Aston Villa threatened to spoil Tottenham's 125th birthday party last night.Villa swept to a 4-1 lead with just a half-hour left at White Hart Lane, but the birthday boys roared back in what will go down as one of the EPL's classic encounters.
While Younes Kaboul brought the house down with his last-gasp equaliser, Tottenham still remain mired in the relegation zone—and, if possible, the pressure increases on Martin Jol.
After two consecutive fifth-place finishes and a summer spending spree of around £30 million ($60 million), Tottenham seemed in rude health.
- B/R Ticket Guide
However, even with just eight games gone, the preseason speculation that Tottenham would be the team to crack the Big Four seems misplaced.
Tottenham's major problem on the pitch is clearly their defence. They've leaked 16 goals in those eight games; the Big Four, by comparison, have allowed just 16 goals between them.
What's worse, Jol's attention is being distracted from his on-the-pitch defence by his off-the-pitch defence.
Far from backing their man, the Tottenham board have decided to engage in suicidal behaviour: "offering" the job to Sevilla's coach, only to do an about face when Ramos publicly rejected them.
While the bulk of Spurs players back their manager, he is being undermined by the lack of support from the board. Accurately or not, the Ramos affair has given the impression that the Tottenham brass are actively after a new manager.
As long as the board fail to stand behind their most successful Premiership manager, Spurs look set to disappoint—and the club's fans may well lose the man who has taken them to the brink of the Champions League.
comments (5) write a comment »
write a new comment
about 1 year ago
Well written Johnny, I enjoyed the read and totally agree.
about 1 year ago
Thanks Andrew. I'm not a Spurs fan by any stretch of the imagination but I feel for the fans.
Their board seems to have acted monumentally stupid - and it must be particularly galling to see Arsenal doing so well.
about 1 year ago
Getting rid of Jol would probably be the worst decision that Tottenham could possibly make. But as is so often the case, it is always the manager who has to bear the grunt of the critics and the owners. They have the hardest job in football, and are usually the scapegoats as well.
Sad, but true.
about 1 year ago
I call it the "Lemming Brand" of commercial and sporting suicide. The Spurs board have to be the worst in the country, and that includes the previous incumbents of Leeds United. I'm not a Spurs fan by any means, but I have a huge respect for Jol and the way he has handled the club and team, and not sad a bad word through the worst of it.
about 1 year ago
Admittedly, Tottenham is playing far below their standards at the moment, and any supporter( financial supporter or otherwise) would rightly feel uneasy, considering Tottenham's back-to-back 5th place finishes the past two seasons, but I feel compelled to say that too many fans are ringing the alarm bell a little hastily. Tottenham has a top notch squad along with a solid manager, and these are crucial for EPL survival. Its not as if Tottenham is lacking personnel or that Jols has suddenly become a sub-par manager, its just that the Spurs arent playing as a team, which involves every member contributing and going above and beyond what's asked of them to that the team succeds. Tottenham are a mere 8 games into the season, but they've already managed to stage one of the greatest comebacks of the season, being 1-4 down at home against Aston Villa and leveling matters in the last minute, and coming extremely close to beating Liverpool at Anfield for the first time since 1993. I have an immense respect for Martin Jols and what he's doing for the club, and I have no doubt that Spurs will finish in the top ten.
write a new comment