And at the moment, Spurs are 20th in European coefficient, which is not too shabby. Conte's comment about Chelsea not having European football this season was a slight compliment to Spurs, I think. At least, i took it that way. Agree for the most part, though I always took NJie and Nkoudou for longer term projects, maybe 2 or 3 years down the line. Also, Sissoko is a question.. Somebody said that he does better when in the middle, and when he is there, he has shown that. But that is hard to manage when Spurs have Dele, Eriksen, Winks, and Dembele. I also don't think Janssen is a huge negative. Spurs score from all over, and Janssen really does fit in as far as ball control and passing. This two biggest issues, to me, are sorting out the Walker issue, and finding a replacement if necessary, and getting a rotation CB. Not a back up like Wimmer, but somebody who can rotate in to relieve Alde and Vert.[/quote]
I don't think Poch trusts wimmer anymore. not sure I do either, I seem to remember him making some really awful decisions/passes the last few times he played Spurs could also use an injection of pace now and then, and another creative attacking playmaker besides Eriksen
That could have been Lamela. He's not overly Lacey, but he's more of natural wide player than any of the first choice starting 11. Can't help but think if he hadn't been injured in a game like Friday's or the semi-final against Chelsea he would have changed things up a bit (or vice-versa had he started) Added to my list of "if onlys" If only … … Rose hadn't been out for a long time … Kane hadn't been injured early on … Chelsea had been in Europe
[/QUOTE] N'Jie and N'Koudou (maybe we need to stop signing players who start with N'...) are the kind of signings we made when we were a 5th to 6th placed team with an outside shot of qualifying for the CL. Those days are over now, this team will be expected to challenge for honours and if it fails, the manager and the project will unravel very quickly - don't forget that things looked to be going in the right direction under Redknapp and AVB and quickly disintegrated because we were not able to sign the players that would take us to the next level. Don't forget that Levy and our board are very impatient and the last thing they want is to open the new ground with Europa League football.
What makes you think they can't cut it? Nkoudou is in his first season in England, and is just 22. NJie had a season, was loaned, but is also just 23. Both were known projects, much different than the purchase of Sissoko or Wanyama or Son. I don't think it is fair to compare Poch to Redknapp or AVB. AVB, as has been well noted, rode on the shoulders of Bale. Redknapp was not a youth developer, and certainly not a long term manager due to age. Poch is much different and has brought Spurs to the brink of a league title 2 seasons running. The last manager who was even close was...Nicholson, who did 1 better. If anything Poch has shown skill and persistence and patience with his signings and purchases. The type of player you are talking about will upset the team, a team that is growing and improving. For me, I've been calling for Spurs to purchase a player who can carry the team on his shoulders. I think Dele has developed into that player. And he has Eriksen and Kane to partner with. I disagree with the impatience. Levy is not afraid to make a change, but also will hang on if there is a possibility. Look at Jol, who should have been out sooner, and Redknapp, who also should have been out that summer, but held on.
We don't need projects. We need proven. Projects are for teams that finish 5th to 7th. And I wasn't comparing Poch to Redknapp or AVB, I was just saying those managers got Spurs within touching distance of the elite, but the board could not deliver the goods. Remember in the 2011-12 season, for two thirds of the season, Spurs were challenging the 2 Manchester clubs for the title, but in the January transfer window, they didn't back Redknapp and only brought in Ryan Nelson and Louis Saha on free transfers. Not surprisingly, the team only won 4 of its last 13 games and dropped to 4th and missed CL qualification. When AVB recorded a then record 72 points, he didn't get any of the players he was asking for with the Bale money. Of the 7 players Franco Baldini signed, only 2 are still with the club (Eriksen and Lamela). Not surprisingly, AVB was sacked with the team in 7th place at the time. And if you want to go back as far as Jol, remember he was a dodgy lasagna away from getting a modest team into the CL. Over the summer, Damien Comolli sabotaged him with some awful signings (he convinced Levy to sell Carrick to Man U because he had a "better" player lined up in Didier Zokora...). So yes, as we have seen from recent history, this summer window will be crucial. It is one thing to challenge the elite, it is another thing to usurp them - just look at Leeds and Newcastle and even more recently, Liverpool.