Tottenham Hotspur: Why Are We Not Surprised?

If I was a Spurs fan last weekend, I would have dug a 10 metre hole and put my head in it.

Against Middlesbrough, Spurs fans would have expected to have taken all three points. With hardly any recognizable new signings this season, Boro still relied largely on their stars of previous season, namely, Alfonso Alves, Sanli Tuncay and Mido.

In contrast, Spurs packed their line up with new signings like Giovanni Dos Santos, David Bentley, Heurelho Gomes and Luka Modric. These were "big name" signings which cost Spurs a whole load of cash. These were also the exact players which Spurs fans crowed about in pre-season.

As we all know now, Spurs capitulated against a mediocre Boro side.

In truth, Spurs deserved to lose. They were woeful in every department. Without Keane or Berbatov, Darren Bent struggled alone upfront. Gone was his outstanding pre-season form as he ran into the brickwall of Robert Huth and David Wheater.

Dos Santos was Spurs' response to Arsenal's Samir Nasri but his insipid performance reminded Spurs fans that he still has a long way to go before he can be fully settled down in the EPL.

The likes of Modric and Bentley were hardly visible in midfield. What has happened to all the "creativity" that Spurs fans were expecting of them?

At the back, Heurelho Gomes looked much better than Paul "Butterfingers" Robinson but he looked strangely out of sorts due to his defence in front of him. Without the injury prone Ledley King, Woodgate had his chance to shine but he faltered terribly infront of his former club.

Juande Ramos' selection of Didier Zakora on the right and Benoit Assou-Ekotto on the left drew even more puzzlement. As an attacking minded midfielder, Zakora looked like a fish out of the water as a right back. Martin Jol must have his reasons for not playing Ekotto and Ekotto's performance against Boro showed just why this was the case.

Indeed, Spurs looked hardly like a side that can challenge for the top four spots this season. Their players ran around like headless chickens, the new signings looked like they were playing with each other for the first time and Ramos' attacking philosophy failed to translate into his players' performances on the pitch.

It was definitely a game which Arsenal fans could use to rub it against Spurs fans. For all their money spent over the summer, Spurs still looks distinctly like that struggling side that finished 11th last season.

Ramos and Spurs must find some form of solution to their uninspiring performance last Saturday. It may still be early days yet in the EPL but we all know how fast the Spurs board loses confidence in their manager.

It may be adios Ramos if Spurs fail to deliver in the next few games.