If we based it on resources, we've got the 6th most so anything above 6th is a bonus. If you base it on squad value or cost we are about joint 4th with Arsenal and Liverpool (which shows we've used our resources very well) so 6th is disappointing but not surprising given the squad upheaval. So I'm not happy but 6th is not a disaster. We'd probably have done a bit better with a happy Bale but it is unrealistic for us to turn down a £85m bid from Real Madrid for any player. Arsenal, who have been in the CL every year, have nevertheless lost worse players than Bale to worse clubs than Real Madrid for lower transfer fees.
Whether or not he was happy with the signings (and rumours are not always correct) he claimed to be happy with Baldini as Director of Football and his role as coach is to make the best of his squad. In any case Levy has always appointed a Director of Football to deal with signings (except for the period under Redknapp) so it is very odd when people nevertheless blame his lack of football knowledge for our transfer policy.
We are going round in circles here. No-one can claim that Levy has a good record in choosing managers but he is good at everything else. There is only club in the PL with a current chairman who appointed a manager more than two years ago who is still there: Newcastle who have been going down hill. So Levy is not exactly alone at being crap at that: he has done a good job over a long period on everything else
If choosing managers is the only thing you admit he is responsible for, and he isn't any good at that, then saying he is good at "everything else" is nothing.
He is the CEO so the buck stops with him. When he joined we were dire in every way. Now we at least have a chance of the CL and actually played in it once. This despite some poor managerial appointments. Which other chairman has presided over a gradual rise up the table to play in the CL without a massive external capital injection? I'd happily appoint him instead of Levy but I think you'll find no such person exists.
There are 3 reasons why I think Levy has not done well. 1. He appoints poor managers. 2. He does not see the strategic advantage of building club wealth/ stadium/youth etc. Arsenal have done this, and been the most obviously successful, but Southampton, Liverpool, Swansea and several others are building now. 3. Related to 2., but he pissed away the Bale money when he could have invested it in the club/stadium/infrastructure. But the #1 problem is that he simply does not have a long term strategy/plan. He is just a billionaire owner without the billions.
Are you serious about 2? We've built one of the best club training facilities in the world under Levy and have a massive redevelopment plan for the stadium which is already under way. We've also steadily grown in value. And 3 - as I've already pointed out - the value of the players we bought is hardly changed since last year so how is the money 'pissed away'?
Where are the Spurs academy players coming through then ? And if the grass roots is so successful then why did Levy spend 110m trying to improve the squad ?
they are too busy thinking of how they can beat QPR so that Spuds aren't the worst London team this year now that Fulham have gone (west ham beat them 3 times last year).
And Townsend. And for the umpteenth time we didn't spend 110m we just reinvested the money we got.for sales back in the squad. Having an excess of good young players is the right strategy as only some of them come good
What part of spending 110m is not spending 110m ? Sorry but that's an irrefutable absolute, you spent that money. And Levy spent it on a squad which he obviously didn't think was good enough, otherwise he wouldn't have bought so many players.
No disrespect to those players, but half of them don't even play for you and the others are unknowns.
Only Caulker is not a Tottenham player and rumours suggest he may become one again. They are unknown because they are academy players just starting to make their way. Whether they really make it remains to be seen, but each of them (although I confess I haven't seen much of Veljkovic) are decent players.
