Harry Kane carried us for nearly a decade. Take him out of the picture and it wouldn't look so rosy. We had a world class striker and we achieved nothing because....
And we had him because we are a poorly run club? We've had several world class players over the last 25 years but never the four or five that our competitors have often had. We achieve nothing because that's what happens to the sixth best in pretty much every sport. The difference in quality between the first and sixth best in sports with rankings is often similar to that between the sixth and 20th best. That's why we should be more susceptible to having bad seasons because you don't need much to go wrong to make you fall a few places.
Pretty sure half your team was close to world class during Poch 2016-2018. I remember your team was one of the most valuable teams in the league as per CIES. Crazy that Levy didn't capitalise on it
It's a totally different topic, as usual. Questions are responded to with 'whataboutery'. Kane kept us at a level that we aren't going to replicate (or get close to) without him. Since you asked, the fact that we produced 1 very good player in a decade and extremely little else does raise some serious questions about what the **** has been going on in our academy? In ENIC's time (I make it 24 years now) it's Ledley and Harry Kane. I can't think of anyone else who's had a significant career. Liverpool and Chelsea churn talented young players out. We're a million miles behind...a million miles.
I do not do whataboutery. I simply point out that our results are exactly in accordance with our wealth. Most others tie themselves in knots trying to prove that bad things are happening. In two posts you've gone from saying that one academy player is entirely responsible for our performance to saying that our academy is also well below standard. So your position now is that our academy is a disaster, our chairman is a disaster, our recruitment is a disaster, our coaches have been poorly chosen and the reason that none of that has led to poor league position is entirely down to Harry Kane.
Yes, the football club is run like it's a hobby. The main point of business is growth in non-football areas. I can assure you that many more fans think like me than think like you. We can see the evidence of out of date thinking, poor planning, lack of proactvity and no ambition.I've been pointing it out since we moved to Wembley and Poch was telling Levy about the 'painful rebuild '...and I was pri-Levy until then. Levy's lost his edge. It happens when you've been at something too long...and until he's gone, the club isn't going to be put right. He thinks, like you, that his past success (whatever that was?) is indicative of likely future success. Unfortunately, it's the opposite, because time has marched on and left him and his playbook as relevant today as one of his predecessor's sqareials.
I certainly don't mind being in the minority on this one, since most fans believe in things that I find entirely unsupported by facts. If you look at any sport the three or four strongest players or teams win almost everything, the fourth or fifth win a smattering and the others win a major trophy every 5 years between them. Therefore the only solution to our problems is to be in the top 3 or 4 clubs in England and a necessary condition for that is having more money. I don't think that basic fact has changed. Trying to get there by having a better recruitment process, a better academy or a better coach is unlikely to work.
Hard work is NEVER WASTED. It's that ready acceptance of the status quo that's killing our club....tbc I'm off for a curry.
The main issue was Dembele was a key part of Poch's system, and injuries were catching up to him by 2018 and that exposed that Poch didn't have an eye for a player as he thought Ndombele could slot into the team and work
what ranking as a club are you if the ratio is 1 trophy in 24 years(and counting) you are kind of admitting without admitting it that we are doing well below we should be
Then you've misunderstood my post. Because the best players go to the top 4 or five clubs, the sixth best one rarely wins anything. One in 25 years is about par for the course actually. The clubs five either side of us in the PL when ENIC took over were Sunderland, Aston Villa, Charlton, Southampton, Newcastle, Tottenham, Leicester, West Ham Middlesbrough, Everton, Derby. Between those eleven I think there are 5 trophies in the last 25 years. So our one is above average. Even this season only three of them are above us in the League and those have not won a trophy.
Jude Bellingham is very upset because the ref sent him off for saying, "**** you!", when he actually said, "**** off!". That's much better then, Jude.
But apparently faces a potential 12 game ban cos the ref took being called a cheat to be a personal insult....
Burnley midfielder Hannibal Mejbri has accused Preston forward Milutin Osmajic of racially abusing him. Osmajic was banned earlier in the season for biting an opponent. It is unclear when he will be joining Liverpool.
