With less than two weeks until the Premier League season kicks off, Spurs are still to make their big move in the transfer market. I hope Brad Friedel doesn’t read this, but if he is our big play then I’m sure we’re in for a long, hard fight for mediocrity this year. That a striker remains Spurs top priority is no secret. Its only been the priority for the past three transfer windows. With Mirko Vucinic signing for Juventus, another ‘supposed’ target has fallen by the way side. This leaves an ever dwindling number of likely candidates for us to pick from.
With that in mind, most Spurs fans probably didn’t want to wake up to this mornings latest Harry Redknapp interview. Surprisingly this one wasn’t for Sky Sports, The Telegraph being his organ of choice this time to get his message out there.
These are the quotes from the article which I’m sure you’ve all seen by now:
”Fergie [Sir Alex Ferguson] has come out and said there are five teams in it,” said Redknapp. “He didn’t mention Tottenham. He stuck Liverpool in there this year. And probably, with what Liverpool have brought in, at the moment it’s looking that way.”
”You’re looking to be a top-four team and it’s difficult. We can’t pay the wages that those clubs pay. We pay good wages but some of the other clubs have gone crazy haven’t they?”
“The top players are massive money. How do you compete with the Man Citys of this world?”
“It’s like when you’re a kid and they give you the most improved player of the year award? You’re useless,” said Redknapp.
Firstly I’m sure any kid who got the ‘Most Improved’ award for their school/club this summer has spent the whole day asking mummy and daddy if they really are ‘useless’ but more importantly what does this all mean for Spurs?
In all honesty there is little to be argued with what he has actually said, most reasonable and level headed Spurs fans must surely realise that it is going to be very difficult for us to get back to the Champions League places. Liverpool stormed into Europa League contention on the back of their January sales splash and the inevitable tide of emotion that accompanied Dalglish’s return. They have continued their ambitious spending, whilst some of it may seem misguided, it should be remembered that Damien Commolli is the driving force of it. When he was at Spurs he was criticised for over spending on young talent, yet many of those players have made the grade and are seen as essential parts of the Spurs squad. I’d suggest it’s far too early to judge how well they can do, but if they were to add a centreback and left back they would be extremely dangerous. Across Lancashire, both Manchester clubs have shown intent in the transfer market and looked ominously good in pre-season, they will for me make up the top two this season. Closer to home our two biggest rivals have gaps in their squads to fill but will still be challenging at the top this season. Arsenal may yet lose their captain and heartbeat, Fabregas, but Wenger has coped with the loss of big names before and still kept his club fighting for the big prize. In Gervinho they have also signed a livewire attacking force who already appears to be linking well with Van Persie, that does not bode well for any defence. Over in West London, Chelsea now have one of the games finest young managers in Andres Villas Boas. He may have lost Michael Essien for much of the season and still need a playmaker (ours isn’t for sale) but with the quality already at his disposal they are still going to be a very tough team to beat.
With all that considered, it clearly is going to be difficult. Our wage structure is no secret either, it’s held us back for a number of years, but at the same time allowed us to be a profitable and sensibly run club that has very little fear of doing a ‘Leeds’ or a ‘Portsmouth’.
So why does it bother so many Spurs fans when the manager comes out and says what many are thinking? There are a few reasons: Considering Redknapp himself said that Spurs need to show ambition to keep Luka Modric, how does this kind of public statement help? It doesn’t. It also isn’t what we want to be telling any potential new signings. Juan Manuel Mata may be seemingly nailed on for Arsenal already, but if he wasn’t, the World Cup winner is hardly likely to swap Champions League football for, at best, sixth is he? Redknapp’s constant media presence grates as much as anything else with many now. To some it barely matters what he says, its the fact that he’s saying something, anything, AGAIN! We joke about it, but it really does seem as if his health is at risk if he doesn’t talk into a microphone or dictaphone at least once a day. An embarassing advert for Sky Sports fantasy football has not helped his case at all. In a summer when Spurs have scraped the barrel of signings, it seems a little disrespectful to have him talking about signing ‘x,y and z’. He’s clearly working from a script but I can’t have been the only one to cringe when he talks about playing ‘Huddlestone off a striker’, surely he could have asked them to change that line? That’s beside the point though, would you see Ferguson, Wenger or Dalglish do that? For those struggling, the answers ‘no’.
With Redknapp’s faithful assistant, Kevin Bond also talking in the press today, this time about ‘Modric having a price’, it appears that instead of the club, it is the manager who runs our media policy.
This is a huge problem. Daniel Levy and other senior figures have all stayed resolutely ‘on message’ over Modric and transfer policy. That the manager and his assistant are punting their own message points to a club divided with no direction. Levy has always impressed those within the football world with his astute running of Spurs, the current disastrous media/PR campaign is certainly not typical of Levy’s rein at the club. George Graham in fact was sacked for speaking out over transfer policy when ENIC first took over. That ‘The man in the raincoat’ was never welcomed by the fans undoubtedly made this easier but one must wonder how much longer Levy can put up with the red tops favourite rent-a-quote manager. I’m not alone in wishing that the club would get a grip on the manager and his media-whore ways.
Going back to today’s statement from Redknapp, there are a few theories as to what he’s trying to achieve. One being that he is sensibly lowering expectations, in the hope of exceeding them and claiming more glory. Another theory is that he’s trying to force Levy’s hand in the transfer market, though the fact that we still have to offload overpaid average players surely precludes that. The final theory is that Redknapp has realized that he’s been found out at this level and is making his excuses before we’ve even kicked a ball in anger. That he still has eyes on the England job after Capello is obvious. Were he to endure a difficult season with Spurs falling further down the table, and his stock with it, that could prove tricky. Unless of course he’s already told us how hard it will be.
As we approach a massive season it must be hoped that the manager can start to focus on his job. If he’s reading this and needs a reminder, that job is managing our team, whilst not spilling his guts to the press every day or making sure he’s got Rooney in his fantasy football team.
If he can’t do that and performances on the pitch do not meet Levy’s standards, it won’t be long before the chairmans patience wears thin. If it isn’t already.
COYS
Stuart Watts
( @Studub on Twitter )
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harry just saying it how it is.how some of are fans think i will nerver no but for those of yours who think we should be finshing 4th need to wake up.city liverpool man utd chelsea even the scum will end up spending.you cant expect harry to have us finising above that lot with what we spend.get behind harry and stop moaning about what he says dident hear anyone moaning when we came 4th.moan about why we havent spent and why we still got all these back up guys talking up all the wages
I’ve been strongly pro-Levy and Redknapp-indifferent throughout the last 6 months. Harry even had me thinking it was as good as it gets. I can’t help but agree with the above. His constant press presence makes;
a. Players believe that we can’t make CL
b. Fans annoyed, we prefer bluster to gritty realism
c. Annoys the board, and we need board and manager working together!
All in all, it’s been a disaster recently. It reminds me of when we tried to bid for Rivaldo and his response was “Thanks, bit who are you?”
I wonder, if he wasn’t a wheeler dealer (sorry H!) would we take him more seriously? Much of what he says is sensible but I agree with the view that he should shut the fuck up now & again. Realistically we ain’t going nowhere until we have a stadium with commensurate income & managerial aplomb; then we can talk Top 4 again. And enough with the Organ of Choice – nearly spilt me beer
if your boss (where applicable) made continual announcements, insistent that the job u were currently in, was as good as it gets (from here on in). NO’ pay rises’, not competing with any real distinction against your competitors, be it: A rival Mac ****** chain, or a market competitor, anything.. and oh yeah, your family (Spurs fan) that supports you (financially)(Blindly),devotedly, through thick and thin.. yeah those mugs, there ‘ idiots ‘ if they should want more from you, how dare they *twitch
He’s as much a soul destroyer as he is a : lucky , gobby, wanna be celeb manager, whos has no actual claim , or real right to fame, other than the stage that (we) have provided for him.
COOYYYYSSSSS !
forgot the question, that structured the sentence (just a few) then how would you feel ?
that is not inspiring for the type of (proper high grade) players at the club, for me that is showing shockingly bad taste and a distiinct lack in any class what so ever..
You seem to forget what a load of piss we were prior to Redknapp taking over. We were fucking garbage going nowhere and he single handedly pulled us around. If you think we can get rid and replace him with another or even better manager then think of Levy’s previous choices. No don’t because they were a fucking nightmare!!! For fuck’s sake the stadium should have been sorted by now but for Levy. If there is real ambition then Joe Lewis should pull out his finger (like the American owners of Liverpool or United, or the Arabs at Citeh etc) and invest for the next level. Unfortunatley that does not seem to be for the near future and by that time Bale etc will have moved on and so will Redknapp. You know his trial has started but noone is reporting it? He could be holidaying with her Majesty with Kevin Bond in charge for the first part of the season…..
I dont believe that Harry is the problem, the man can only work with the tools that he is given. The clubs philosophy of ‘profit before players’ is the problem. how many millions did the CL venture rake in last season ? The shareholders wallets are more important than club success.It is quite obvious that the passion that we have is not shared by these gentlemen. Stay tuned for the regular last minute signings of players in the rwilight of thier playing days – no offense intended Brad.
We’re in the same place we were when Manure picked Teddy up. We feed the bigger teams. We’ve done absolutely nothing since them to prove otherwise. We keep buying experienced old boys, and up and coming players – not since we bought Ardiles and Villa have we actually bought amnyone at the top of the world game.
Why the fook does everyone think “top players” (as HR calls them) would want to come to us. They’re not fighting for recognition, they’ve arrived. When you’ve arrived, you don’t go to Spurs.
Nontheless, COYS!!
I believe Harry is just doing what comes naturally and saying what he see’s. He is echoing what most level headed supports already know. I can’t be bothered speculating on his motives if indeed there are any. Fact is he is right. We can not compete at this point in time with people with bottomless pockets and/or CL footy. Levy must be going through he’ll trying to get us players. Bloody difficult job… Would anyone here take a job for less money and lesser prospects over another ‘better’ job? Maybe in some cicumstances? That’s the thing Levy has to find/negotiate. Wouldn’t like to be him! I don’t know if we’ll get the players we hope for, but I do like to think the club are going full out trying. I don’t think we should break our pay structures if it means putting the financial stability of the club at risk. The money boys will get bored or be regulated out of the game and we will be there in fine health to rise to the top and claim our rightful place at the top of English football. We just need to stay in touch with the top until we can realise this. I can’t see title challenges until these unrealistic challenges are gone/ removed. This is no reflection on our club or any of the present management.
Good read. The only reason that we didn’t finish 4th last season is pretty plain and simple, last summer we didn’t buy when we should have, attracting a player to the club when we had CL would have been far easier but Levy and Harry sat back with their big cigars celebrating without thinking about the bigger picture. Now we have failed to finish with a CL place it is far less likely that any half decent player is going to look our way. We had a massive opportunity and as a club we screwed it up plain and simple. We are now back to square one imho.
@Jack Plug you couldn’t insult the name of Martin Jol anymore if you tried. “Garbage and going nowhere” are you being serious?
althediv: “not since we bought Ardiles and Villa have we actually bought amnyone at the top of the world game.”
Eh Jurgen Klinsmann?? Gary Lineker??
Thanks for all the comments guys. Always appreciated.
@ Msd – as I said in the article and as I believe I have no doubt he’s right, advertising it to the world isn’t what needs to be heard by our current squad or targets.
@jackplug Kev said it all really. We were in a dip in form when Redknapp took over, we weren’t garbage at all. it was pretty much the same squad that BMJ had taken to 5th. Twice. The sun does not shine out of Redknapps ass. He is not a messiah. People talk like he’s Fergie or Mourinho. He’s lucky. And talks tooooo much.
@kev I had to cut about 500 words out, mostly on the subject of failing to capitalise last year. Great minds and all that.
COYS
Sorry i thought Ramos was in charge when Arry arrived, 2 points from eight games etc. Jol did a good job for us, will watch with interest how Fulham do this season.
@catcher Ramos was in charge immediately prior to Harry, but as I clearly said in my comment it was almost exactly BMJ’s team. Ramos was a minor funk. People are very quick to forget what BMJ achieved with much less resources than Redknapp in a much stronger PL. But that suits some people I guess.
Redknapp = prick
It really is that simple and no matter what he’s “achieved” in the time he’s been at the club he’s spent an equal amount of time now under-achieving with the playing squad he has at his disposal. At what point can you put aside one good season and say it how it is, he’s overrated and a royal pain in the clubs arse now.
Oh what I’d give for him to be England’s manager now and us to have Anchelotti and Wilkins in charge.
@jackplug Kev said it all really. We were in a dip in form when Redknapp took over, we weren’t garbage at all. it was pretty much the same squad that BMJ had taken to 5th. AND I was a bag of nerves with MJ in charge talk about being lucky!!! What about the bus parking incident at Chelsea. He did it again and again. talk about tactics! I am old Tottenham, two wingers flying at ‘em etc etc. Always in with a chance and bloody exciting. that is Redknapp in my opinion and a very experinced winner. Like Fergie give him the players and he will win.
@jackplug I’m not saying BMJ was all that and a bag of chips, him and Redknapp are the same level to me. The point being Redknapp got lucky getting us to 4th. And to compare him to Fergie is a joke. I agree with a lot of what Drwinston has said, how long can he live on the glory of 4th? He can’t. It’s done.