The sense of Champions League or bust doesn’t just seem to be a sentiment held by the manager at Tottenham. Both Jan Vertonghen and Hugo Lloris have hinted in recent weeks that failure to achieve that coveted fourth place could prompt them both to reconsider their futures at the club. More upheaval is possibly the last thing Spurs want this summer if they genuinely have designs on Premier League success next season. Therefore it will be music to Spurs fans ears to hear that midfield maestro Christian Eriksen has today come out in a show of loyalty to the club that saw so…
Author: the Black Knight
For all Tottenham’s transfer activity in recent seasons, it is the acquisition of a certain French stopper that is for me their stand out bit of business. Signed in the summer of 2012 for an initial fee of just £8m from French giants Lyon, Lloris represented genuine world-class pedigree for a side looking to step up from being the great underachievers. After a slow settling in period to Premier League life, Lloris has finally established himself as one of the best performers in the whole league. Many would place him in the top bracket amongst the likes of Petr Cech and David de…
The debate about Kyle Walker is an interesting one; for every person that lavishes praise on the young Tottenham full back there is another that dismisses him entirely. It is safe to say that the Englishman divides opinion, but for me the criticism he continues to get is a little unwarranted. At 23 Walker is one of the rising stars of the Premier League. Already a previous recipient of the coveted PFA Young Footballer of the Year award, it is clear that many within the game already have incredibly high hopes for him. Technically gifted and with blistering pace, everything…
With expectation comes added pressure, and for a club like Tottenham that have grown from mid-table also-rans to genuine title contenders in a matter of seasons, it is particularly intense. As Spurs’ Premier League stock has risen, their atmosphere has been on the wane, the burden of expectation seemingly too great for both fans and players. White Hart Lane of the past used to embrace their team’s sense of adventure, 99% of the time failing to live up to expectations but still the fans knew and loved it because it was the same old Tottenham. Things have changed though; gone…
A lot seems to have been made about Christian Eriksen’s ankle injury last week, and the apparently disastrous ramifications it will have for the prospects of Tottenham in the near future. Whilst clearly an injury is never a positive in itself, I don’t see the consequences of the Dane’s absence being nearly as harmful as many have already tried to make out. The Danish midfielder is expected to be out for more than a month following scans this week that revealed the extent of his injury, Spurs published the following statement regarding the problem: “Following an MRI scan on Monday…
It had been coming for a while now. Having scrapped unconvincingly towards victory in the weeks previous, there was always a sense of inevitability when the slip-up duly came on Sunday. Attacking incompetence has blighted spurs’ Premier League charge, and for many the defeat to Newcastle was the final straw for AVB’s misdirected policy of late. Knee-jerkism is rife in football, we all do it and those that don’t admit to it are probably lying anyway. Post-match there was definite clamouring for most radically ‘AVB Out’ and probably more reasonably towards a tactical re-think. Clearly Spurs have the personnel to…
Three points were an absolute must after the painful capitulation last time out; in all honesty we offered little more than was needed on what was a less than inspiring afternoon out in the West Midlands. A first half that lacked passion both on and off the pitch, careless in possession and generally quite mis-directed, we were fortunate that the home side were as blunt going forward as we were. Our goal was something of a fluke and was barely deserved considering how devoid of attacking incision we had been all half. Even our celebrations were cut short when someone…
A league clash with the Kings Roaders will always be worth more than a mere three points. Whether is their despotic captain or chairman, Spurs fans have found vilifying their West London rivals an increasingly simple task in recent seasons. A collection of fans on twitter summed the mood for a lot of Spurs fans up perfectly: ‘I hate Arsenal because I’m a Spurs fan, I hate Chelsea because I am a human being’ The frustration at not claiming the three points is fired by this sentiment, but I think it goes a lot further. For the first time that…
The Norwich game was touted by many as the start of a new era for the club. Finally bolstered by the full complement of summer reinforcements, this was a game to whet the appetite. It didn’t disappoint. Of course there were the usual early shouts of ‘get it forward’ and ‘stop passing sideways’, but on the whole this was an easy on the eye fluid display. Maybe it will take time for us to acclimatise to a possession-based game ahead of a purely counter attacking exhibition, but all revolutions have their teething problems. It is easy to forget that Norwich…