Man city vs Spurs – a review of a match I couldn’t bear to watch so I’ll just rant

I have a confession to make I didn’t watch most of last night’s game and even when I got home, I switched over to watch another bunch of incompetent but entertaining wannabes try to impress our erstwhile chairman Alan Sugar, not Tottenham Hotspur’s first team but The Apprentice. Seriously what’s with that Melody bird with the cringe worthy quote “Don’t tell me the sky’s the limit, when there are footprints on the moon” and apparently she was taught by the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu. Must have been some school she went too. Though seeing Alan Sugar always makes my blood boil a bit, Spurs fan he may be but his age of pragmatism when a visionary was needed was the catalyst for mediocrity that has beset Spurs in the Premiership era. Anyway this isn’t a TV programme review.

I usually play five a side football on Tuesday night, though if there is a Spurs game I’ll give it the old heave-ho but such is my general disillusionment with the way we have imploded that I really couldn’t face switching on the box to watch Spurs season end, although unfortunately even during football news was filtering through about the match, so I knew Crouch had scored an own goal. Such was my rage at that point, I went into headless chicken mode for a bit, charging up and down the pitch and not really concentrating for a good few minutes, luckily I managed to regain my composure and we won our game 7-3. I managed to avoid any further score updates until I got home, to promptly turn on the TV and see Toure clean through to be thwarted by Gallas. I switched over after that and found out the score later. I never watch the highlights of a Spurs game if we’ve lost (or in the case of recent weeks where a draw has been as bad as a defeat), in fact I avoid watching or reading about football altogether when a result doesn’t go our way, a common affliction I’ve since learnt among many football fans particularly of a Spurs persuasion. I try and pretend it doesn’t exist for a while, usually until the next match comes round.

Albeit from what I’ve heard, we actually played ok but lacked as ever real menace up front. Luka had a good chance to score before City went in front through that idiot Crouch ( I’ll resist the urge to use a stronger word), and Pienaar’s header was thwarted by a “worldie” save by Joe hart, something I unfortunately saw on the Gym TVs whilst on the treadmill this morning. Looking at the team selection it was strange to pick Palacios , who has been injured for a while and it promptly backfired as it seems he didn’t last very long and was replaced by Pienaar who from various sources underwhelmed us yet again, was there any point in signing him. So that’s it, as predicted, our season is now over and it’s been utterly abysmal. The high points in the Champions League can’t mask that Harry and Levy have to be accountable for what happened over the league campaign. In a strange season where no team has been truly outstanding, we missed the boat. It’s simply unacceptable. Everyone knew in the close season a new striker was required, but for some reason there was no movement aside from bringing in Gallas on a free (a superb signing) and of course Van Der Vaart, which apparently was a present to Harry from Levy. Unfortunately going into my “broken record” mode I can’t see how Harry can be trusted to take us any further forward. He inherited a good side, added players like Palacios and Defoe who were good enough to push us back to the Premiership upper reaches but after that has shown he hasn’t got what it takes to make us consistent at the highest level. I genuinely think Harry was at a loss on how to get the players in to keep us challenging within the upper echelons. Van Der Vaart’s insight in to Harry’s tactical discussions, there is none, whilst a good anecdote, now in the ashes of our season lays bare the limitations of the man.

How’s this for a stark reminder of what Harry has achieved since January 6th, when King Kenny took over the red half of Self Pity City. We were fourth eleven points ahead of Liverpool; we now look like finishing five points behind them if we lose to the Self Pity City Reds on Sunday. Now if this was Ancellotti, Wenger or Benitez they’d have been hounded out but somehow Harry is shielded by his chums in the media. Give me a break, if Ramos was sacked for 2 points in 8 games what price harry for 8 in 12. Onto his nauseating comments after the match; apparently he thinks this season has been a success. Only for raising your profile Harry, nothing else you self indulgent ego maniac. Please just shut up and spare us your grating self promotion all the time. My belief, which may not sit well with other Spurs fans, is that Harry was thinking short term; he went all out for the Champions League at the expense of the Premiership, whilst what he should have done was consolidate our position in the top four. It’s a shame Euro 2012, can’t be pushed forward by a year so he can take the job over this summer rather than next, though if any England fan thinks that a job that seems beyond a manager with credentials like Capello, will fare better with Harry in charge is probably in a state of denial and it shows how far the National Team has fallen. Don’t get me wrong I’d love to see England do well as much as the next man, but Spurs over England any day of the week and if we can unload Harry to England, it would be great.

There are also these rumours doing the rounds now of an Ancellotti and Redknapp swap. Now unless Abramovich is a closet Spurs fan, I can’t see him being so stupid but having said that this is the man who got rid of Mourinho and employed Avram Grant. However it does look like Carlo’s days are numbered and if he’s tempted to stay in the capital I’d love to see him as Spurs manager. A better manager than Redknapp and dare I say it a better man as well. But let’s leave the manager discussion to another day.

 The striker issue has to be addressed as well. For the love of god, please get rid of Peter Crouch, I couldn’t believe it when we signed him and I can’t believe he is still here. Every time I see him in a Spurs shirt my heart breaks just a little, and I’m sick of seeing him not managing to head a ball even though he is about 17 foot 2, the ball bouncing of all parts of his body before generally ending up with the opposition and that stupid gimp look he has after he has done something unbelievably stupid, usually when missing an easy chance, or this season’s special, getting sent off and scoring own goals. For a striker, he has no movements, can’t head and can’t shoot. Has he got some dirt on Harry because for the life of me I can’t see why he swapped Darren Bent for Crouch? Ok Bent wasn’t the best but he’s better than Crouch and whilst not as bad as Martin Jol’s amazing decision to replace Freddie Kanoute with Rasiak, its one which I’ve never been able to fathom. I think sadly Pav will go but I’d keep Defoe and then look to upgrade. And what of Niko Krancjar, in a team that can’t score goals we lose don’t utilise the one player who can get a goal from nowhere. Great stuff Harry.

Injuries have played a part, make no mistake. Huddlestone has been a massive miss for us. Because our play since his injury has been as plodding as it is predictable. We have Modric and Van Der Vaart getting in each other’s way and strikers who lack intelligent movement, however Redknapp hasn’t addressed it at all when he has had the chance.

 Another grey cloud on the horizon is the Stratford issue, which just refuses to go away with the club now requesting a Judicial Review of the OLPC decision. As and when this comes up I’ll look into in more depth. I see all the business and commercial logic in this move but we are a North London club, that’s where our roots are. We are called Tottenham Hotspur for a reason, because we are from Tottenham. I’ve spoken before about my emotional attachment to the Tottenham area but even without that bond I’d like to think my feelings would be the same. In modern football is the only way to achieve success now to run you to the ground and be on the verge of extinction before getting bailed out e.g. Chelsea, Man City and Liverpool or do what Levy is currently attempting and turn our 129 year old club into football’s first franchise, whilst simultaneously ripping the soul out of our club. Its not the type of success I really want. I believe the pursuit of Stratford and the stupid flirtation with David Beckham meant the club took its eyes off the ball in January and we are now paying for it.

So our season all went a bit Pete Tong in the end, we got two more games coming up, luckily I’ll be in Amsterdam for the Liverpool game and won’t be anywhere near a TV to find out what happens. On a final note congrats to City for fourth place (or even third), I have no qualms with how they have gone about it in terms of spending, they have broken no rules at the moment, they just won the lottery and fair dues to them. Football Finances need to be looked at, but that’s not a City fan’s problem. They achieved CL football by virtue of results on the pitch. It’s just a shame that they weren’t actually that great, the damming fact was that we were even worse