01 Feb 2013 09:00:38
I can understand people saying that there is more to football than spending £15-20m on a player, granted, however, we're the paying fans. We buy tickets, shirts, a scarfs, mugs, those little shirts that you stick to your car window. I go to almost every home game, and due to logistics, it costs me £100 a time, add to that the shirt that I bought for £50 on the day it was released, plus all of the other merchandise, I think that fans should be given something of what they ask for, desire and the club clearly needs otherwise we'll end up with another mediocre season. Sure, if we can get Adebayor playing well again, that'll be great, and Holtby will be fantastic, but we still have the Europa league to think about as well as a gruelling second half to the season, we needed reinforcements. I just hope that Holtby can help take some of the burden off Bale because at the moment, with Defoe off the boil, we're looking like a one man team.
I'll still go to the Lane every game and get to as many away games as I can, because that's what we do, I just hope that there is something lined up for the summer.
Eds, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the loan window still open?
Dom
I cannot stand comments like this one. Okay, I would love to see 20 million pound players playing for Spurs but its not realistic. Yes we pay a lot of money. I have been a season ticket holder for 13 years and go to European away days, but our stadium doesn't justify paying 20+ million for players and huge wages, the only way it does is if us fans pay much more money to see games. Please people take a reality check and stop laying in to Levy, he's a great chairman if not the best in the league. I agree we need a striker, but don't moan about not signing a 20 million pound striker. BE REALISTIC
LS
I agree with you Dom and not getting a striker was ridiculous.
For me I'm glad Defoe is injured and going to be out once Ade is back as I think that once Ade is upfront on his own as the main man again he way well play like last season he needs to feel he is the man. Also now with holtby behind him he may well play well again.
Time will tell.
Marc
A good, and sensible post. however, I am disappointed that the club don't see fit to explain their actions to the supporters. To say that we don't have a right to tell the club that we are not happy that no "star" forward has been bought during the last two years, when we have been going after CL qualification is either blindness or ignorance by other posters. Are you saying that if we had a player of Saurez ilk, that he wouldn't have qualified for CL? No I didn't think so! So how long will we wait now? the summer? next january? the reason we all moan is because the club, either the manager or chairman say nothing, when it is as plain as the nose on your face that the CF position is the one that really needs addressing. Be nice if they could tell us why they haven't addressed it!
LS, if you say that paying �20m for a striker is unrealistic, I have to say that you're wrong. We paid not much less for Bentley and Modric and have made a lot of money from player sales. I know we posted a �4.3m loss, but that was largely due to no CL football. A new striker, some fresh blood upfront would give us the lift across the squad to push on.
I think you also misunderstood the point of my post, it wasn't complaining about not paying that much for a striker, it was more, not paying anything for a position we so desperately need somebody in.
As for the huge wages and Levy himself, I agree he is doing well having the wage cap to stop us following Leeds, Southampton, Portsmouth and he is a shrewd businessman, however we have shipped out a lot of players this window so that has freed up a lot of money to be able to pay that bit extra to get that player of real quality in.
You have every right to voice your opinon, but I think you'll find, I'm being VERY realistic.
Dom
Ok LS, �18-20m might be too much for us (but not Villa!?) however, we have bought NOBODY to provide cover, competition or extra quality up front. How about �5m, �8m, a loan!?!
The squad is very thin, much more than last year when we struggled after January so it is a huge gamble or, more likely just a submission that if we are 'lucky' enough to scrape 4th then great, more revenue, if not then we're ticking along so whatever.
We have been short-changed, last year it meant failure, could be the same again.
I have to disagree, where do we pull �20 Million from when we post �4 Million losses, I appreciate these aren't particularly linked. I agree totally we need a striker but �20 Million is unrealistic without our ticket prices going up quite significantly, due to the size of the current stadium. We're in a good position in the league and I agree with the point above, a top class striker won't guarantee us CL football. If you watch the games it's more we don't create loads of chances for the strikers rather then them missing loads of them. Hopefully we can secure top 4 and revenue and kick on in the summer.
LS
And maybe there's an emphasis on packing out the midfield but when we have the ball there is a lack of options to create anything for!?!? Don't you watch Bale and Lennon (when they are wide), getting space in the last third and having nobody to cross to, oh maybe Defoe in between two 6'3" centre-backs. Dembele (quality) and Dempsey (useless) have the ball outside the opposition box and have nowhere to go and nobody to pick out.
Ade away, Defoe struggling, we needed a striker even if we had those two fit and available but we don't so we had to get one and didn't. It's glaringly obvious and even AVB said 'it's a risk but one we would take', well we have taken that risk and 4th place will be very diificult if Ade does not come back firing for 3months. Past 3 league games; 3 draws, scored 2 goals, conceded 2. Chuck in a 2-1 defeat to Leeds as well (pathetic). It's not good form and we don't have a plan be as very few squad players.
3rd was there for the taking last year and we blew it, the squad was deeper and a bit better, 4th is there for taking this year but we've blown a chance to strengthen our chances.
I agree you are be realistic because if we want a striker that is going to score 20+ goals a season that is how much he will cost. so we have to speculate to accumulate without this investment we may well not get CL next season, will not challenge for the title and will lose the top quality players we have now. Bit of a catch 22 but my view is invest as the rest of the squad is good enough.
You would think spurs were in the cl lots of times to hear you lot going on about 20m players I think the board has backed the managers very well is recent times maybe too well as you aren't the clobal team as some of the teams you were outbiding for players. Tommy Irish Red
Agree with the last post. When you make a loss of �4 million, you do not cut all expenditure to ensure that this does not happen again, ie. unless you are going to be happy with mid table and no CL. The shrewd business man will invest wisely to encourage growth and improvement in the business. Spurs are no different to any other business. We all know what happened last January, we were so far ahead of fourth( Gooners) that Levy thought worst case scenario we would get fourth and qualify for CL so he kept his hand in his pocket. An investment of �20 million in a striker would undoubtably have earned us third and an estimated �40 million windfall. Levy has done the exact same again this transfer window. I hope the outcome is not the same! Every business must move forward, to stay put is to stagnate and suffer the inevitable consequences.
The Don
Just a quick note, nobody pays �20 m in one payment nowadays, they are normally staggered over a [eriod of time, so we don't have to find �20 million in one hit, but over a 3 or 4 year period. That means we could afford a �20m striker, someone who could score the goals that we need.
chris s
But let's be realistic here, we didn't have to spend �20 million did we. We could have brought in a quality striker for less than that. I agree world class strikers are �20 mil plus but knowing we have a striker crisis why not at least bring in a quality �10 mill plus player with a proven scoring record and please don't say they are not around because they are. It's more the fact that spurs decided not to bother at all and gambled the rest of the season on Defoe being fit and ade actually turning up for a game! Nose spite and face spring to mind. .
Well said that man about it not needing to be �20m, I reiterate; we needed a striker and we didn't sign one yet again. Ok �20m and Damaio was a risk and never going to happen. What about Negredo? I have a feeling Sevilla would've struggled to turn down a bid of �12m+ if it was serious and not Levified by offering them �9m, thinking they're desperate to sell in January and trying to save a bundle. He was definitely worth an effort to sign at a fair price when you consider Fletcher cost Sunderland �14m, Gervinho cost the �13-15m, Darren Bent cost Villa something like �20m, Borini cost the Scousers �10m+ didn't he?
And, how come Cisse, Benteke and Michu have been picked up for less and been finding goals in the Premier League yet we don't seem to have been even close to signing somebody?
If you don't think it's a cheap failure to have not brought in any extra fire-power then you are a perfect Levy fan, paying your money blindly so he can run a good business with no ambition apart from to build infrastructure that swells the asset asap and not the team for years to come (or at all). I have said before, will we really sell 20k more tickets a week in a flat economic climate when serving up Europa League football at best? No.
I think Levy is a great businessman and I'm not saying he should be out, that we shouldn't invest in facilities etc but, to have signed nobody up front in the situation we are in should not be acceptable to fans who want to see us with the best chance (without gambling fortunes) to finish 4th and enjoy Champions League football again. We've suffered for years while the mob up the road have had it season in and season out and now, when they're at the worst for 15-20years we still can't capitalise when we don't have to go nuts to do so!
We did have the money to spend otherwise we wouldn't have tabled the �20m for Moutinho last August which was accepted or the �17 for him who should never be mentioned again last night? Don't get me wrong I am and always be spurs but it infuriates me that for the last few years we have been in a perfect position to push onwards but Levy just doesn't seem to want to. It's just bloody frustrating!
Billy
Demba Ba and even Hooper come to mind as reasonably priced options. and I'm sure Ba is happy sitting on the bench behind Torres now and not getting much playing time last couple of games.
We go on and on about 20 mill striker! If we had some decent scouts we wouldn't have to pay 20 mill! Lots of PL clubs have proved you don't need to spend large amounts, why couldn't we? You don't even have to pay huge wages unless its Ade! We are going to look totally stupid if this backfires on us again! When will all the Levy lovers realise he works for himself and Lewis, not the supporters or the club?
Davo
I trust in Levy and if we didn't buy that class striker to turn us to top 4 regulars I thought it must have been for the good of the the club by either we couldn't get somebody better than what we have already or teams were asking too much money for the player and it was just not possible to raise the funds required, then Reading issued a statement saying they tryed and failed with 3 bids of up to £10 million for Siggudson and we bid too low for Damaio. In Levy we're just not sure anymore
ou812
When is the penny going to drop guys (or in DL case the Halfpenny with interest) There only interested in making money and will only go for basement or young cheap players with potential. its a business to them. For as long as that is the mindset we will only ever get 4th at best in a lucky year. It don't matter if the paying public moan, there's another 36000 to replace them and they know it. they got lucky with RV a few yrs ago and are living off it. 6 transfer window and still no class striker, and its not as if we don't have the money to afford one. sorry, but its time to question Levys commitment now. its blindingly obvious to everyone now. defoe and ade are ok. but never world class. Levy, youve had 3 years of improving football now, stop being a tight wad or move on. Tottenham needs world class now, and uve blown it. when it falls apart levy, and it will (bale gone etc etc) you're accountable. .
Dejected 35 yr season ticket holder
Sorry to cut in, but whoever said that spending 20mil would ensure 40mil from champions league football needs to watch a bit more of the game. 50mil for torres and chelsea have gone backwards being one example. if only it was that easy!
Has nobody else noticed another thing in all this that really shows Levy is happy without Champions League, unless it's totally incremental and achieved without re-investing transfer profits? We may get lucky and finish 4th but we did last year having tossed away 3rd following post-Jan disaster however, that would mean finishing above a certain Woolwich team who just happen to still be in the Champions League. Now they surely have slim to no chance of winning it but, neither should Chelski have last year - it was completely freakish. What if we finish 4th and happens again? We should have got 3rd last year and missed out, he knows that and had probably decided to not bother in case 4th ends up being worthless again.
Thanks
All Levy wants is bargin basement or young re-sellable players. . there's a mile of difference between a good business man and a tight wad. . and then to not even justify it to the fans. . wise up, his love is money, not THFC. . . the money has always been there, he just don't like spending. . 6 transfer windows fails now Levy. not acceptable
I never comment on here but feel compelled to do so on this matter. Several posters have brought up the £4m loss as some sort of an excuse for not signing a striker. These financial figures were up to 30/06/12 and did not include any of our summer transfer deals which to remind you included Modric, Corluka, Kranjkar, Bassong, Dos Santos, Van De Vaart and Piennar. Obviously a large chunk of this money was swallowed up by the players that we signed, but we made a net profit in the region of £7m, which is not exactly a fortune these days, but would still buy you a Demba Ba and keep the books balanced. I am a big fan of Levy, he is clearly a very astute business man and I know he won't do anything to jeopardise the club, but surely he must understand that we are very thin up front and that a relatively small investment would give us a much better chance of achieving Champions league football and the massive financial carrot that comes with that.
Guys you have to take it easy, our squad is improving slowly, the striker we wish so much will come in the right time
Before complaining, try to remember some additions to the squad in the past seasons: Lloris, Vertonghen, Holtby, Parker, Dembele, Sigurdsson.
And two of them were cheap buys in desperation, namely Parker and Siggs! Not worth 3 million between them!
Davo
Ps : Is the right time when we miss out on CL again, or when Levy and Lewis have made themselves enough money!!!
Davo
With respect, none of holtby, dembele etc etc is a world class striker is it.
Anyway its happened now, JD injured and no strikers. Person responsible. LEVY PENNY PINCHING AGAIN.
stop with all this 4.3m loss, training facilities, expensive payers etc etc. to be great you have to aim high. levys nose is in the basement, its in his nature
There is absolutely no excuse for not having enough strikers. You can't say that £15-20m is too much for the club and then say it's not worth adding players that aren't as good as that value. That means we are a £6-8m striker club and so where is our Michu, Benteke, Cisse, Ba, Jelavic, Lambert, Pogrebneyak, BERBATOV? It is not acceptable. Dempsey was a desperation buy and why buy a 4th goalkeeper for £12m when you only have 2 strikers? Lloris looks good but Friedel could be doing that job while we had more goalscroing options. Proves there is no ambition for the current season and an acceptance of 5th/6th and Europa League football.
You really think lloris came to play europa league football year after year?
b/s
05 Feb 2013 17:59:17
I think he came with hopes of Champions League but, if he plays well and we don't qualify then Man Utd, arsenal and Chelsea will come knocking along with other European clubs and Levy is a seller at the right price so he'll be off. Not before Bale though who will be gone if £50m is offered in the summer. {Ed008's Note -
Bale won't be leaving in summer transfer window. Not a chance!. But you will have to put up with the tabloids and tv saying he will lol
Not a chance? Really? So we have a striker who has been out or out of form all season and is away at the ACN plus a striker carrying an injury with no other options to replace them like for like with natural strikers/goal scorers, yet we sign NOBODY. I'm afraid if we were offered £55-60m for Gareth Bale then Levy WILL sell and then invest about £20-25m back into the squad with 2-3 players that may imporove and increase in value as opposed to a quality replacement. This January added to the past 2-3years should prove to you that it can happen.