Something To Calm Us?

[rez9000]

Damn it, but I'm sore this evening. Disappointment doesn't even come close. Heart-borken is not an overstatement.

My immediate reaction was that Portsmouth really didn't deserve their victory today, and I still stand by that. We lost the match, they really didn't win it. However, this thread isn't about the result. It's about finding some encouragement.

OK, the wheels appear to have come off our season. It's not over yet, not by a long chalk, but the one thing left to play for, Champions League qualification, will be task and a half. I've not given up on this season and I don't think anyone else shoud either, but if it doesn't happen, it won't be a massive surprise.

What I take encouragement from is the bigger picture. The future.

Yes, the 'there's always next year' refrain is hackneyed and cliched. But let's think about some of the problems that have affected us this season:

A lack of a 'winning mentality'
Lack of pace
Mistakes at the back

The list can go on. However, I think that much of the problems are due to a squad that is still not fully gelled. Some have only been at Spurs for a few months (Eidur), or just under a year (Niko).

It's simplistic, some may even say naive, but I believe that the squad needs more time. If you look at Arsenal, Man U and the ultimate example, Chelscum, their players seem to enjoy an almost telepathic understanding. This has come about from prolonged periods of playing together. Yes, they have brought players in, but they have been tweaks to an overall structure rather than the continual total overhauls we've suffered over the last few years.

If, this year, we challenged for fourth and got to the FA Cups semis with a squad of players still learning to work with each other, imagine what they could do once they have built a true understanding of each other.

Yes, today was painful, but the future holds a lot of promise. Today was not the be-all and end-all. It was the first baptism of fire for a squad that I honestly think are on the verge of great things.

Can we take comfort from that?

 

[Jody]

Alot of good stuff there mate. It's just a shame that we'll be beaten to 4th by a team with even less time to gel together and will be overhauled again in the summer and will beat us to 4th again next year

 

[rez9000]

Alot of good stuff there mate. It's just a shame that we'll be beaten to 4th by a team with even less time to gel together and will be overhauled again in the summer and will beat us to 4th again next year

What you say is true. But they're doing it the easy way - by buying success. We're building something and that takes time.

 

[NEVILLEB]

Gareth Bale is an outstanding player

 

[..Tee..]

RE. Champions League qualification.

If, and i think its a big 'If' , we do manage to pull off 4th we will need to spend big in the summer. 80-100 million on 5 proven CL players minimum and thats just to compete with teams like Barca, Madrid etc and to not look out of our depth.
Its games like today that players need to show they have the balls to win and tbh we never did. For me, thats what we have been lacking for far too long.

 

[bubble07]

Gareth Bale is an outstanding player

who only has 2 years left on his contract. WE NEED HIM TO SIGN A NEW DEAL. Problem is Levy would have been negotiating so no news is definitely bads news

Red nose will be sniffing around

 

[teddy_sheringham_125]

Yes, on the surface of things it looks like 4th is an impossible task. But we are really saying that in the knowledge that our next three games are very tough. IMO, Liverpool will not get there - too many missed opportunities against crap teams. Villa also look tired and don't have the squad. That leaves the money-men, and to be fair, we know that they are favourites now. However, lets not forget that they also have a very tricky run in:

Man Utd (H) - against a team that must win to stay in the title race
Arsenal (A) - Always difficult to win at the Emirates
Villa (H) - Man city favourites, but still a tough game
Spurs (H) - Crunch time, but we have a good record against them
West Ham (A) - you'd expect an easy win.

I'd say that that puts 3 points in the definite column, with another 1-3 from the Villa game, leaving them on 65-68. Us winning against Bolton, Man City and Burnley puts us on 67. That still puts us in the mix and that calms me down.

 

[mil1lion]

We have progressed for sure. My biggest concern atm is, I don't think we are dynamic enough up front. Certainly not like we were with Berbatov and Keane up front. I think the strikers lack invension at times, especially against teams who get players behind the ball.

We're gelling well as a team now. Our possession football is good, and we're not leaking goals either. We have plenty of young players too, so they will only get better. Hopefully they're given time to grow together. We just need to add a bit more experience and intelligence to an already good group of players.

 

[elvis7754]

The trouble with your squad "gelling" point, is look at City.

Ok, they have all the money in the world, but they have a relatively new squad and manager and are battering teams.

In comparison, our squad is totally settled. It's just not an argument that stands up.

 

[mil1lion]

Yes, on the surface of things it looks like 4th is an impossible task. But we are really saying that in the knowledge that our next three games are very tough. IMO, Liverpool will not get there - too many missed opportunities against crap teams. Villa also look tired and don't have the squad. That leaves the money-men, and to be fair, we know that they are favourites now. However, lets not forget that they also have a very tricky run in:

Man Utd (H) - against a team that must win to stay in the title race
Arsenal (A) - Always difficult to win at the Emirates
Villa (H) - Man city favourites, but still a tough game
Spurs (H) - Crunch time, but we have a good record against them
West Ham (A) - you'd expect an easy win.

I'd say that that puts 3 points in the definite column, with another 1-3 from the Villa game, leaving them on 65-68. Us winning against Bolton, Man City and Burnley puts us on 67. That still puts us in the mix and that calms me down.

Those are some tough games for sure. The good thing is, they're all teams who have something left to play for. Man Utd and Arsenal have to keep their title hopes alive. It'll certainly be as tough for them as it is for us to face those 2. There's us and Villa chasing 4th spot (Villa at the very least will want top 6). Even West Ham, who might be fighting for safety on the final game of the season.

Both Spurs and Villa have extremely difficult games. It's a long shot, but there's still some shade of hope there for us. I wouldn't rule Liverpool out just yet either. I don't think they'll do it, but i've learned never to write them off completely. Especially when you consider there is a very realistic chance that Spurs and City could lose their next 2 games.

 

[Midostouch]

After the dreadful disappointment of yesterday, I am now banking on Europa League for next season. I'm booking tickets to go away to Burnley to cheer them on and congratulate the lads on a massive improvement this season but I can't make myself go through the misery of broken dreams again (at least until next season). So while obviously I do secretly really hope we get there, officially I have written off any hope of CL.

Someone said to me yesterday - "Well last season it was 2 points from the 1st 8 games - this season it could be 2 points from the last 8". I think he was joking.

 

[There's always next year]

What you say is true. But they're doing it the easy way - by buying success. We're building something and that takes time.

We're been building something for over 50 years and still only layed the foundations.

 

[Dougal]

The Arsenal game is on April 14th. Is Bale going to have a crack? He is you know. Oh I say!

 

[DC_Boy]

i'm heartbroken too

and city i fear have begun a process that will eventually see them as the 5th biggest club in the country and make up a big 5

i've said for years we won't break the big 4 without a billionaire benfactor and still believe that

however it may become a big 5 in a few years time and we'll be outside it

chelsea made the vital step forward in joining the big 4 and relegating us to the third biggest club in london when they won the lottery

lots of spurs fans at the time said they didn't want it to happen to us like that - well i did, still do,

we're slipping further behind i fear, and in the foreseeable future i see us contesting the sixth biggest club slot with everton and villa, not the 5th as at present

naturally we still have a chance this season of 4th but it's so galling that just when one of the big 4 slip, there's a new kid on the block to nick something we've built towards for years

without players like tevez given and adebayor we'd be streets ahead of them - they wouldn't have got those players without mega money

their investment is already paying dividends as i thought it would - i predicted they'd finish above us this season - and it's looking like they will

still can be done by us but it's an unequal battle when you look at their resources to ours

 

[kaz Hirai]

i wouldnt hand 4th place to city just yet, dont see the beating arsenal on man u. villa will set up for a draw like that they do, west ham wont be a cake walk and then there's us. but of course we'll bottle it then bitch about the ref after :lol:

 

[dontcallme]

Damn it, but I'm sore this evening. Disappointment doesn't even come close. Heart-borken is not an overstatement.

My immediate reaction was that Portsmouth really didn't deserve their victory today, and I still stand by that. We lost the match, they really didn't win it. However, this thread isn't about the result. It's about finding some encouragement.

OK, the wheels appear to have come off our season. It's not over yet, not by a long chalk, but the one thing left to play for, Champions League qualification, will be task and a half. I've not given up on this season and I don't think anyone else shoud either, but if it doesn't happen, it won't be a massive surprise.

What I take encouragement from is the bigger picture. The future.

Yes, the 'there's always next year' refrain is hackneyed and cliched. But let's think about some of the problems that have affected us this season:

A lack of a 'winning mentality'
Lack of pace
Mistakes at the back

The list can go on. However, I think that much of the problems are due to a squad that is still not fully gelled. Some have only been at Spurs for a few months (Eidur), or just under a year (Niko).

It's simplistic, some may even say naive, but I believe that the squad needs more time. If you look at Arsenal, Man U and the ultimate example, Chelscum, their players seem to enjoy an almost telepathic understanding. This has come about from prolonged periods of playing together. Yes, they have brought players in, but they have been tweaks to an overall structure rather than the continual total overhauls we've suffered over the last few years.

If, this year, we challenged for fourth and got to the FA Cups semis with a squad of players still learning to work with each other, imagine what they could do once they have built a true understanding of each other.

Yes, today was painful, but the future holds a lot of promise. Today was not the be-all and end-all. It was the first baptism of fire for a squad that I honestly think are on the verge of great things.

Can we take comfort from that?

I can. I usually hate the argument of "we need time" as if things are going to magically improve but HR has helped our club to get good results and the team is not looking like the same old Spurs (well most of the time anyway).

He has bought some good players with a strong mentality and a good footballing brain. He has complimented these players with what we already have and as a result we have seen players here before harry joined like Bale, Dawson, Modric, Huddlestone and most notably Lennon improve. Players like Bentley and Pav are looking better and I hope that is partly because of the better coaching and stronger characters Harry has bought to our club.

A strong mentality takes time though and we need consistency for this to reap rewards. Maybe HR will sell a few players like O'Hara, Pav and Bentley for a fair price and bring in the guys he believes have what it takes to turn potential into success.

Every team has days like yesterday but with the characters we have I believe we can bounce back whereas before I believe this would be the beginning of another disappointing season.

 

[$hoguN]

I can. I usually hate the argument of "we need time" as if things are going to magically improve but HR has helped our club to get good results and the team is not looking like the same old Spurs (well most of the time anyway).

He has bought some good players with a strong mentality and a good footballing brain. He has complimented these players with what we already have and as a result we have seen players here before harry joined like Bale, Dawson, Modric, Huddlestone and most notably Lennon improve. Players like Bentley and Pav are looking better and I hope that is partly because of the better coaching and stronger characters Harry has bought to our club.

A strong mentality takes time though and we need consistency for this to reap rewards. Maybe HR will sell a few players like O'Hara, Pav and Bentley for a fair price and bring in the guys he believes have what it takes to turn potential into success.

Every team has days like yesterday but with the characters we have I believe we can bounce back whereas before I believe this would be the beginning of another disappointing season.

I think that sums it up for me too really, we have improved immensly under Harry and if we continue along that route we will be a very good side. I just hope that the cup defeat makes us want the top4 even more

 

[Zuben]

Improved immensely under which measure? Ramos was an exception to the rule. We're only back to what Jol did with the club, with an arguably weaker squad (cue gibbs Malbranque v Luka). Whether Jol would have taken us to the next level is also arguable, but the point is that unless HR gets us fourth I don't think we can say he has improved us immensely compared to the BMJ era (particularly remembering we only lost out on 4th on the final day of the season).

 

[$hoguN]

Improved immensely under which measure? Ramos was an exception to the rule. We're only back to what Jol did with the club, with an arguably weaker squad (cue gibbs Malbranque v Luka). Whether Jol would have taken us to the next level is also arguable, but the point is that unless HR gets us fourth I don't think we can say he has improved us immensely compared to the BMJ era (particularly remembering we only lost out on 4th on the final day of the season).

If you believe this is a weaker squad you need your head examined mate

 

[DEFchenkOE]

I think he means Jol had a weaker squad, which on paper i'd have to agree with.