Archive for the ‘Rants’ Category

« Older Entries

All this quiet is driving me mad!

October 7, 2011

In the midst of all this quiet due to the international break, the voices in my head are louder than ever. Screaming to be recognized, I can’t help but ignore a few of the ones sounding out with fears, hopes and dreams for our beloved THFC.

Fears

The first thing that comes to mind is the health and fitness of our players during / after the break. Bad tackles and players trying too hard to prove a point to their respective nations is never a good thing, but always seems to be the case in these competitions.

Another fear is this whole VDV et Redknapp saga doing the rounds. The fact that there isn’t any news is more than enough reason for the media to create news, and this is just that. I’m pretty confident that VDV’s words were somewhat taken out of context, but in a time when things are going well for the lilywhites, we don’t need any negativity surrounding us.

If there’s any disappointment from his side, the Dutchman needs to realize he’s part of a team and that Redknapp will always have the final say as to who remains on the pitch. There will be plenty of time for him to play and (optimistically) score many goals.

Hopes

In response to my last point, I’m hoping the international break will allow time for any issues to subside between VDV and the gaffer. Let’s drop the BS and focus on nailing 3 points away to, what appears to be, a strong Newcastle side.

Newcastle United could possibly be over-performing at this point in time. They have a good manager in Pardew, but do they really have the depth to hold onto a top 4 spot, let alone a Europa qualifying position? I’m not so sure.

No matter what, Spurs are visiting Tyneside and focus and confidence are a must.

Dreams

The dream of all dreams is to see Ledley continue to play week-in-week-out. The stats speak for themselves and simply put, we’re just a better team with him on the pitch. He has the power to elevate the quality of others around him when he’s present.

Tottenham currently are the 4th highest scoring team in the league, and this form needs to continue. Scoring goals, especially at times when we concede unnecessary ones, is absolutely crucial. I dream of a Tottenham side with forwards, midfielders and occasionally defenders (from set pieces realistically) scoring plenty of goals to aid our fight for a top spot at the end of the season.

To conclude

So there you have it. Some of those annoying voices are content and have gone off to watch England take the lead against Montenegro. At least I’ll be able to sleep somewhat peacefully tonight.

COYS!

Tags:, , , , , ,
Posted in Rants | 6 Comments »

Aren’t you happy he’s ours?

September 24, 2011

Fickle man. That’s what you may think of me as you read through this post. Why you ask? Two words:

Scott Parker.

Like many of my white and blue brethren, at the opening and closing of each window over the past few years, I would pray to the transfer heavens that we’d pass on the signing of Monsieur Parker. I mean, did we really need any more F’ing midfielders?

Well, I would now like to take this moment to admit that I was certainly, absolutely, positively mistaken. Put aside the fact that he’s been solid from the first day he donned our shirt, could you possibly imagine him with any other team? My point exactly.

There were concerns that he wouldn’t mix well with the type of midfield we have: quick, creative and attack-minded. Okay, let me rephrase that: I didn’t think he would mix well with the type of midfield we have. Till date, none of his performances in a Spurs shirt prove my previous opinion right. He links up quite well with Modric, and it seems like he’s unfazed whether there are 3 or 4 other midfielders lining up beside him. He just wants to keep it clean, and by clean I mean wiping the floor with our opponents, throwing a body at them at all times, even if it isn’t his own.

His approach is somewhat different than what we’re used to at Tottenham. In Sandro, we have a direct replacement for Wilson Palacios (the aggressive version of Wilson, that is). Parker’s pretty much the player we haven’t had in ages but always wanted needed.

Having seen him play in person, he reminds me of a mafioso… short, stalky and by no means a pushover. Joe Pesci comes to mind. Convert any color image of Scott Parker into black & white and you’d be forgiven for thinking it was from the 1960s. Classic looks with a straightforward, hardworking classic footballer’s approach. Me likey!

With Parker comes a very simple form of football. “I play in the CM position, so I will destroy anything that crosses the center line”. His strength is what I admire most. Chances are if he decides to put a foot in, he’s coming out with the ball 90% of the time.

Like me, I’m sure many of you doubted the Football Writers Association decision to select Parker as their 2011 player of the year, but could they have been spot on? It seems his biggest champion, Harry Redknapp, could have been right all along too.

Would I be writing this post if Parker was mediocre? Nope. Would I bash him if from this point onwards if he doesn’t live up to my expectations? Yes.

Does that make me fickle?

Tags:, , , , ,
Posted in Rants | 1 Comment »

State of rotation

September 23, 2011

There you go ‘Arry! That’s how you do it!

Is anyone else relieved with our new rotation policy? The gaffer promised in previous seasons that he would cycle through the squad and give everyone a chance to play, but he’s never actually implemented those words to this degree. If anything, I’ve felt robbed of it in the past.

So far, in each competition, we’ve used a different keeper: Friedel in the Prem, Cudicini in Europa and Gomes in the Carling Cup. It’s very clear who Harry’s number one choice is. Just by looking at his picks for each competition you can clearly tell where his priorities lie:

1) Premier League

2) Europa

3) Carling Cup

As for the FA Cup, we don’t know yet where Harry’s priorities will be placed; guess it’ll probably depend on who sits between the posts.

Another key development in our rotation policy is the manager’s use of our young ones. And it’s about time too. We now finally are able to witness the advancement of our youth in proper competitions. Previously, you rather visited the club’s official site or, in my case, Windy’s excellent blog to check on their progress. But now we get to see youngsters like Tom Carroll and Harry Kane prove their future worth to the manager and to the fans. Lovely!

Where we could really stand to benefit from the current “state of rotation” is the Premier League. The fact that our defence is being shifted around could give everyone a solid run. Credit this to the unfortunate injury of Michael Dawson or not, but Corluka has featured in the center, Bassong, and Kaboul. This not only adds much needed confidence to their game, but it gives Gallas the opportunity to fully recover instead of being rushed back in (great piece of news that). The fact that we are able to utilise these players in different competitions means we can also aim to have Ledley feature in our Prem fixtures, if his knees don’t give out. And I don’t need to argue why Ledley’s presence is absolutely crucial to us. 2 games, 2 wins, no goals conceded. Point proven.

This also applies to all other roles on the pitch. Playing time equals experience.

Finally, I can comfortably say that Harry and his team are beginning to reap the benefits from our squad depth. Something he didn’t seem to have a clue about before.

Bring on Wigan. COYS!

Tags:, , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Rants | 2 Comments »

Where to next?

August 25, 2011

Sitting back and reflecting on our performance at Old Trafford, I can’t help but think how different the team dynamic would have been with Modric and Sandro (or even Hudd) in the mix. Not to say that Jake Livermore was horrible, but I think he and Niko haven’t had time to form the type of partnership that’s required when facing the league champions.

How different would things have been with a five-man midfield of Bale, Modric, Diarra, VDV and Lennon? Lennon was terrible on the day, but let’s assume he wasn’t for arguments sake. Throw in Adebayor to the mix as the striker and what say you now?

That sounds like a great starting line-up to me, comparable with some of the best in the league. Each player is capable of holding up the ball, as well as passing it about in a tight-knit area. Playing for Arsenal and having spent a bit of time at Real Madrid means Adebayor is quality. No doubt about that.

Modric could do what he does best, making the pass that leads to that assist from Bale, Lennon or VDV (the latter can go for goal himself) while Diarra holds back and makes sure to clean up any potential mss they’ve left behind.

How does that sound? If signing Diarra and Ade’ were to become a reality, do you think we would have the means to compete for a top 4 spot? Would love to hear what you guys think, feel free to comment.

Tags:, , , , , ,
Posted in Rants | 5 Comments »

Postponed… now left patiently waiting

August 15, 2011

Watching this weekend’s matches, I started to wonder how we would have performed on opening day of the Premier League. Many of the teams seemed to be struggling to find their feet looking somewhat rusty.

Liverpool started off their match with great enthusiasm, but failed to seal the win at Anfield, drawing against Sunderland. Arsenal drew away at Newcastle with their newest signing – Gervinho – getting a straight red. Chelsea also drew while United pulled a United… winning towards the end of their match (I hate lady luck).

Could these results be good news for us in the short term?

Our actual first taste of competition this season will be the Europa League fixture away to Hearts on Thursday. Guess it could work in our favor that we’ll probably use some of our younger players, while also giving some of our key players a proper run prior to the away match at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Had the Everton match actually taken place, we would have had 3 matches in 9 days which might have been too much; especially when the 3rd match is at a venue where we’ve rarely tasted success.

One does wonder if our team will look any different by the time we face United. Talk of Adebayor coming in on loan is gaining ground, with Keane openly stating that he will be leaving the club (no destination as of yet). I don’t think Crouch, Pav or Defoe will be leaving this season; hopefully neither Modric.

So I’m left waiting. I’m sure you are as well. We all want a glimpse of how our team will perform when challenged competitively. A win at Hearts would be a nice way to reward our patience.

COYS!

Tags:, , , ,
Posted in Rants | Leave a Comment »

Some questions… Looking for answers

August 7, 2011

Pre-season’s over and we’re well on our way to kicking off our 2011/2012 campaign. The past few matches were nothing to swear our coming season by, but there were some positives along with some negatives. Nothing new really.

Bale looks to be in fine form. The downside to that is it will be a sure thing: no top 4 this season, we’ll be seeing the Welsh wizard on his way out the door. And since we’re discussing Bale, he and VDV have hooked up in recent occasions with some lovely 1-2 passes. Some more of that during the season please.

Kranjcar has been getting a lot of playing time. Does this mean we’ll be seeing more of him? In our shirt that is?

Europa League means we’ll be seeing a lot more of our younger players. It looks like Jake Livermore, Danny Rose, Andros Townsend and a few others will get a shot to impress Harry on select Thursdays. Who will make the most of it?

The transfer window is still open and we’re linked with way too many players, mostly those who have never even proven their potential at success in the Premier League. Most will argue we need strikers – which is very true – but I can’t help but think that we need defenders more than anything.

Which brings me to my next point; will our defence hold up this season? I have a feeling Bassong won’t be capable of delivering the goods. He’s still a bit too shaky in his decision making for me. Gallas has yet to be seen. I honestly have no idea what’s happening with that. This also leads me to wonder if Dawson is the right person to captain our side? His defencive unit have made some very odd mistakes in the last couple of pre-season matches which has me worried. Still, I do appreciate M. Daws a lot and I think he could potentially have a good season.

The very success of Dawson’s season could be dependent on the man behind him… the one between the sticks. Mr. Butterfingers = H. Gomes. He has a lot to prove to the team, the gaffer, and to the supporters this season. He has also has some stiff competition with Brad Friedel breathing down his neck. Let’s hope that triggers some sort of mojo in the Brazilian.

Last but not least, I have refrained from discussing Modric and the transfer to Chelsea. I’ve said all I had to with my previous posts. Whatever happens from here is out of our hands. Tottenham Hotspur is bigger than any one player. We have a tough start to the season since and we’ll need depth and all our players to tackle the challenge ahead.

Come on you Spurs!

Tags:, , , , ,
Posted in Rants | 2 Comments »

Video: Who is this Souleymane Coulibaly cat?

July 20, 2011

Not that I trust football player compilations, but this particular Youtube clip gives a bit of insight to our newest addition to the team: young (16 years of age) Souleymane Coulibaly.

I got sick and tired of hearing how he’s the next Drogba, etc. so I needed to find any evidence of this comparison for my own sake.

After watching the video, I am confident that the boy knows how to strike a ball. He’s also quite intuitive and is foot-savvy enough to dribble defenders.

We’ll have to wait and see how he’ll perform with the youth squad and eventually develop into the first team. Harry and his crew will need to handle this unpolished gem with lots of care. If Souleymane’s to be loaned out, let’s make sure it’s to a competitive side that will play him consistently.

Still, I think this could be a good bit of business for Tottenham if the investment is managed correctly.

COYS!

Tags:, , , ,
Posted in Rants, transfer market | Leave a Comment »

Luka’s a “great” what?

July 19, 2011

Words from the mouth of John Terry:

“He’s [Luka Modric] very agile, very quick and a great finisher like we’ve seen over many years.”

He is definitely the first two but a ” great finisher” he is not. At least not yet.

This interview will be the perfect weapon for the media to escalate this saga to another level.

Bombarding-Luka-to-Chelsea posts to flood Newsnow in 3,2,1…

Tags:, , , , ,
Posted in Rants, transfer market | Leave a Comment »

Tottenham Hotspur: everything you love about soap operas and more!

July 3, 2011

I’m beginning to think that in order for Levy and his crew to steer our minds away from an already-dull transfer window, rocking the legal side of things with the persistent aim of wining the appeal over West Ham for the Olympic Stadium (OS) bid is the only logical move. Levy has never been one to give up. I’m sure he believes that there’s a major benefit in Spurs moving East, and the fact that nothing was happening on the North London side of things, this potentially could be our only option of growing as a club and bringing in the type of numbers larger clubs do.

As refreshing as it was to read on the Spurs official site that we’re still hard at work attempting to revive the NLD project, I couldn’t help but feel confused more so than hopeful.

Could the tiresome and quite unnecessary battle with the Hammers over the OS be some kind of tactical ploy, even this late in the game? Initially, it seemed to be just that. Various internet sources led us to believe that Levy was leveraging the threat of a possible move away from White Hart Lane, simply because we wanted to grow and the Haringey Council wouldn’t let us. As you all know, we didn’t win the bid and that should have been that.

Hold on…

Levy appealed and continued to play hardball by not letting the Hammers bask in their success, pooing on their parade. All of a sudden, we realised that our Chairman was really hoping that we would have won the bid. Huh? So technically speaking, had West Ham not won the bid by the 14-0 landslide, we would have a new home.

Already at this point, we were all on the edge of our seat. Some furious with the actual prospect of leaving our home territory, some plain insulted. The drama continues to unfold…

Turns out there was some kind of monkey biz going on behind the scenes with a corrupt official working on the OS bid. This morning, I read a post on the brilliant Dear Mr. Levy site that Spurs hired a private investigator and exposed this issue. West Ham released a statement alleging we used our “dirty tricks” to bring it all to light. So wait a minute… they play dirty, we call them out, now we’re the dirty ones? Are they for real? Classy club that West Ham, eh?

With Levy not remaining quiet over the OS, news of the current bid submitted to the Regional Growth Fund was welcomed with cheers and smiles. We always knew that in order for us to increase capacity at the Lane, a lot of funds and additional government aid were required. Especially after the world economies crumbled, Levy and the ENIC board knew that in these trying times spending money will not necessarily make money, but then again, we need to make money in order to compete. Leveraging whatever we have against all sides is absolutely the right path to follow.

I don’t know how Haringey would cope without Tottenham Hotspur. I don’t know how Tottenham Hotspur would cope without Haringey.

The positive financial structure which we proudly reside on is built on the ethos of “business first, club second”, whether we approve of it or not. Is it right? I’m sure many other successful clubs are and will continue to be run in this manner. From a supporter’s point of view, it’s not something we necessarily want to hear.

Hear no evil, see no evil.

Tags:, , , , , , ,
Posted in Rants | Leave a Comment »

Luka-zade!

June 28, 2011

Luka-zade. The element that will keep us hydrated through the 2011/2012 season. A must-have if we are to challenge for anything, silverware or a top 4 push. Lose him and we would lose our edge.

Now, I know I shouldn’t be saying that one player can make all the difference, simply because I’m not from that school of thought. However, if anyone comes close to making that kind of a difference at Spurs, it’s Luka! His swashbuckling slicing and dicing of opponents is and has been a crucial component of many of our best attacking moments. Sure, those moments are left with anti-climactic “blue-ball” endings (happy endings without the “happy”), not usually his fault as our forwards are almost entirely to blame. You can point the finger and say “well, the boy just doesn’t score enough goals” but then again, is that really his role?

One thing’s for sure, Modric is a world-class player and every big bully on the school ground wants him in his click. Simply because he could be the brains behind it all… the strategist, if you will.

Modric can dictate the direction, pace, swagger, and quality of our play all with a simple pass. He is a visionary on the pitch and he can preempt things most other players won’t comprehend. So what’s going to happen? Nobody knows. All I know is we need to match the boy’s ambition with quality signings. We need a mix of fresh blood and experience.

You cannot blame Luka for wanting to be a winner. He deserves it, even if it’s not with us. Levy and Redknapp need to make key signings this summer that state Spurs’ intent on tackling the top 4… every year.

After all, a classy player needs a classy joint to hang out in.

Tags:, , , , , , , ,
Posted in Premier League, Rants, transfer market | 2 Comments »

« Older Entries
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.