Spurs 2018/19

[balaks]

You finished the season with 9 fewer points. Granted it's not always as straight forward as that, so I'd also point to my eyes determining that you appeared to be a weaker side than the previous season

Well I disagree with that - we had a good season last year. I expect us to have another good season as our team grows in experience - though a couple of signings would be nice.

 

[Carl]

Lamela is such a weird one as well. I see Spurs fans losing their shit week in and week out when he was left out, but I don't get the hard on for him to start.

Total luxury player who will have 1 good game in every 5, and when he's playing 1 of the 4 poor games he might as well not be there.

Prime example of how someone that shows the occasional bit of amazing skill can blind people to the rest of his game.

 

[Carl]

Well I disagree with that - we had a good season last year. I expect us to have another good season as our team grows in experience - though a couple of signings would be nice.

Never said it didn't have a good season, TBF. Just that you wasn't as good as the season before.

 

[balaks]

Lamela is such a weird one as well. I see Spurs fans losing their shit week in and week out when he was left out, but I don't get the hard on for him to start.

Total luxury player who will have 1 good game in every 5, and when he's playing 1 of the 4 poor games he might as well not be there.

Prime example of how someone that shows the occasional bit of amazing skill can blind people to the rest of his game.

He is the opposite of a luxury player - I don't think you have seen enough of him to judge from that comment. He is one of the hardest working players we have in the squad and is probably the best presser of the ball in the team. He is skillful but it's his workrate and ability to pick a pass that we like. He has had a horrible injury record over the last 2 years but if he can stay fit he will be in the side.

 

[Carl]

He is the opposite of a luxury player - I don't think you have seen enough of him to judge from that comment. He is one of the hardest working players we have in the squad and is probably the best presser of the ball in the team. He is skillful but it's his workrate and ability to pick a pass that we like. He has had a horrible injury record over the last 2 years but if he can stay fit he will be in the side.

Yeh I really don't see that. I occasionally see him throwing himself about and picking up silly yellows, but it's not often.

 

[RedSky]

He is the opposite of a luxury player - I don't think you have seen enough of him to judge from that comment. He is one of the hardest working players we have in the squad and is probably the best presser of the ball in the team. He is skillful but it's his workrate and ability to pick a pass that we like. He has had a horrible injury record over the last 2 years but if he can stay fit he will be in the side.

I've always been impressed watching him. Reminds me of Ji Sung Park, but without the important goals. He's a player i'd use in the tough games to shut down the right wing.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

There's a gap in mentality. And it's a huge one.

We just have different focuses as a club, which is understandable. We're focused on establishing ourselves as a side consistently up there in the league and financially it's important to be getting top four. I think you have different targets (more focus on a trophy) because of your history, but I think the 'gap in mentality' card is overplayed.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Well I disagree with that - we had a good season last year. I expect us to have another good season as our team grows in experience - though a couple of signings would be nice.

We had a good season but were more consistent the season before. League wise we were much better, and I thought we were also better in the FA cup against Chelsea than in our pathetic exit against United. We improved in the CL, for sure.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

I'm with @Carl on this one, though for different reasons. I don't think Lamela is a 'luxury player' because he does offer work rate etc, it's the main reason why he does play regularly. What he offers us actually on the ball isn't good enough though, he messes up so many attacks and dallies on the ball far too often. He's a great squad player to have but I don't want him starting consistently, it's why I want a player like Zaha to come in and push for a place. Lamela is generally pretty popular with our fans though, I think similar to the way that Lingard is popular with a lot of United fans.

Personally I like him, handy squad player, not good enough to be starting regularly. Overall been dissapointing given he came in with massive hype.

 

[Carl]

I'm with @Carl on this one, though for different reasons. I don't think Lamela is a 'luxury player' because he does offer work rate etc, it's the main reason why he does play regularly. What he offers us actually on the ball isn't good enough though, he messes up so many attacks and dallies on the ball far too often. He's a great squad player to have but I don't want him starting consistently, it's why I want a player like Zaha to come in and push for a place. Lamela is generally pretty popular with our fans though, I think similar to the way that Lingard is popular with a lot of United fans.

Personally I like him, handy squad player, not good enough to be starting regularly. Overall been dissapointing given he came in with massive hype.

Is Lucas not gunna challenge for that spot this season?

 

[Boycott]

We just have different focuses as a club, which is understandable. We're focused on establishing ourselves as a side consistently up there in the league and financially it's important to be getting top four. I think you have different targets (more focus on a trophy) because of your history, but I think the 'gap in mentality' card is overplayed.

That's right. Obviously you want to win a cup but a League Cup isn't going to keep things on the upward trend on its own. Juande Ramos won the League Cup. Pochettino has brought a level of consistency and his home record against big teams is good. I remember you once got 4 or 5 points to the top one season under Redknapp with about three months to go but no one thought his team could go on and challenge to the end despite having Bale, Modric and Van der Vaart - true to reality you missed out on the UCL all together. The fact people have risen expectations of Spurs and downplay Poch shows there is a shift in mentality.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Is Lucas not gunna challenge for that spot this season?

Yeah, should do, got relatively high hopes as he showed flashes last season. Still think we need an extra wide player to challenge for both spots and also as cover for Son (who is off to the Asian games) though, but it's not our biggest priority to be fair. Fingers crossed Lucas can come good, because an exciting winger who terrifies defences is exactly what we need.

 

[balaks]

Is Lucas not gunna challenge for that spot this season?

He has been great in pre-season and the hope is that he will be more ready for first team action this season. I think he could do very well.

 

[Scroto Baggins]

Lamela is one of those players that the manager loves to have, that fully buys into the managers philosophy of how to play the game. No one on the Spurs team presses as hard as Lamela, and he is quite happy with that squad role playing in rotation. So he does have his advantages, but for an attacking player for me there is not enough end product from what I have seen. On top of this he is also a sick note, seems he has been at Spurs 4 seasons or more and played what, one season?

Sissoko is the other one I just look at and think what does he actually do? Does he have a lot of end product? No, he doesnt have a good range of passing like say an Eriksen or Alli, he doesnt have a great strike on him. He isnt a midfield enforcer like say a Dier or Wanyama, so what is it exactly that Sissoko does? Runs a lot I guess.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Lamela is one of those players that the manager loves to have, that fully buys into the managers philosophy of how to play the game. No one on the Spurs team presses as hard as Lamela, and he is quite happy with that squad role playing in rotation. So he does have his advantages, but for an attacking player for me there is not enough end product from what I have seen. On top of this he is also a sick note, seems he has been at Spurs 4 seasons or more and played what, one season?

Sissoko is the other one I just look at and think what does he actually do? Does he have a lot of end product? No, he doesnt have a good range of passing like say an Eriksen or Alli, he doesnt have a great strike on him. He isnt a midfield enforcer like say a Dier or Wanyama, so what is it exactly that Sissoko does? Runs a lot I guess.

Pretty much. He's a fantastic worker and has that edge to his game which Pochettino likes, but you're absolutely right that his end product isn't the best. He's still a great squad player to have though. Sissoko is just a bad football player .. nobody thinks he offers anything but running, he has the odd powerful moment where you get excited but his end product is zero. He was an awful signing and I said so at the time, I was happy when it looked like Everton had beaten us to his signature. Was a panic buy based on a stupid gamble because he ran about a bit against Portugal.

 

[UnrelatedPsuedo]

Courtesy of Spurs fan "leee":

"I had the immense pleasure today of being invited to see the inside of the new stadium. To say I was blown away is an understatement. We have the best stadium in the land. The views from even the top tier is breathtaking. You're so close to the pitch wherever you sit. Daniel Levy and the board have built something special that will be talked about for a very long time. I really didn't want to leave. Could have sat in the stands for hours just taking in the experience. Still work to do but it should be ready for Liverpool in 5 weeks time. It is truly an astonishing stadium, the pitch looks huge and everything about it just says world class. Seating is comfortable and not cramped at all. I could write about it for hours but I'll stop now."

Reads like RAWK

 

[UnrelatedPsuedo]

Lol. You need to be threadbanned.

You talk far too much sense as a Spurs fan. There are other good Spurs posters but you're always on the money. Firm but fair.

Many Spurs fans here would be able to package Uniteds left back issues as;

"Woodie has played a blinder. Tied Shaw down to a contract extension so Jose can groom him into the top left back we all know he can be. Young kept a potential £50m Danny Rose out of the England team so we have our starter. Holding out for an extra £2m for Darmian will go down as one of his biggest wins. Everybody knows we would rather have a player sit on the bench all year than haggle. Strong positions to take on AND (most importantly) OFF the field. Oh Daddy"

 

[breakout67]

I quite like @SquishyMcSquish as well. Quite balanced in the opinion, not blind optimism or endless pessimism. Always considering counter points.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Thanks guys

@UnrelatedPsuedo I think the Alderweireld deal is a perfect example of this. Many (If he goes for £60m) will hail it as a fantastic deal, and in a way they're correct. On paper we're getting a massive fee for a player who will leave for less next season, a player who we likely would have had problems with playing this season. However, I'd argue the extra money Levy has negotiated as part of the deal hasn't been worth it in terms of squad stability. For me, selling him earlier in the window for 50 would have been a fair deal for all parties, and allowed us to quickly push on with signing a replacement.

I do believe Levy sometimes focuses too much on financials, and not enough on how his negotiating style might impact the players/manager.

 

[UnrelatedPsuedo]

Thanks guys

@UnrelatedPsuedo I think the Alderweireld deal is a perfect example of this. Many (If he goes for £60m) will hail it as a fantastic deal, and in a way they're correct. On paper we're getting a massive fee for a player who will leave for less next season, a player who we likely would have had problems with playing this season. However, I'd argue the extra money Levy has negotiated as part of the deal hasn't been worth it in terms of squad stability. For me, selling him earlier in the window for 50 would have been a fair deal for all parties, and allowed us to quickly push on with signing a replacement.

I do believe Levy sometimes focuses too much on financials, and not enough on how his negotiating style might impact the players/manager.

There's also the point that there's no guarantee he's haggling United up at all. It feels like a stalemate to me. £60m for perhaps the best centre half in the league is a good deal for whoever buys him.

I don't think the numbers have jumped around all that much. People have their thoughts anchored to that weird £25m clause.

I agree with your sentiment that's been running for weeks now. Get the business done early. Even if we very generously attribute £10m of Super Levy Power to Toby's fee, every other player in the market that could replace him is now an extra £10m post WC.

There's no win that I can see.

 

[GlastonSpur]

Reads like RAWK

Reads like the view of a Spurs fan who was invited to visit the stadium.

I can only suggest that you try trawling the internet … maybe you'll find a Spurs fan who was also invited but not impressed, who knows.

 

[LilyWhiteSpur]

Thanks guys

@UnrelatedPsuedo I think the Alderweireld deal is a perfect example of this. Many (If he goes for £60m) will hail it as a fantastic deal, and in a way they're correct. On paper we're getting a massive fee for a player who will leave for less next season, a player who we likely would have had problems with playing this season. However, I'd argue the extra money Levy has negotiated as part of the deal hasn't been worth it in terms of squad stability. For me, selling him earlier in the window for 50 would have been a fair deal for all parties, and allowed us to quickly push on with signing a replacement.

I do believe Levy sometimes focuses too much on financials, and not enough on how his negotiating style might impact the players/manager.

Teachers pet , we don’t play nice with the red wearing people. I think the problem lies in we do not know what is going on and people conjure up a reality that suits their agenda. What we do know is United seem to be intrested in Toby and we have to sell, the rest is anyone’s guess.

 

[UnrelatedPsuedo]

Reads like the view of a Spurs fan who was invited to visit the stadium.

I can only suggest that you try trawling the internet … maybe you'll find a Spurs fan who was also invited but not impressed, who knows.

Dude. Stop being precious.

It reads like a teenager writing about the first time he touched a nipple.

I am certain that the new stadium is fabulous. But.... It's. Just. A. Football. Stadium.

By all means take away a positive message from it. That's in there. But also appreciate its juvenile writing style.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Reads like the view of a Spurs fan who was invited to visit the stadium.

I can only suggest that you try trawling the internet … maybe you'll find a Spurs fan who was also invited but not impressed, who knows.

Mate there's nothing wrong with being impressed. I don't get how you can't look at that paragraph and not be cringed out by someone eulogizing about a stadium like they're talking about the love of their life. It's just a bit OTT .. can totally understand why oppos would look at that paragraph and laugh. I'd be doing the exact same if an Arsenal fan had written something similar about the Emirates.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Dude. Stop being precious.

It reads like a teenager writing about the first time he touched a nipple.

I am certain that the new stadium is fabulous. But.... It's. Just. A. Football. Stadium.

By all means take away a positive message from it. That's in there. But also appreciate its juvenile writing style.

Yeah, pretty much. Of course it's awesome and like I've said I can't fecking wait to go for the first time, but yeah .. it's a stadium. There's no need for the poetic, over dramatic writing style.

'Went to the stadium and it was really impressive - great facilities, comfortable seating and everything was so modern. Fantastic experience'.

That would do..

 

[LilyWhiteSpur]

Dude. Stop being precious.

It reads like a teenager writing about the first time he touched a nipple.

I am certain that the new stadium is fabulous. But.... It's. Just. A. Football. Stadium.

By all means take away a positive message from it. That's in there. But also appreciate its juvenile writing style.

Agreed it’s a bit cringe but no other fan cares about another clubs stadium. If United got a new stadium tomorrow you can be sure there would be plenty of stuff like that written by United fans.

 

[hellohello]

Then move on. If Villa are being totally unreasonable and we're not interested at their price, then go look elsewhere. We've had all summer to do it, I don't see how leaving it to the last three days helps matters whatsoever. It just makes things desperate, and we end up with the likes of a Sissoko. Pochettino seems to want Grealish and needs a player in that area.

I was kidding abotu Sissoko . Although we're often forced to turn to him due to poor depth, so a wide player coming in to limit his gametime would be nice. The club has people being paid to find the right people, there are players out there and other clubs are finding them. The truth is Levy waits till the last minute no matter how the market is so it's a moot point, this is his gameplan.

Personally I don't think that being open to signing one player makes it so that we can't find other targets so I'm not bothered about if a transfer like that drag on. What's concerning for me is that we haven't yet got a CM we obviously need to hit the ground running, that transfer should have been completed already.

And yeah, I knew you were kidding But the point is that we need the right player, and it's not that easy because of the quality we need compared with the money we seem to have available wage wise. I was hoping for a marquee signing and I will be disappointed if we don't improve our squad though. I find it hard to believe that Levy is actively trying to not sign players until the last minute, but perhaps you're right that he need to suck it up and spend more than he'd like, especially if Poch thinks that player will improve us.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Agreed it’s a bit cringe but no other fan cares about another clubs stadium. If United got a new stadium tomorrow you can be sure there would be plenty of stuff like that written by United fans.

And I'd laugh at that too .. so would some United fans probably, football fans going OTT is always hilarious, hence why RAWK is a hoot.

 

[GlastonSpur]

Mate there's nothing wrong with being impressed. I don't get how you can't look at that paragraph and not be cringed out by someone eulogizing about a stadium like they're talking about the love of their life. It's just a bit OTT .. can totally understand why oppos would look at that paragraph and laugh. I'd be doing the exact same if an Arsenal fan had written something similar about the Emirates.

Maybe some fans are just more passionate supporters than you.

Clearly it bugs you a lot. But for this I have no helpful suggestions besides returning to your true passion, namely complaining about Levy and the transfer window.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Maybe some fans are just more passionate supporters than you.

Clearly it bugs you a lot. But for this I have no helpful suggestions besides returning to your true passion, namely complaining about Levy and the transfer window.

It doesn't bug me ffs, it's a discussion board and you posted a cringey quote and I called it out. Christ you're so sensitive to anything that remotely questions Levy or the club, stop taking everything as a personal attack.

This is the Spurs thread. It's currently the transfer window and no football is on. We have signed zero players and are the only team to have decided that this is the right strategy. Our manager at the start of the season stressed the importance of getting transfers through early and being brave in the market. Of course the dominant discussion point is going to be related to that, once the season is on I couldn't give a feck about Levy or the transfer window.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Also, you can be passionate and not cringey. I know super passionate fans who go to every single game and adore the club, but would still laugh at that paragraph. It's an amusing, over dramatic piece of writing.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Personally I don't think that being open to signing one player makes it so that we can't find other targets so I'm not bothered about if a transfer like that drag on. What's concerning for me is that we haven't yet got a CM we obviously need to hit the ground running, that transfer should have been completed already.

And yeah, I knew you were kidding But the point is that we need the right player, and it's not that easy because of the quality we need compared with the money we seem to have available wage wise. I was hoping for a marquee signing and I will be disappointed if we don't improve our squad though. I find it hard to believe that Levy is actively trying to not sign players until the last minute, but perhaps you're right that he need to suck it up and spend more than he'd like, especially if Poch thinks that player will improve us.

The CM situation should definitely have been sorted earlier. It's an obvious weakness in our squad right now with our injury concerns and in particular managing Dembele's decline. Anything else would be a bonus this window, but sorting that situation out should have been an immediate priority and sorted asap, which it has not been.

 

[UnrelatedPsuedo]

Agreed it’s a bit cringe but no other fan cares about another clubs stadium. If United got a new stadium tomorrow you can be sure there would be plenty of stuff like that written by United fans.

There absolutely would be. I'd tear strips off that too.

Besides all that, even in its pant wetting excitement it didn't say much.

Where did the guy sit, how long was he there for, what areas of the ground did he visit? What were the most impressive parts? Did he see any NFL posters?

"I could have stayed there for hours". In an empty stadium. Twat.

As a point of reference: I once had to drop some documents off to Elle MacPhersons house around 2002. She asked if I wanted a drink (it was hot). I declined.

If I can pass up extra minutes to look at the hottest woman on earth, I'm sure he doesn't need hours to fully take in seats and a patch of grass.

 

[LilyWhiteSpur]

There absolutely would be. I'd tear strips off that too.

Besides all that, even in its pant wetting excitement it didn't say much.

Where did the guy sit, how long was he there for, what areas of the ground did he visit? What were the most impressive parts? Did he see any NFL posters?

"I could have stayed there for hours". In an empty stadium. Twat.

As a point of reference: I once had to drop some documents off to Elle MacPhersons house around 2002. She asked if I wanted a drink (it was hot). I declined.

If I can pass up extra minutes to look at the hottest woman on earth, I'm sure he doesn't need hours to fully take in seats and a patch of grass.

Why the feck did you decline?

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

"I could have stayed there for hours". In an empty stadium. Twat.

 

[UnrelatedPsuedo]

Why the feck did you decline?

Gotta leave em wanting more mate.

I'm actually still playing the long game on that one.

 

[LilyWhiteSpur]

Gotta leave em wanting more mate.

I'm actually still playing the long game on that one.

Your the one that got away.

 

[vangagal]

Dude. Stop being precious.

It reads like a teenager writing about the first time he touched a nipple.

I am certain that the new stadium is fabulous. But.... It's. Just. A. Football. Stadium.

By all means take away a positive message from it. That's in there. But also appreciate its juvenile writing style.

Glaston must be get multiple orgasm by the time he is in Spurs new stadium.

 

[GlastonSpur]

Also, you can be passionate and not cringey. I know super passionate fans who go to every single game and adore the club, but would still laugh at that paragraph. It's an amusing, over dramatic piece of writing.

You didn't like it, so let's try one from another Spurs fan invited inside (hertyid):

"Astonishing stadium. The seats in the south and north stands in particular are incredibly close to the pitch, seems like only a few feet. The South Stand Kop is very steep and imposing. The upper tiers of the West and East Stands are similarly steep and hang over the pitch like at the Bernabeu. The concourses and wide and spacious, and all feel like Club Wembley in terms of the food and drink options and the quality of the finish. It's really, really impressive, much better than I expected (having not been there since the last game at old WHL).

Spoke with some club officials about the timeline, and they said it's tight but they aren't worried about finishing. 3000 people working there each day, they can fit 5000 seats in a day, pitch is on schedule, changing rooms and tunnel club up next, south stand almost finished. Honestly, most of the stadium was open yesterday, 1st 4th and 5th floors North, West and East stands. It's all ready to go.

Some really nice touches, the bricks from the old Shelf in the walls at either end of one of the bars, the platform at the top of the North Stand where the Cockerel will sit, the new Park Lane Kop stand is just totally epic (with longest bar in Europe), the technology is amazing (can pour 60,000 pints in 5 minutes).

They have done an amazing job recreating WHL and not just a generic bowl. When you are down by the dugout, you feel the enormity of the stadium looking up to the gods. When you are up top in the 5th tier, you feel like you are in the Colosseum in Rome.

It's going to be epic when Liverpool come to town on 15th September."

 

[B20]

Glaston is the nerd who, after being laughed at by the whole school for reciting lame poetry in front of everyone to the pretty girl who already has a boyfriend - then decided it must have been the choice of poem that was off and recites more lame poetry to remedy his mistake.