With the transfer window rushing down upon us, the cries to ‘splash the cash’ are rising equally as quickly!
It’s an understandable reaction but ClaretandHugh follower Emlyn Underhill offered an alternative view on the site’s Facebook Group which may be hard to swallow given that Spurs are involved but is none the less well worthy or reporting here.
Emlyn wrote: “What surprises me is that (gulp) Spuds aren’t taken as an example.
They have bought ‘nowt’ in the past two windows and yet had more success. There seems to be some great young talent coming through.
Our “first” team can play great football and IF Arnautovic is settled for the start of the season then hopefully we kick on for a great season.
That whole episode unfortunately put a bit of a stop on the season but when he’s on form he’s outstanding. The level we are at we have to accept mavericks.
Consistent performers are going to be going to top six Champions League clubs.
It bugs me when people say “they should just go and buy him”. Like the player has no say in the matter.“
With fewer injuries we should automatically do better next year, but I still think we need to bring in a left back, a box to box and a clinical finisher.
People forget that Tottenham spent more than any other club bar Chelsea between 2000 and 2010 to propel them into the top six and set up their current base. That was nearly £300m net on transfers alone (at a time of lower fees) – whilst West Ham made a £30m net profit. It’s naive and idealistic (at best) to suggest we should or could follow that model as we don’t have the base formed from years of sensible investment that they do. Last year was a step in the right direction – we need to build on that with sensible significant signings, not cut corners with cheap options and ageing squad fillers.
Spurs bought ‘nowt’ in the past 2 windows but previously were already in the Champions League places, whereas West Ham only just scraped into the top half. We’ve still got a long way to go and need to continue to invest unless last season becomes a one off.
Great article.
As fans we all want to see our team improve and be successful but spending money is not always the answer.
After the awful start to last season, which was possibly as a result of so many new players needing to gel, we amassed 52 point from the remaining 34 games and actually had a 5 goal positive tally.
While I would agree we need to aim to strengthen every year, with the inclusion of the players missing from injury for a large part of last season, I feel we will look and be a much more serious challenger for top 6 to 8 next season. One or two improvements in personnel may be required but the spend, spend, spend mentality with unrealistic expectations are more likely to unsettle our team.
Yes we are all entitled to our say, but we also need support our club and players if we are to play our part.
COYI
Lets remember Spurs are a top 4 club and have been for some time. The could go a year without signing anybody because they already had a good enough squad. Liverpool and Man City can do the same. We’re way off yet.
A club’s wage bill is a pretty good predictor of where it will end up in the league. Boring for the romantics who want to ‘give the kids a go’ but it is the sad truth. This season’s top six were the top six spenders on wages in 2017/18. The top 5 were all spending around £250m or more. Admittedly Spurs (6th biggest spenders at £100m less than this) were just ahead of a pack spending around £150m. I would call that an exception (almost) to the rule rather than a model to follow. Quite a few owners have convinced themselves they could buck the trend – most have ended up in the Championship or lower. Massive spending does not guarantee success (e.g. QPR) but lack of spending pretty much guarantees you won’t be in the top six & probably means that you will be struggling to stay in the PL.