Any ideas?

["Thanks for that Brian"]

And that is why its it shocking to see no transfers the 2 previous windows and not much of an outlay this season. You would think after 80m incomes from the cl, record sums from the pl and reasonable wages at the club, you would be able to outlay some money especially let alone all this future income.

Poch football pressing requires young athletic and hungry players. This team has been at it non stop for the best part of 5 years of course they are going to be getting old or maybe knackered from it.

Very little leaks out of Spurs but it's generally accepted that there was money to be spent in the summer of 2018. We definitely went in for de Jong, Ndombele, de Ligt and a few others and missed out for varying reasons.

It's distinctly possible that chucking a whole load more money at the problem might have helped but as Power Spurs says, we had probably agreed with the banks that we would restrict our spending to a given level whilst the final cost of the stadium was unknown. Leaving some of the deals to the last minute probably didn't help either.

Having signed new, long term deals with AIA and Nike for lots of lovely cash, we're in a whole new era now and this summer we were able to have a net spend for the first time in a decade.I can't be arsed to look up the exact level but it's likely to be around £100m and we would have spent a further £75m or so in landing Dybala and sorting out his image rights mess.

Having the money, whilst building the stadium, would have been great but our owners don't operate like that. Wishing that wasn't the case is the dictionary definition of futile.

 

[Dier Hard]

And that is why its it shocking to see no transfers the 2 previous windows and not much of an outlay this season. You would think after 80m incomes from the cl, record sums from the pl and reasonable wages at the club, you would be able to outlay some money especially let alone all this future income.

Poch football pressing requires young athletic and hungry players. This team has been at it non stop for the best part of 5 years of course they are going to be getting old or maybe knackered from it.

It is worth remembering though that there were strong rumours that it was just as much down to Poch than it was Levy for why we didn’t spend last season as many rumours circulated Poch vetoed a number of moves.

My guess as to why is that he wanted certain players that summer (Ndombele, de Jong, de Ligt being three examples) but they all proved unobtainable, not through want of trying but because the opposing clubs or players themselves wouldn’t or couldn’t move. Ndombele for instance had just signed for Lyon permanently after his loan so leaving immediately after that was unlikely, Ajax probably expected de Ligt’s value to further rise after one more season and they were proven right, de Jong even mentioned we tried to sign him but he felt staying at Ajax was the smarter decision for himself at the time and as much as it pains me, he obviously made the right choice as his extra season then earned him his dream move to Barca.

This then likely resulted in us making the moves for players like Grealish - someone I really wanted (as I’m sure a few of you know ) regardless of whether we signed Ndombele/ de Jong as I thought he was “Poch-made” - but it seems that a mix of us initially lowballing and then Villa’s new owners blocking transfers as well as Poch supposedly vetoing that move, resulted in us not getting him and I’m sure other secondary targets.

Levy did say himself in a meeting with the Spurs Supporters Trust that money was there to spend, so whilst I was ****ed off we never strengthened, because I and others predicted it’d hinder us long term, it’s hard to put the blame on just one person.

 

[The Changing Man]

First and foremost we need to get to January and be in the running for the top 4 and still in the champions league otherwise we may find it hard making the signings we need for our long term project.

As such we need to get back to being hard to play against and that means playing proper defensive midfielders and protecting the back 4.

My plan would be to play Lloris, Foyth, Sanchez, 1 Belgian, Davies, with Dier sitting in front of them, Sissoko and Ndombele as mobile box to box midfielders Son and Moura (or Lamela) out wide and Kane up top.

I would relieve Lloris of the armband on match days and make Dier captain, I know that not everyone is a fan, but he is the best on field captain we have, vocal and intelligent.

Fill the bench with the youngsters, I would particularly like to see Parrott on the bench, not as a game changer that’s too much to expect, but with 7 subs there is room for him, so that when we are winning he can get game time and Harry can be rested.

 

[BobbyD]

It is worth remembering though that there were strong rumours that it was just as much down to Poch than it was Levy for why we didn’t spend last season as many rumours circulated Poch vetoed a number of moves.

My guess as to why is that he wanted certain players that summer (Ndombele, de Jong, de Ligt being three examples) but they all proved unobtainable, not through want of trying but because the opposing clubs or players themselves wouldn’t or couldn’t move. Ndombele for instance had just signed for Lyon permanently after his loan so leaving immediately after that was unlikely, Ajax probably expected de Ligt’s value to further rise after one more season and they were proven right, de Jong even mentioned we tried to sign him but he felt staying at Ajax was the smarter decision for himself at the time and as much as it pains me, he obviously made the right choice as his extra season then earned him his dream move to Barca.

This then likely resulted in us making the moves for players like Grealish - someone I really wanted (as I’m sure a few of you know ) regardless of whether we signed Ndombele/ de Jong as I thought he was “Poch-made” - but it seems that a mix of us initially lowballing and then Villa’s new owners blocking transfers as well as Poch supposedly vetoing that move, resulted in us not getting him and I’m sure other secondary targets.

Levy did say himself in a meeting with the Spurs Supporters Trust that money was there to spend, so whilst I was ****ed off we never strengthened, because I and others predicted it’d hinder us long term, it’s hard to put the blame on just one person.

Thats cool mate and acknowledging brians post about not spending more you had the jan transfer window and theoretically you should have had even more money this window to spend (2 sets of transfer money, stadium sorted, great cl run) your net spend was 61m and gross was 80.

This especially when poch wanted half the side gone. Maybe levy thought a few guys would sign new contracts but the cl final run which was tremendous, totally papered over your pl form which has continued.

 

[Dier Hard]

Thats cool mate and acknowledging brians post about not spending more you had the jan transfer window and theoretically you should have had even more money this window to spend (2 sets of transfer money, stadium sorted, great cl run) your net spend was 61m and gross was 80.

This especially when poch wanted half the side gone. Maybe levy thought a few guys would sign new contracts but the cl final run which was tremendous, totally papered over your pl form which has continued.

That’s true, we could’ve spent more, Levy himself again confirmed that and I think it’s why you saw us make the move for Dybala, that deal didn’t break down because of us, it broke down because Juve didn’t have a replacement lined up. We’d agreed the fee and terms with the player, the last bits of the deal was image rights and agent fees but Juve pulled the plug before we could get it done.

As for the outs, it’s hard to blame a person for that. Any team could’ve signed Toby for £25m for most of the window, the only offer we ended up getting was a €20m bid from Roma which was instantly (and rightly) rejected. Madrid didn’t move for Eriksen partly because Zidane wanted/ wants Pogba whilst the player himself rejected Utd’s advances due to having an agreement with the club that he wouldn’t join another English team which I massively respect. No one showed interest in Aurier whilst Watford made a bid for Rose but he rejected them. I don’t think realistically you can blame Levy for not shifting players when either clubs aren’t interested or the players themselves are rejecting the offers.

It’s a clusterfuck of a situation but it’s not one person’s fault. The problem however is that the anti-Levy brigade will never look at that rationally and they’ll just point the finger at him regardless. He ain’t perfect by any means but at times he gets so much hate for things that are just simply out of his control.

 

[humanbeingincroydon]

A couple of interesting nuggets from Dan Kilpatrick's AMA on r/coys last night

bleedbluegold03: There are conflicting reports on what happened after the match last night. Do you have any further details on the events that kept them there for three hours?
Dan KP: I honestly haven't seen reports they were there for 3 hours (do link me!)... Apparently the players held an impromptu meeting in the dressing room afterwards but they came through the mixed zone as usual about an hour after FT, and appeared to be leaving the stadium...

THFC_Kane: What do you personally think about the diamond? Do you think it will work eventually or are you more of a fan of when we played 4231?
Dan KP: I like the diamond on occasion – you saw how effective it can be in the opening 30 minutes last night, when Sissoko and Ndombele looked like peak Modric and Pirlo. It allows Poch to play Ndombele, Sissoko and Winks, which he's obviously keen on, and gets Son or Alli close to Kane, which works...That said, I'm quite a disciple of 4-2-3-1 and I think Spurs' best football under Poch has come in that system.

mettahipster: Why weren't Spurs seriously linked with any fullbacks over the summer despite it being one of the biggest areas of need?
Dan KP: Spurs did look at full-backs over the summer, Napoli's Elseid Hysaj for one. I think the problem was that they could not free up space in the squad by selling Rose and Aurier, both of whom were available to leave.

TARS-CASE: Do you think the problems we are having can be addressed and fixed psychologically with the current team? Or is there a need for transfers to happen before we can mentally progress?
Dan KP: I think the squad does feel 'end of cycle' and there needs to be significant changes in the next 12 months. Obviously this group cannot go on indefinitely and that's clearer than ever after last night.

freenas_helpless: Who do you think is our best answer at RB right now? Could it be Sissoko?
Dan KP: Sissoko is increasingly looking like a good, if not the best, option but I'd like to see KWP given a run of games, starting at Brighton. I actually wrote about the possibility of Sissoko playing RB this week.

Broric: Could you take Ally Gold in a fight?
Dan KP: Yeah.
alasdairgold: Say what? Will your weapon of choice be the blanket you used to cover your legs with while reporting on winter matches at Wembley? Photos may be available.

NorbertPL: Poch has said that this is "the most unsettled squad" he's had during his tenure at Tottenham. Which players do you think are causing problems or don't want to be here? Are those rumours about toxic dressing room true?
Dan KP: The unsettled players are most like the guys in the final years of their contracts and/or were available to leave in the summer. I don't think the dressing room is toxic but Poch has been pretty clear that there's unrest.

ninjomat: Is Hugo Lloris more communicative with the team than the press, I love our captain but he always seems kinda silent/zoned out/depressed, in any BTS stuff the club releases?
Dan KP: Lloris is a fairly serious guy and he's not particularly 'banter' in interviews. However, he's good at fronting up, particularly after defeats, and is always honest and insightful. I recently asked him if he was happy to scream and yell at his teammates – he said he was but didn't feel the need to tell everyone about it afterwards, which I thought was fair enough.

caelumus: What are your thoughts on giving Davies or possibly Jan a bit more of a starting role at LB? Jan has had some very good games there though I know it’s not his preferred position, but to me Danny Rose has been very unsatisfactory this season, especially with a lot of the goals we’ve conceded right before the half.
Dan KP: I've been surprised Davies hasn't played more, particularly given Rose was transfer-listed in the summer. But Davies did have a groin op in June and missed a lot of pre-season so it's possible he'll play a greater role as the campaign progresses. Vertonghen was superb at left-back against Dortmund last season but it's not his position and I think he should only really play there in emergencies.

mr_machiavellian: Hi Dan! Do you think there’s any indication that Poch will drop the 4-4-2 Diamond and return back to using the 4-2-3-1 that’s been so successful for us in recent years?
Dan KP: 4-2-3-1 is still in Poch's armoury (he used it against Palace if I'm not mistaken) so I don't think it's in the deep freeze, like 3ATB. I think part of the issue is that Sissoko is not at his best in a 2-man pivot.

mickeybell3: Hi, Dan. What's the current situation with Dier? He's gone from national team stalwart to unused sub for Spurs more games than not. Last year was riddled with injuries and his form has been up and down the past few years, but this team is crying out for a CDM. I'm wondering if he can work his way back into consistently starting?
Dan KP: As you say, he has really suffered from a string of illnesses and injuries over the past year. Missing the start of the pre-season and the tour of Asia after a minor op was another setback. I hope he can get back to his very best because Spurs could do with a true holding midfielder.

gwill11: Who is your favourite Spurs player to interview?
Dan KP: Good question.Rose is great to interview because he is as outspoken as any top player in the Premier League, and it's a real privilege to speak to Kane so often and easy to forget he is an absolute superstar (it's fairly rare for a player of his quality to give the media so much time). I also really enjoyed an interview I did with Vertonghen last Christmas, where we mainly talked about board games. Pretty much all the Spurs players seem to be good blokes, though.

butts_yo: Thanks for taking the time for this Dan. What’s your favorite type of cheese?
Dan KP: Great question. It's Cambozola.

 

[Spurlock]

It’s possible that everyone from the owner to the players need to take a long hard look at themselves in the mirror

I don’t have any favourites so I’ve got no problems pointing my finger at absolutely anyone who I feel is not doing what they can be doing considering their position at the club

 

[Spurlock]

5 years is the end of the cycle and rebuild but I was getting told 5 years is when these players mature and the trophies look after themselves when it was being suggested that 5 years is when most of this bunch will get itchy feet...I’m not prepared to brush that under the carpet because that’s typical of all things Spurs...no wonder we are always in some sort of pathetic “transition”.

I don’t appreciate the goalposts being moved without a hint of “wtf” from anyone instead acting like this was the natural step and everyone was aware of it.

Trying to remove blame from any of the main shot callers at our club for the brain fart planning of our football team on the beautiful green grass from contract renewals to bang average signings e.g wasting money on players that are warming the bench at Leeds United whilst we have a First team that needs immediate improvements...falls on someone’s head. I couldn’t give a **** about making signings with potential...primed to be in the starting XI in 2021 to take a dry humping from another team a few leagues below us.

Just like tactics and in game management falls on Poch’s head.


Spurs fans are easily pleased and don’t Levy know it

 

[Citizen Kane.]

First and foremost we need to get to January and be in the running for the top 4 and still in the champions league otherwise we may find it hard making the signings we need for our long term project.

As such we need to get back to being hard to play against and that means playing proper defensive midfielders and protecting the back 4.

My plan would be to play Lloris, Foyth, Sanchez, 1 Belgian, Davies, with Dier sitting in front of them, Sissoko and Ndombele as mobile box to box midfielders Son and Moura (or Lamela) out wide and Kane up top.

I would relieve Lloris of the armband on match days and make Dier captain, I know that not everyone is a fan, but he is the best on field captain we have, vocal and intelligent.

Fill the bench with the youngsters, I would particularly like to see Parrott on the bench, not as a game changer that’s too much to expect, but with 7 subs there is room for him, so that when we are winning he can get game time and Harry can be rested.

That Lloris is still captain is totally baffling, and I'm afraid does further tarnish Poch's perspective on in-game management. One of the most disturbing interviews he (Poch) ever gave was going on 3 years ago now, when he went on record as saying that he knows within 120 seconds of a match if we will be 'on it' or not. The scary thing is, by and large that is indeed the case. You can tell within the first few minutes if the energy levels are right or not, and that has always been the case for numerous years now. The difference is that 3 years ago, 9 games out of 10 we were 'on it' from the word go. Nowadays, 9 games out of 10 we are not. Poch's inability to change or manage a game remains, to my mind, his greatest weakness and failing, and persisting with Hugo as captain is just symptomatic of the idea that Poch either doesn't understand in-game management, or doesn't appreciate its value. The drunk-driving charge last year was the perfect opportunity to strip him of the armband. No need to banish him to the reserves, but clearly an opportunity to make a statement that the captain is expected to act as a role model and ambassador for the club. And Kane should have been given it there and then..

 

[Spurlock]

That Lloris is still captain is totally baffling, and I'm afraid does further tarnish Poch's perspective on in-game management. One of the most disturbing interviews he (Poch) ever gave was going on 3 years ago now, when he went on record as saying that he knows within 120 seconds of a match if we will be 'on it' or not. The scary thing is, by and large that is indeed the case. You can tell within the first few minutes if the energy levels are right or not, and that has always been the case for numerous years now. The difference is that 3 years ago, 9 games out of 10 we were 'on it' from the word go. Nowadays, 9 games out of 10 we are not. Poch's inability to change or manage a game remains, to my mind, his greatest weakness and failing, and persisting with Hugo as captain is just symptomatic of the idea that Poch either doesn't understand in-game management, or doesn't appreciate its value. The drunk-driving charge last year was the perfect opportunity to strip him of the armband. No need to banish him to the reserves, but clearly an opportunity to make a statement that the captain is expected to act as a role model and ambassador for the club. And Kane should have been given it there and then..

I don’t think Kane is a captain either

Best captains are in defence or midfield and personally I do t think Kane needs any more encouragement to be head down. His game has already diminished due to him dropping deep, thinking he can do it all himself. Can you imagine what being made captain will do? getting picked at 40% etc etc. Personally I think he needs to concentrate on scoring goals.

I’d give it to Ndombele...it is a new chapter after all and he ticks all the boxes for a Captain...I don’t think anyone really deserves it from the old bunch...collectively you have seen their potential to drive others around them. It’s about time a new boy with new drive got a shot.

 

[PowerSpurs]

Pretty sure money spent on stadium and stadium loans doesnt count against ffp? Similar with training grounds. Its money spent on transfers and wages (barring your club doesnt go into debt it cannot pay)

Agreed. My post didn't say it did.

 

[PowerSpurs]

I don’t think Kane is a captain either

Best captains are in defence or midfield and personally I do t think Kane needs any more encouragement to be head down. His game has already diminished due to him dropping deep, thinking he can do it all himself. Can you imagine what being made captain will do? getting picked at 40% etc etc. Personally I think he needs to concentrate on scoring goals.

I’d give it to Ndombele...it is a new chapter after all and he ticks all the boxes for a Captain...I don’t think anyone really deserves it from the old bunch...collectively you have seen their potential to drive others around them. It’s about time a new boy with new drive got a shot.

A bit early for that. Let him settle in first. He hasn't lasted the pace for a whole match yet.

 

[Spurlock]

A bit early for that. Let him settle in first. He hasn't lasted the pace for a whole match yet.

I agree he hasn’t settled in but I think he has all the attributes to be a captain sooner rather than later.

 

[Dier Hard]

I don’t think Kane is a captain either

Best captains are in defence or midfield and personally I do t think Kane needs any more encouragement to be head down. His game has already diminished due to him dropping deep, thinking he can do it all himself. Can you imagine what being made captain will do? getting picked at 40% etc etc. Personally I think he needs to concentrate on scoring goals.

I’d give it to Ndombele...it is a new chapter after all and he ticks all the boxes for a Captain...I don’t think anyone really deserves it from the old bunch...collectively you have seen their potential to drive others around them. It’s about time a new boy with new drive got a shot.

I agree Kane isn’t really much of a captain but I’d disagree that Tanguy should be.

Far as I’m aware he can barely speak English other than the basics, whilst he doesn’t seem the type who can drag you through the mud. He’s started to life great here other than the fitness which’ll be worked on but I don’t really see him as a leader to be honest, at least not yet.

I don’t think we have a real standout candidate who’s a legitimate great on-field leader, we have players like Kane, Lloris, Jan, Davies, Sissoko etc who are pretty good examples to follow in terms of professionalism (Lloris drink driving aside!) but none really inspire their team mates on the pitch in my eyes. If there’s one that stands out just a little more than the rest it’s probably Dier. No nonsense, says it how it is and puts his body on the line but he’s still no Sergio Ramos.

 

[donotputinmicrowave]

Everyone seems to be forgetting that our second team (who many are pointing to as the solution/future) just lost to Colchester. There are reasons why Dier, Parrott, etc aren't making the first team to play vs Bayern.

 

[Dier Hard]

Everyone seems to be forgetting that our second team (who many are pointing to as the solution/future) just lost to Colchester. There are reasons why Dier, Parrott, etc aren't making the first team to play vs Bayern.

No ones said Parrott should be in the first team. He’s 17.

As for Dier, he was our MOTM that night. What more could he have done? He kept a clean sheet and was knocking in some great crosses despite playing RCB - which says a lot about the attacking players.

Playing three CBs and two DMs against a League 2 side was the problem that night.

 

[Rocky blue army]

No ones said Parrott should be in the first team. He’s 17.

As for Dier, he was our MOTM that night. What more could he have done? He kept a clean sheet and was knocking in some great crosses despite playing RCB - which says a lot about the attacking players.

Playing three CBs and two DMs against a League 2 side was the problem that night.

Personally I don't like goalkeepers as captain I'd prefer a centre midfield or centre half and at the moment the only 2 I can see are dier or sissoko.

 

[SpursDisciple]

Gooner here in peace... good thread and some valid points made.
your situation just reminds me of what Arsenal went through with our new stadium, promises of being able to compete financially, the stadium cost won’t affect the football side .... blah blah.

what did we actually get: no money in kitty for transfers; had to sell our best players; replace cheaply; unable to compete with transfer cost or wages; must adhere to FFP; and end up with Arsenal becoming uncompetitive for titles.

I feel your pain, as at the end of the day it’s the fans that pay and suffer

What are you up to? That sounded empathetic!

 

[Citizen Kane.]

Gooner here in peace... good thread and some valid points made.
your situation just reminds me of what Arsenal went through with our new stadium, promises of being able to compete financially, the stadium cost won’t affect the football side .... blah blah.

what did we actually get: no money in kitty for transfers; had to sell our best players; replace cheaply; unable to compete with transfer cost or wages; must adhere to FFP; and end up with Arsenal becoming uncompetitive for titles.

I feel your pain, as at the end of the day it’s the fans that pay and suffer

As others have pointed out, we were literally inches away from getting Dybala. That would have pushed our net spend to circa £130m (not to mention he would have instantly become our second highest earner), which is City and United levels of spending. Maybe we gambled that we would subsequently take in £60-70m from player sales while the European window was still open, but still: for Levy to gamble on that happening (which of course it didn't) was extremely unlike him and completely out of character.

Ultimately, the summer closed with far more questions than answers. Our behaviour in the next 2 windows should provide those answers and shed real light onto the club's true financial health post-stadium construction.

 

[PleaseNotPoll]

I'd give Vertonghen the captaincy.
He's been at the club for a long time, he's pretty vocal, generally disciplined, understands multiple positions and rarely lets the side down.

Failing that, I'd go a little out of the box and give it to Son.
Sounds a bit strange at first, I'll admit, but he's got a good relationship with everyone and he's happy to speak up.
He's demonstrative to the crowd, works his arse off and could lead by example.
It's also clear that he feels the results himself, while others are less affected by them.