Tottenham Hotspur are finally banishing the demons of their mid-table past and are now Premier League high-flyers
Gone are the days of mid-table finishes for Spurs fans and @TalkingTHFCon Twitter is loving it.The transformation of Tottenham Hotspur from mid-table nothingness to Premier League high-flyers is one of English football’s greatest modern stories, and there is little you can say to convince me otherwise.The north London side finished 14th in the Premier League table 15 years ago.
3A poor start to the 2003/04 season cost Glenn Hoddle his job as Tottenham managerEnding this campaign in their current position of third would become the sixth time they’ve managed a top four finish in that time.Their rise is not only unrivalled, but an insight into how quietly plodding along in this age of social media scrutiny is nothing to be scoffed at.Cast your mind back 15 years to the 2003/04 Premier League season.Following a dismal 3-1 home defeat to Southampton, club legend Glenn Hoddle was relieved of his duties as manager, with director of football David Pleat taking the reigns until the end of the season. Under Pleat’s leadership, Tottenham secured just 10 wins throughout the remainder of the campaign, suffering 15 defeats in the process to the likes of League One Charlton and Portsmouth.The squad, which included the likes ofGoran Bunjevevi, Mbulelo Mabizela and Rohan Ricketts, is a polar opposite to the current outfit.Fast forward to 2010.Spurs, now under the leadership of I’m A Celebrity winner Harry Redknapp, secure their first ever top-four finish above the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool.
3Tottenham finished in the Premier League top four for the first time under Harry RedknappTo put into perspective the incredible ascent of Spurs in those six years, the Merseyside outfit finished ten places higher than the Lilywhites in that season under Pleat’s care.A mystery that continues to baffle me as of late is the hatred from rivals fans towards Mauricio Pochettino’s squad.Tottenham are the perfect example of how to navigate modern football, with the players a group that most teams would dream of. Harry Kane, the club’s fourth all-time top scorer, seems to receive the bulk of the hate for reasons I cannot fathom.
3Tottenham, led by Pochettino, have gone about things the right wayA model professional, England captain and two-time Premier League Golden Boot winner, should be a player that the country emphatically gets behind. Instead, the striker is under constant scrutiny.This select group of haters appears to be stuck back in 2004, living under the impression that the club’s recent success is just a phase, and that they will inevitably fall back down to the dark days of mid-table.It is perhaps no coincidence that Spurs’ rise has coincided with the emergence of social media, with those that once taunted them for finishing mid-table growing up alongside these new tools.The fact that a sixth top-four finish is on the horizon should signal those days are far from close to returning. In fact, they’re dead and buried. We’re now approaching 11 years to the day since the club last tasted the sweet taste of silverware, and fans continue to live in hope that this year will indeed be our year.It’s perhaps easy to say that in order to shake this hatred from rivals, the club just needs to get their hands on a trophy. With the quadruple very much still on this season, who knows what the future may hold. Yes, I know we all know the answer to that one.RIP mid-table Spurs (1992-2005)
Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri reveals why he did not shake Pep
Champions League - Follow the Football match between Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain live with Eurosport. The match starts at 21:00 on 12 February 2019.
Transfer Window Gossip Round-Up - Read Premier League
Atletico fans targeted Thibaut Courtois with toy rats ahead of Madrid derby - Supporters of Atletico Madrid this evening took aim at Real Madrid shot-stopper Thibaut Courtois in rather bizarre fashion, ahead of the Madrid derby - February 9th, 2019
Atletico fans targeted Thibaut Courtois with toy rats ahead
Sadio Mane admits he is "very happy" after committing his long-term future to Liverpool. There had been some speculation surrounding whether or not the 26-year-old would pen a new deal, but he put that to bed on Thursday. Speaking to Liverpoolfc.com, Mane couldn't hide his delight and says winning trophies is now paramount for this Reds
Sadio Mané signs new five-year contract to commit future to
'GET HIM OFF AIR!' Sam Allardyce v The Moose: Big Sam in clash with talkSPORT reporter over his Jose Mourinho-style gesture to West Ham supporters
Sam Allardyce v The Moose: Big Sam in clash with talkSPORT
Tottenham transfer news - LIVE! Tottenham are on the verge of an historic season, but there are already warning signs that this summer could be a tricky one. Having failed to make a single signing
Transfer news, rumours LIVE: De Ligt to join PSG plus Arsenal
Arsenal news: Jon Walters explains how Stoke 'bullied' the
Why Jose Mourinho claims Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is not a 'great' manager. Klopp has guided the Reds to the Premier League summit after a storming first half of the season
'He has to go' - Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp told to make TWO
Liverpool stat: FA Cup fixture with Wolves completes
Chelsea earned a 1-1 draw at Frankfurt in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final on Thursday night. Relive all the action from Commerzbank-Arena with Sportsmail's Max Winters.
Bundesliga | Eintracht Frankfurt beat Benfica to seal UEFA
Bournemouth's silence over Jermain Defoe good news for Rangers - the Cherries have an option to recall the England striker, but that looks unlikely.
Rangers chief Mark Allen lifts lid on Jermain Defoe's
Latest transfer news on signings and gossip from Premier League, Championship and rest of Europe featuring Liverpool, Arsenal, Man Utd, Chelsea, Man City and more. 19-year-old wonderkid Joao
Transfer news live: Arsenal's Hakim Ziyech - football.london
No comments:
Post a Comment