system that requires high levels of fitness and stamina. It makes zero sense giving them players who don't fit that skill set. Give Poch a team with Benny, Ginola, VDV, Pavlyuchenko and Rebrov and he'd struggle to achieve anything. Not because they are bad players. They are the wrong players. There is a subtle difference that becomes more pronounced the closer to glory you hope to get.
"A bad workman blames his tools" is the sort of ivory-tower capitalist crap people come out with to justify zero hour contracts and no toilet breaks. Give a fine renaissance artist a roller and can of fence paint from Wickes...what sort of masterpiece do you expect him to produce?
I would add to this that the decision to give Perisic defensive responsibilities was another major (and avoidable) contributing factor to the collapse of our defence last season.
You haven't addressed my main point at all.
If anything, you've reinforced it.
Waiting a year to break a transfer record for a player and then giving the manager who was desperate to sign him the grand total of three months to actually work with him is the clearest definition of 'half-heartedly' I can think of without using the word 'insane' instead.
The constant chopping and changing of managers, systems and DoFs in a very short period of time has left us with a patchwork, bloated squad filled with players who have never really had much of a chance to impress as they've either been out on loan or frozen out of the team for extended periods of time by managers who didn't want them in the first place.
Are you suggesting Banksy for manager?
No but according to @PowerSpurs it doesn't make a difference anyway so we might as well give it a go.
We got 4 because Arsenal completely crumbled. United were also really poor as were Chelsea. Our defence is nowhere near good enough and hasn't been since we lost Jan and Toby. Typical Levy, he never replaces top players with quality. Trippier and Walker left and we replaced with Aurier, Sissoko replaced Dembele. Eriksen was replaced with nobody. Great players come and go, however if we want to consistently compete you have to replace quality with quality.
We are rich enough to buy the players we need
both players have a price on their head
pay it and get on with it
You can’t praise a man for digging his heels in like Levy is doing with Kane then blame a selling club for ‘over pricing’ our targets.
just like Kane, them players also have been allotted a price.
Im sick of playing this silly beggars game fuelled by pride and greed…it’s bollocks that negotiations are not ‘easy’ blah blah. They are just as ‘easy’ or ‘hard’ as the negotiations regarding players like Maddison, the unknown goal keeper and the freebie.
The only problem is the double standards Levy tries to play the game at…it’s tiresome and tedious and it happens every year and we suffer for it every year…I recall before a ball was kicked last season that I said we need a new CB pairing, many others did too…we still haven’t addressed it and I’m supposed to put it down to some complexities like we are trying to sign Mbappe.
Our targets have got a price on their head pay it and support the manager
a collective response for everyone who replied to my earlier post.
both players have a price on their head
pay it and get on with it
You can’t praise a man for digging his heels in like Levy is doing with Kane then blame a selling club for ‘over pricing’ our targets.
just like Kane, them players also have been allotted a price.
Im sick of playing this silly beggars game fuelled by pride and greed…it’s bollocks that negotiations are not ‘easy’ blah blah. They are just as ‘easy’ or ‘hard’ as the negotiations regarding players like Maddison, the unknown goal keeper and the freebie.
The only problem is the double standards Levy tries to play the game at…it’s tiresome and tedious and it happens every year and we suffer for it every year…I recall before a ball was kicked last season that I said we need a new CB pairing, many others did too…we still haven’t addressed it and I’m supposed to put it down to some complexities like we are trying to sign Mbappe.
Our targets have got a price on their head pay it and support the manager
a collective response for everyone who replied to my earlier post.
Let's be realistic: we didn't sign Ndombele with one eye on sacking Poch within three months
The fact is we signed off on him, his fee and his salary in the belief that Poch would turn around our dismal form from the second half of the previous season, is anything but half-hearted. If anything, by having Poch say Ndombele or nobody (even when Steve Hitchen was alerting him to the availability of Tielemans) we were allowing Poch to have far greater say than you indicate
Also, we have not "chopped and changed" DoFs for the simple reason that, in the last twenty years, we have had five
David Pleat (2000-4)
Frank Arnesen (2004-5)
Damien Comolli (2005-8)
Franco Baldini (2013)
Fabio Paratici (2021-3)
And why did they leave?
The plan was to replace Pleat with Arnesen at the end of the 2003-4 season anyway, as Pleat's remit was much smaller in scope than Arnesen et al's
Arnesen got tapped-up by Chelsea
Comolli was sacked for gross incompetence (and frankly should have been a lot earlier)
Baldini fell on his sword while we abolished the DoF structure
Paratici left due to being the fall guy for the Agnelli family, who were apparently unaware of the years of corruption they kept signing off on
Also, what do you think the plan was with Paratici? It was quite clearly to have a longterm plan, but the problem was that Paratici seemed to be fixated on the idea of us playing 3ATB which is why Nuno was brought in having used a version of that at Valencia, Conte obviously using it with Italy, Chelsea and Inter, and his shortlist of managers like Amorim and Xabi Alonso continued to focus on this system - which begs the question why the only DM we were ever linked with during his time as DoF was Amrabat and maybe Palhinha during Nuno's reign when it was obvious to us that no combination of Hojbjerg, Skipp, Sissoko, or Winks was going to lockdown a midfield to make 3ATB workable
So Arsenal and United only got top 4 this season just gone because Chelsea and ourselves fell apart? I think that’s too reductive a view and while it’s a factor in both outcomes it’s far from a complete telling of the tale.
Regardless, you are correct I believe in the rest of your post. Recruitment, both ins and outs, has not been conducted with any sense of vision and practicality. Like the whole football side of the club, it’s been a complete mess recently. I do believe that on the pitch, Levy has not adapted to the new normal of the PL. We cannot do football business like we did even 5 years ago, let alone 10/15.
I never said that specific players had to be suited to all systems...of course that's not true. I said no system should depend on buying specific players which is a different thing entirely. If you specified the particular properties you wanted in a player there would be dozens playing in the top leagues who had them. Some might be clearly better than the others but most of them will be very similar in performance too. We can't yet afford to sign the very best ones so our manager has to make do with compromises.
And I don't expect us to produce masterpieces until we can match the biggest spending clubs. The ivory tower capitalist idea that best matches most fans' attitude is that we need do things smarter. Well of course we would like to but it is hard.
Your opening statement is simply wrong. We can only buy the players that Chelsea, Man U, Man C and Liverpool don't want.
Either by good recruitment or luck we built a squad worth >£500m by spending around £150m. Our income didn't grow fast enough to replace that team with equally good players. That's not a sign that anything is wrong
Levy has no definitive plan or strategy for the football operation, as a consequence he blunders from one disaster to the next. Most of our signings are opportunistic ones or way down the list of the manager`s targets because they are considered a good deal and a good investment by Levy, who then usually end up not good enough and not wanted. We end up with the likes of Rodon, Spence etc and millions wasted when that money could have been put towards a real top class proven player that the manager actually wants. The way our football club is run is the stuff of comedy, "Carry On Up The Tottenham" perhaps.
Another point of view is how many other clubs in the list of the top 10-15 richest clubs in world football have made some many predicably inappropriate managerial choices.
Sacking bloke in a coat in the week before a semi final v the goons (when he had a big point to prove) was a poor decision and it did not pay off.
Hoddle was known to be a poor man manager.
Pleat was a sadly predictable outcome.
Santini was known to deliver boring football.
Jol took us forward and was an excellentappointment...treated terribly.
Ramos ... won a trophy but died in the league.
Redknapp took us forward.
AVB was a plainly stupid appointment.
Sherwood was just
Pochettino was a great appointment.
Jose was like sherwood with bells on sacking him 6 days before a cup final and putting Mason in charge was beyond moronic...and showed nothing had been learned from sacking bloke in a coat the week before an fa cup semi final 20 yrs previously.
No idea what to say about Nuno tbh.
Conte ended in the exact way predicted.
The caretaker choice was
3 flowers in a forest of of thorns is not a great place.
None of this is hindsight...the screw ups were all foreseeable.
Yes, because Levy refuses to spend the money required and match what is on offer elsewhere. Spurs have the money (they waste enough of it on cheap punts the manager has no interest in) but have an owner who has been on record as thinking the transfer market is massively over inflated and who refuses to pay over inflated prices despite all our competitors doing so as the market is what it is. Levy has no problem charging over inflated ticket prices and awarding himself an over inflated pay rise though.
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