Stadium, Joe, Henry, Another Croat...the week that was

Agree to a degree. But IF we wish to improve we need to upgrade our quality. I like Sandro but we really do need a striker who can score regularly, no tin fits starts like those we have. Now Pav could be our man but its taken a long time..I wonder what happened to that Columbian in the Portuguese league on whom we were so keen? He wouldn't cost >50k/week. We need 2-3 quality signings(IMO LB Striker, ? CMF ? CD) and there must be some who are young enough and good enough but are unheralded and hence within our budget, All we have to do is....find them gulp

I live in the states and watched last nights game. Now I know it was a friendly but it only went to reinforce my view that Hutton, Jenas and Keane all need to go.

And anybody that is worried about 'Arry making the right signings, rest easy, he will come through. A first class striker will be at the lane come August and hopefully a new CB and LB.

Oh and lastly, Bale was class again last night! COYS!

I would like to see us try and get Falcao,turan and a decent defender to cover for King and Woody in case one or both does,nt make it.If this or something similar is achieved i have good vibes for this season,but we must not get carried away,we would all settle for winning something and improving last seasons final league position.

I suppose I could just look this up but... The Simpsons is on.

Is Hutton in the squad / playing in the USA?

Yeah Biz, he was pony, got skinned for their goal!

Hopefully we will get a few in before the season starts. For me another left back could be on the cards for cover. Bale has to play left wing so we only have Ekotto. Although, Walker I think can play left back? Then a centre back is key as we all know that we can't rely on King and Woodgate. Especially if we are going to hopefully be involved in three cups and a league campaign this season. I think we were correct not to give Cole the 90K he wanted. For me he is a good player but one who gets injured an awful lot. Also we have a number of midfielders who are good enough at Spurs. I really hope Sandro is a good addition to the squad. Has Dos Santos been playing in the States or did we leave are world cup players at home to rest? We had loads! :) I think Dos Santos has big part to play for Spurs. He can dribble with such pace I know he can hurt teams. If he pulls his socks up in training he could become a Harry favourite. (BTW...are Man City trying to buy every player that there scouts give a good review on??? Crazy, if Milner joins they will have about 15 midfielders. Adam Johnson and SWP will have no choice but to leave. Sad for football and England when things like this happen. Up the Spurs, have a good weekend all.

I SKY PLUS ED the game last night its 41 mins gone so far,1 0 down,
guess who scored.( i know i can look at final score but wont)
how much do you say early doors!,not sharp yet! etc.
defence is shocking although the shape/personel is weird, the goal is a nightmare for hutton and corluka,i have stuck up for hutton but he
had a disaster, and silly bollocks was behind henry,very poor.
robbie is in poor touch but keeps getting 'in' which is good,he can
be rusty thats no prob at the moment but his movement is v good.
if we play better approach play he will be ok.
bugger me taraabt has come on 2nd half! phone the president,hope he is give a fair go may report later.got to concentrate.

BIG MART, watch Taraabts arms, he runs weirder than Aaron!!

Cheers Yoda - what a surprise!

He's got to go (away).

We had 4 RB's playing last night, Hutton, Corluka, Walker and Naughton. None of them are champions league class in my opinion.

Corluka can't cross and is too pedestrian, Hutton is woeful and walker/naughton are still unproven at this level. Not too sure who to bring in but we are very weak in this position given the amount of players we have who can play there. Chimbonda anyone :)

I go away for a week and nothing really happens apart from a chance on a previous article to slate both Jol and O'Hara. Nevermind, i'm sure there'll be plenty more opportunity in the future.
I must say it was funny to see poor badly treated Martin Jol trying to screw over another employer. Still, he did a nice jolly interview afterwards so i'm sure all the Ajax fans will forgive him and forget what he tried to do.

walker and Naughton havent had a run out yet.

Nobby, I think Walker played against San Jose.

It seems, despite missing the last article, you still managed to find the opportunity to have just a little dig at Jol, eh CG. Don't worry, with Spurs news so slow I'm sure we'll get around to discussing him and O'Hara again.

Alan ..you are right. But I would like to see them get some real competitive games ie league cup /fa cup so we get an idea of how good they really are. It would save the club a mint if either or both proved to have some quality.

Christ I didnt realise that Bellamy was 31...and still a gobby fak. no thanks.

There's very little point in buying the likes of Walker and Naughton if we're not going to give them games. Clearly, when buying young players from lower leagues, there is a belief they can be/are good enough to make it in the Prem. If they've got the talent they need to be intergrated in to the team, I'm sure playing with an understanding alongside better players at THFC they will be able to show their true ability, then we'll be able to see if they really are the future. With any luck this season, with our Euro adventure, they'll have a chance to prove themselves in the carling cup.

Sorry to re open this but just watched 2nd half,tom tom tom! harry decided to drop him into centre half, jeeezus h he headed it back too short, missed a header c f should have scored,missed a tackle on his arse, harry please learn he could do it against heskey but it was very
clear dont even think about it (and thats a fact)

when the new financial rules come in , which they will, as all top clubs have signed an agreement with uefa ,to limit spending etc, but this wont take effect for another few years yet, thats why man city, are all out spending now while they can, and i think our billionaire owner should give harry 100m to take that next step, bring in some real top quality, and show these other teams, we can compete as well, but this will only be a one off, before new rules kick in, and then everyone will be on the same governing rules, which means you can only use money generated by your club, not outside benefactors, and all loopholes have been looked at as well, sponsorship inflated prices etc, some of you may have read the article by fellow spurs fan who wrote article, and knew what he was talking about, we will get some good quality players by the new season, but it would be nice if our owner showed the other top teams, that his club, is here to win and doesnt fear anyone.

Cobra its all very well City spending all this money now but the wages are going to kill them when they have to break even over a set period. How will City generate the money to cover players earning 200k a week? How will they sell these players who are going to have to take a huge drop in wages to go anywhere too? It would be the same for us, you can spend millions on transfers but you also have to spend millions on wages and wages aren't a one off cost that can be written off in a period where you don't have to break even. There is no real quick fix, we just have to wait and hope that being a well run club will pay dividends when the new rules kick in.

craig,i know youre right,but it really annoys me that all the clubs like us, are penalised for running the club the proper way, and then you get the rich benefactor clubs, who just run wild, and spend spend spend, and supposedly theyre title contenders now, you should hear cundy on talksport, he doesnt give a monkeys how chelsea got to where they are, he says were just jealous, and you cant do nothing about it, and city should just ignore us, how arrogant is that, he doesnt care about fair play, he just wants chelsea to win everything, the guys a joke.
watched parrett and caulker today for under 19s, and they were very good, and bostock was quite good too.

I'd also like to see both Kyles given a go as especially at RB there is a chance for them. They can't be any worse than Micah Richards.

Couple of interesting things coming out the press today. Harry appears to waiting for nearer the transfer deadline to get a few of city's players on the cheap. They currently have 37 players and need to trim that to 25.

However, mirror have qouted him expressing his concerns over our wage structure. (if the link doesn't work, go to BBC todayu's paper section)

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/news/Transfer-news-Harry-Redknapp-calls-on-Tottenham-to-back-him-as-he-hunts-Luis-Fabiano-Raul-Milan-s-Klaas-Jan-Huntelaar-Manchester-City-s-Craig-Bellamy-and-Croatia-s-Stipe-Pletikosa-article536717.html

suarez, falcao, turan, and central defender, and im sure harry doesnt particularly like our limited transfer money for players, but as craig said , when the new rules come in , by us running the club within our means, we will be in a good position, whereas man city and chelsea, will have to cover their huge long running wage bills, with their own clubs means, which they will find next to impossible, so well keep it as it is, thank you, and harry knows this, just paper talk.

I'm with you on this cobra. I have a lot of respect for what Levy has done. I think our business model is based on getting youngsters in with promise. These players often attract sizeable transfer fees but the wages are relatively low. Modric is a prime example. It's a strategy that has worked well for us financially. Harry however prefers experience. I wrote an article about this last time round as I believe this is an area of friction between Levy and Harry and I think signs of it are coming out with Harry missing out on Cole and some others this summer based not on transfer fees but wages. I side with Levy on this matter. There are hungry young players out there who can improve us and levy would probably be happy with paying a big transfer fee for them but he's keen to keep wages below 50-60% of our turnover. In any other business, that is still too high but football clubs work on different rules!

From the Mirror,
I have got three players in mind and if I can get these players we would be a different team.
Targets are believed to be Brazil striker Luis Fabiano, Spanish star Raul, Milan s Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Manchester City s Craig Bellamy and Croatian goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa.

Harry says 3 players, the Mirror list 5. And how many of them are from the Premier league?

Another Harry quote this morning, ""I think there will be a few loans," said Redknapp. "Clubs like Manchester City will have too big a squad as you can only have 25 players on your roster.

"They will have a problem and there will be players that clubs will want to loan out that will be good players that are earning good wages.

"Clubs will have to cut their wage bills and they don't want players sitting around doing nothing.

"I think if you are clever there are loans out there that for clubs like us would be interesting, but certainly not from abroad."

That's the mirror for you, hardly ever reflect the truth (get it, mirror/reflect?).

I just take the qoutes and skim the rest!

Did anyone see highlights of sporting's win against city? it's going to be a tough test today.

Indepth interview with Harry:

http://www.skysports.com/magazine/story/0,25070,15225_6275794,00.html

alan the difference is, we are are a good football team, man city, are a mercenary team, we will give sporting a better game, but they are good technically, it will be a good test, but if we play jenas and hutton, we are going to find it tougher, because these two players are crap.

1-1 at half time, Keane scored a good goal only for sporting to score a fantastic header a min later. Bale then missed a sitter from a keane cross. playing pretty well but its 35 degrees here!

Button on for cudicini second half

2-1 sporting

2-2 Obika!!!

I don't know if it was just the commentators over exuberance, but I thought that was a really good game, and I know it was a friendly, but I thought we played some good football. Very encouraging.

I was very impressed with Walker. He's so strong and quick. He also hardly ever gives the ball away and breaks with amazing speed. Bale again was top class and personally I think it would be a shame not to play him from the left wing where he looks so dangerous. Hudd also played well.

In terms of negatives, Jenas. I am not sure what he did out there apart from let sporting players run past him.

I was generally very pleased with the display considering sporting start their season next week.

Good display and unlucky not to win. Walker was good Alan and bale was great apart from his miss in the 1st half!
Bale has to play left wing, agreed. With Lennon on the right we would be well balanced and blistering on the attack.

Can't wait for next season without Jenas, waste of space!

How about....before the lads depart from the USA we phone the relevent authorities and suggest to them JJ is a terrorist. He can then swap the lilywhite of White Hart Lane for the bright Orange of Guantanamo Bay.

Walker got better as the game went on,and although he lacks experiance
right back requires less of that than other positions,corluka however
looked all over the place as usual,ok as full back but not near the goal!,he is weak in body and mind.
promise also from obika and townsend,sorry alan dont share your view
on tom, plods along like jenas and over hit passes he does not influence the game much,although it was mighty hot!!,he is the same
when its cold!.
Irrespective of signings we will need to put more pressure on certain
players who 'coast along' too often, lessons from top two reqd on the
levels of consistancy to keep improving 2 or 3 are joggers.
but we are moving in right direction.

Agree BIG MART... Hudd Jenas lack one thing you can't coach...DESIRE will to win. Corluka looked awful, even though out of position - doesn't stop you doing the basics right. I still think Keane should go.. Yeah, he scored and assisted - but his legs have gone - Big Time. He was terrible against Red Bulls and were'nt much better yesterday. Still need CB/RB cover - Richards? - CM - Parker? and Striker - Fabiano????? with these 3, plus Jenas Keane gone - I'll be happy. Taarabt will also never make it. Gio to be given a chance!!

i hope young from villa interest is true. transfer fee is a bit high but if spurs could put keane and jj in the deal to bring the price down, it would be great deal

Strange to see Rose come on at left back, does that mean Harry has changed his mind on Bale playing there?

two defensive mistakes, corluka heading it to their player on the edge of our area, great goal though, and hutton who put in the most half hearted of tackles, to let the guy through to score, took it well though, but he should have been tackled, obika and keane took their goals well, this was a very makeshift spurs side, especially with jackass in the team, thats like playing with ten men, but we showed some good play out there, which our fans who made the trip, along with u.s spurs supporters, appreciated and deserved, big pat on the back to them for creating great atmosphere.
sporting dominated and outclassed the moneymen, we matched them and got a good result, mancini reckons everyone will fear man city, nah, fraid not mate , theyll ridicule you, yes, but fear you , no.
on the subject of our new stadium, we are being hindered continually, so sorry to say it, but we move elsewhere, the area needs us , more than we need the area, so as suggested , we move to enfield, where our new training ground will be, the only reason we havent done that yet, is because we wanted to stay at our birthplace, but this council wont let it happen, so sod em, we move, and they lose out big time.

was the young striker linked to spurs playing against them, was he any good?

Didn't see the match guys, and heard pretty mixed reports so far, so can someone please tell me, if we had the likes of Crouch,Defoe,Lennon, Dawson, Modric, Palacious, Gomes etc etc would that have been the difference to win.

Some of you lads are still 1 and half seasons behind me!!! Corluka is a bucket of shit!!! lol....... i thought we were ok yesterday and to see some of the kids play with energy is refreshing after watching the same old shit laid back bastards strolling around. our fans showed once again we are not unrivaled by any others in traveling support and wouldnt it be good if we could get them american commentry team to replace Andy grey and his puppet on sky?? thought hudd had scored at the end of that game!!!

sorry!! once again we are unrivaled.

great performance for the team we had out there, but these players werent playing, modric, palacios, lennon, dos santos, gomez, pavlychenko, defoe, crouch, sandro,dawson, bassong, king, ekotto, bentley, woodgate, as you can see a lot of players were missing, and we played with that liability jackass, and we still played well, good passing football, and the american commentators should replace andy gray and co, because while american, it was balanced, and fair, and pretty good.
the players who did play were cudicini, button, (half each) hutton, corluka, naughton, walker, huddlestone, jenas, krankjer, bale, taarabt, keane, and on came, obika, townsend. we do still need some high quality signings, to make us stronger, but its looking good already.

Also how strong was the Sporting team? was it their first team and how would people rate them to potential opposition for the champs league?

they were pretty strong,they didnt have that many missing, because they had a qualifying game coming up this week, and they needed to get their first team match fit, so the commentator was saying, so as i said we did well, against a good sporting lisbon team, who totally outclassed manchester wannabes.

Sporting's season starts next week doesn't it?

Whilst it's encouraging to see the likes of Obika and Walker doing well I must insist on more from the likes of Keane and JJ. These guys are senior players playing with what are essentially reserves. If JJ can't dominate a match at this level there really is no hope for him.

i thought the commentator said qualifying, but it could be their first season game, no matter, they needed a test , and we certainly gave them one, and yes, jenas was usual passenger, non existent.
when are we going to get rid of him.

Didn't see the match but reports said, as did Harry, that Keano had a good game. Apparently, even in the first match reports said that his movement was good but that he was a little rusty.

Interesting to then read a number of posts on here criticising him.

Cobra - "craig,i know youre right,but it really annoys me that all the clubs like us, are penalised for running the club the proper way, and then you get the rich benefactor clubs, who just run wild"......You then suggest our billionaire owner gives Harry 100m to spunk !!! which is it to be???

simon , as you can see from the post, craig answered my post wishing our owner would give harry 100m, and then i replied, youre right craig, because what he said was true, about the big spenders wage bills down the line, and their clubs, not owners, being able to pay them, so i am for our club, running within our means, but i still get frustrated, at the way these other clubs, are not playing the rules, and are operating in debt, and gaining success from it, and now you have the liverpool supporters saying , well be back where we belong, when we get our new owner, in other words hoping for a man city situation, i wish these new rules came in this season, then it would have meant trouble for, chelsea, man city, man utd, liverpool, but no they get more time to try to get out of trouble hopefully not long enough.

Totally off topic you should take a look at this. Takes some stones to take a pen in such a ridiculous manner. http://www.maisfutebol.iol.pt/2009-videos/penalty-ezequiel-calvente-espanha-europeu-sub-19-italia-maisfutebol/1180019-4775.html

Good job he scored or he would have looked like a right tit.

Nothing like adding pressure on yourself when taking a penalty!

According to the Spurs website Keano won player of the tournament in New York...yet many posters seemed to think different.

Now just because he played well in NY does not necessarily mean we should not sell him, the EPL is a lot tougher than a pre-season tournament, however it does raise the question of 'has Keane become the new target of hate and will not be given a fair opportunity'?

Personally, if it is the Keano from a couple of seasons ago then we should keep him, if he is the Keanoe from last season then probably time to sell.

Keane's movement WAS pretty good, but when a throughball was put thru to him it hit the back of his heels, trod on the ball or didn't have the pace/strength to get past the last defender... He also had some woeful efforts on goal. Keane will always produce a bit of magic with an assist or good finish now and then, because he naturally is a good footballer and you don't just lose that class - but he looks like getting on 40 - not just turned 30... that's his main problem.

Keane is probably being treated harshly Yiddo but he brought it on himself. Many fans felt betrayed when he left spurs for his boyhood club. If he had come back and played well he might have been forgiven but too many below par performances sealed his fate as far as I am concerned.

Perry Man...I didn't have a problem with him moving to Liverpool. He had always given us 100% and had the chance to sign for a bigger club, probably the last chance he had at his age.
I also thought that when he returned his movement and speed of thought brought the best out of Modric, particularly by unselfishly moving left to enable Modders to cut inside. I don't think it is a coincidence that Modric's improvement in for that season started once Keano arrived back.

Spezza...I think you are right, Keane does look old all of a sudden (maybe a result of playing first class football since the age of 16 - 17). I sometimes think his frustration is that he cannot do what he use to...the footballing brain is there but the touch is not as crisp or sharp as it use to be.

Like you say Spezza, Keane has ability, we've seen it before over the years but his 'player of the tournament' triumph isn't a huge success in itself. Keane has a footballing CV that the rest of the Spurs squad combined would struggle to match and in a tournament without a lot of international players, I'd more than expect him to shine. As has been said before, when he's playing he is happy but when he isn't playing, which he doesn't always, just what sort of influence is he at the club? I can't say for certain, I'm not there, but Harry was happy to see him travel north rather than keep him around!

Anyone see the matser the other day? How bad was Jason Dozzell ! He hasn't changed one bit.....

I Think the problem with Keano, is that he wont play every game and will have to do his fair share warming the bench. And Harry has already said whilst Keane is playing things are great, when he isnt Keano gets all stroppy.

id like to see our final 25 man squad now!! and are the rules just for the prem games?? or have we seen the last of reserve/youth players taking on the league cup for the scum and others??

We have't seen the last of youth players as we can add as many as we like to our squad on top of the 25 seniors...which can only be a good thing!

does that only apply to home grown players or could you go out and buy any amount of young players and add them to your squad??

Some players deserve the stick they get on here,but as ever choosing
who 'gets it' is confusing at times!.
as i understand it (and my criteria)lack of effort too often, we should allow the odd off game, no real talent at any one thing,be it
speed,aggression,heading,etc. lack of team ethic etc.
what i find confusing using keane as an example is, i saw no lack of effort in both games,i saw lots of guys lacking match sharpness, i
saw 80 plus temp, keane did what he does! drops in,scores goals,cant
pass,he is not to bad,there arn't to many perrymans about and we should all realise when someone shoves a mike in your face and your in a bad mood you may say something you shouldent (as we all do).
i dont seem to hear many as many of these as some others do!.
but some people on here do need to grow up and put it into perspective
keane is a good squad player with great experiance we will need,no fee
reqd if we trade him ok, otherwise calm the f@ck down PLEASE.

Mart the issue with Keane is much deeper with a lot fans than you seem to realise. A lot of people feel betrayed by him that is why feeling run so deep. It's not purley down to current ability, that is just another stick to hit him with.

Big Mart ..some friendlies in far away lands mean fak all to me. My opinion on Keane is based on his last league performances for us. By and large he was shocking, by and large we got to 4th without him. Yes he can chose to leave Spurs for a bigger club, where he didnt cut it and probably wasnt really needed.
I feel we need to buy a recognised finisher and of all our forwards Keane is the one I would let go. Like Keane I want something better.

If we are in the market for a striker - and it appears we are - it means one of the current ones has to go.
On current form (i.e. in meaningful games) Keane is the one that has to go.

If Keane wasn't at Tottenham and we were looking to sign a striker for the new campaign we would all be gutted if we were after Keane.

http://www.whufc.com/articles/20100728/statement-on-scott-parker_2236884_2104072?

Not bothered about the Liverpool move, but I am sceptical as wether Keane can provide us with the quality and goals up front, if we are going to have a good run in champs league, and have a tilt at the title. Not sure any of them will make the difference, but don't see who we will get that will.

Alfie - I too don't care about the Liverpool move.
my concern is the front line for next season and who is going to score the goals. Defore probably. Pav maybe. Crouch will help both with his own style and score a few. Keane...a bit like Defoe in that they are both selfish. Defoe just still has pace, first touch and shooting

I just think if Harry is in the market for a new forward ....then Keane is the weakest link of our current 4

Craig, with regards to Keane, you could say the same (being gutted to be after them if they weren't already with us) about our other 3 strikers.
None of them are particularly superior to the other or won more than the other. All have their own positives and negatives.

Yeah, but with the other three, I think you can see that there is more for them to give. And I think out of the three there is a lot lot more to come from Super Pav!!

Keane has to go, he is passed it his legs have gone, we need pace, at present we have 3 slow forwards, Defoe the 4th being the only one with enough pace to trouble defences. The trouble is, is there anybody better available in the market than Keane ? would you rate Bellamy a better player than Keane ? We need to buy big to cut it in the CL and compete with the likes of Man Uts, Chelsea and City in the PL. We need a Central defender to partner Dawson, a central midfielder who can control a game (a Van Bommell type) and a world class goalscorer. I agree with Harry this is our big chance to tride forward, lets hop Levy makes the cash available. What is the opinon on Dos Santos nmaking his mark this year after a good world cup ?

Some of you people really have no idea do you? Theres a few regular posters and a couple of long haul people who keep this site ticking over but the rest please shut up! Lets move on from the keane,jenas,jol debates. Mk,CG,ALEN and whats happend to Wert? Nobby and grey man! you lads had it flowing at times well until alen got his name up in lights anyway! Many debate was good to read but not now, wert's posts on corluka were classic! and you people still cant see the lad was right, alen stands his ground and he will always stand by what he says or though even when wrong, mk probably the brains behind the outfit and nobby the mussle and alans the book keeper with wert the master!

hazzard you should become the lads agent.

Hazzard your a knob

Might just do raver but i think alan might have to have a third party influence in it! Not sure its legal?

Says boycie!

I agree with Boycie

Wert has an admirer/stalker.

anyway back to the football. cannot believe how quiet harry is in the transfer market. levy must def be calling the shots when it comes to agreeing fees an age of players

Yiddo1882 you agree with boycie? Well i agree with the majority! Your an idiot. Not so much a stalker but up untill the end of the season i used some of these post in a magazine i work for and did have good feedback!

"MK probably the brains behind the outfit"? Not sure how accurate that is...but hey, who am I to disagree! :)

Does anyone reckon we really put in a bid for Scott Parker? Or is this simply a sound bite from Gold and Sullivan to keep Wham fans happy? I'm sure there are many bubble blowers who'd be delighted to hear Spurs have been told 'no' when attempting to steal thier prize asset...I just don't think the statement, "The club informed Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy prior to him making the offer that we would not welcome any approach to unsettle the player." Makes any sence. Are they saying they rebuffed an offer that Levy didn't make?

Its the same old thing MK, Wet SPam make it public, and we will look like the bad guys for unsettling the player! Same happened last year, from both hammers and sunderland. It could also be a ploy for them to say to Parker if your leaving you'll have to slap in a request.

Probably an atempt to get the player to hand in a tranfer request! So's not having to pay any loyalty bonus and other money's.

While you have to take anything Harry says with a pinch of salt, you need a whole truckload for Gold Sullivan. I can see Harry looking for Parker as cover for Wilson, but would Parker want to play second fiddle?

On the Keane subject I realise my bias against him as I am a bitter old man who can't forget him choosing Liverpool over Spurs. I try to temper my comments accordingly but don't always succeed. As far as I can see we have four decent forwards but no outstanding one. All have their talents and their shortcomings. For me, Keane's shortcomings are starting to outweigh his talents. So if we can bring in a top quality striker, I would lose Keane.

Of course you did Hazard. Hows the medication?

On to football, I think the oompa loompa's at Westham have exaggerated the situation. I doubt a serious bid went in, maybe an enquiry if Parker was available.

Why make an enquiry regarding availability? Gold and Sullivan' first move was to announce from the off that everyone was up for sale bar Parker (how gutted must Parker be?!)

Yiddo1882, post 51 then post 56! Makes you look the idiot you are and then post 59! Makes you like a bigger cock than most think, i suggest you watch a game before post in future!

Hazzard any sentence with me and muscle in it is gratefully received.

I hope we have got some realistic targets. I really do not think we have the squad to compete in the CL. Amphetamines are probably the way forward for our forwards, and Thud when i think about it.
All this bollix about the stadium doesnt help. i am amazed the magnficent pieces of architectural wonderment on the High Rd, 2 run down Georgian houses ,i think, are still standing. We could knock em down with Boris Johnson. Now i would pay to watch that shyte.
I hope we can find a goalscorer/predator and a CB. I would love Woodgate to recover but i cant see it. I like the pairing of Bassong and Dawson in the PL but am unsure of how they will fare in the more technical CL. Then again i dont see Micah Richards as a solution to that situation.My knowledge of other leagues is poor but if anyone out there knows of a player that could do the job and is a realistic target please let me know..a bad week to give up smoking.

To be honest nobby, I dont think we need all these big name signings. We have to be level headed and realistic about our chances in the champs league and weigh up the need to suddenly break wage structures and spend big to maybe not achieve that much or sensible buy and just be that little bit better than last season???

id be tempted to have a bid for brede hangerland if we could get him?? and for me parker would be a great signing as would bellamy but im wondering if there is something in what harry has been spouting out about with the limited squad size and that?? i think he might be looking at roqua santa cruz or maybe even adeybayor maybe in a loan deal??

If Harry is waiting for city to loan us surplus players after they submit their squad he could be playing a dangerous game. I cant see City loaning us any players as we are fighting with them for a top four finish.

rsc would be interesting at least while we have bentley on our books.
Adeybayor at Spurs..I suggest you jest.

just an example but the lad has just as much hate for the scum as most spurs fans do but not me! he cant hate them as much as me!! im not sure whether the rule change effects the other european leagues but if so im sure barca/madrid and inter and ac milan will have these type of players without squad numbers at the start of the season??

We don't need Adebayor, not because of his past loyalties but because he is shite!

Even though they arent the big name signings everybody wants, I quite like the thinking of Parker and Bellamy. I dont like Bellamy as a person but can understand how he would improve the team. Parker is one that could shine for us, but at who's expense? Hopefully Jenas!!!! As far as the strikers go, I think we can expect big things from Pav this year and if Defoe can now concentate on playing for club rather than country then I'm sure he we hit the ground running.

harry might be using this new rule to shift out a few of the ones he dont want?? jenas has been quoted as saying he wants to stay and fight any other season you would drop him a squad number and forget about him but now if there was no number for him in the 25?? he might be thinking bolton or stoke on loan aint all that bad...

I'd like to think, given the new ruling on homegrown players JJ's value would have increased by a couple of m. In fact, I'm surprised no-one has come in for him already based on that.

That goes the same for O'Hara as well. I liked O'Hara when he first broke through but i feel he is away with the fairies now that he had a decent season with pompey and will think he is better than what he really is. We wont be able to sell Bentley either because he is injured, which personally I think is a blessing as he is one player I would really like to improve. This season, i would love to see , Rose, gio, Townsend all excel. What do you think about the kid from Ipswich, Connor Wickham? that would seem more like a Levy buy?

Not at a reported 10m! It's a lot of money for an unproven kid, even more so if we intend on loaning him back. Any money spent this summer should be on players who are going to be ready to play this season. We have plenty of youth who need bringing through and, if we qualify for the Champions league proper, I'll be wanting to see some of our younger talent played in the Carling cup. We've not had the luxury of games where we can blood youngsters of late, most of our games in the past few seasons have been either, part of all important cup runs, premier league survival or pushing for 4th.

Granted 10mil is a lot to pay for a 17year old, but unfortunatley thats the world we live in now. I ahvent seen the kid play so cant comment how good he is, but if the reports are true then 10mill for the next Rooney isnt that bad is it? And lets be honest we are in the champs league now and flying high, doesnt matter who we go after the price will always be raised. I agree that there is already talent here, but didnt Bale cost us 10mill? And i wouldnt say that was a bad buy would you?

Bale would have cost us 10mil but they wanted an early settlement so we saved 2mil plus i think?? it would be nice for a change to push our youth players instead of shipping them out but you can only blood the youngsters and gain success if they are put in along side quality players and i think we are now in a position where we can add some real quality but only if the chairman and manager are bould enough to do so??

Wont mention keane again got ear ache!.
Players dont like rotation unless its a league cup wed in rotherham or
'hopefully' away at dinamo tblisi,so were do you play parker? i am glad we have been rebuffed!!!?? before we made an offer!!!?. we need to do some selling asap we have enough middfield players and need to give league cup and 60 min sub games to some youngsters.
godin for centre half, we will get bellamy(hate him) but counting the
squad dont need much more,we can still get free agents i think and there will be a few about when it hits the fan.

Does anyone when this 25 man rule was first agreed? It just appears that it has come out of nowhere and killed the transfer market.

Most premier league teams have massive squads and to then be told you can only have 25 means everyone must be thinking we must sell before we buy. There appears to be too much supply and not enough demand.

Brede hangerland... good shout.

Hazzard...yawn!!! You can tell its the school holidays. Guess we have you on here until September.

You must be really pleased with the new ASBO ruling

Very good shout! And id like bellamy and parker too! I wonder if the boss will be looking at kanoute if all else fails?

I don't rate Hangerland that highly. Defenders at certain clubs can look better than they actually are when the ethos of the manager is to first ensure you don't lose a game. When you have the majority of the team defending for 90 mins it makes it easier for the back 4. Dunne and Collins at Villa are very average players but look good because of the way MON sends his boring team out every week.

tend to agree with you CG about Dunne and Collins but rate Hangerland more highly as he seems nore comfortable on the ball than the other 2.

Defending should be glamerous! Look at vidic,ferdinand and terry all play last ditch defending and the instruction must be the same! Dawson played that way through out last season! Im not to sure our style of play is any different to fulhams except when we counter we keep it on the ground most of the time.

Sorry shouldnt be glamerous! And yiddover yourself 1882.

Hazzard ...distribution from the back is all important, and i think that is Rio fwerdinands weak spot. Spurs improved massively last season when Dawson startd to pass the ball out rather than hoof it up to Crouch. Tackling is as important.. but we need to have the ball to win the game.

I can see Parker as a good addition.
I think Harry is looking (in certain games) to have 2 decent holding central midfielders and then relying on the pace of Lennon and Bale out wide. Modric behind a CF.
I just don't think he believes that the shape is right against the better teams. Or that he has another decent CM to play alongside Palacios.
Parker and Palacios could be a good combination as we have forward thinking wide men.

....and hazzard.....last ditch defending really means they are 2 (or so) yeards out of position

....sorry....yards!

That seems to be the formation harry is looking for mdb. Holland played that way in the world cup and it looked pretty good. The only problem is who plays the lone striker role. I think Van Rapist wasn't good enough for that role and neither are any of our guys. I saw Celtic's Samaras play it well for Greece but that was only one game. Any Suggestions?

Has Martin Jol just signed Mido???

Perry Man its a tough one. And why the best teams in the world search to find that player.
If you do find him you can really adapt your style when needed.

As for who's put there now.....at the right price....not sure.

out of what we currently have Pav may be the better option. (I think we still have more to see from him)

I was thinking that Pav is probably the one too, but I can't explain why. Defoe is too selfish for the role and offside too often, Crouch would hold up the ball well, but where would the goals come from, Keane would link well and score but his first touch might let him down. Pav could probably do it but would need to up his work rate.

Said it before but what about Klose for the lone forward role? Strong. Good in the air. Holds ball up easily. Not lightning fast but quick enough. Great football brain. CL experience.
Easily cheaper option than most names touted.

Yidden he's certainly a possibility.
Not too sure on his goalscoring record in club football though.
.....and whats wrong with a german forward at the lane!!

other than him Fabiano has been linked (decent). Suarez (scored a nice overheard last night. could be decent). Forlan (not sure in the PL).

I'm sure Harry is on the case!

Didnt west ham have a deal in place prior the world cup for klose? But another good shout! Mind you are take any of the german squad on there world cup showing.

I don't think Fabiano was ever a possibility. Like Raul and countless others I think agents, clubs, etc just used us to boost wage demands.
Suarez I think is overpriced for how good he actuaaly is.
Forlan proved he can't handle PL and is more suited to Europen football.
There's not many out there who stand out and you actually think would be able to handle the PL.
Maybe thats why Harry is looking to Bellamy, Parker or Richards as he knows what they can do.

Bit harsh on Forlan I think YA. If you took Berbas Utd spell in isolation you'd say he's proving he can't handle the Prem. I think some players just can't handle the pressure of expectation at Utd.

I dunno CG, Kanoute is another that didn't do so well in the Prem but excelled in Spain. They are very different leagues, taking Forlan based on him stuggling last time just because he was at Utd would be a big gamble.

I agree with Granty that Forlan couldn't handle the pressure at UTD at that time. He's a top player. He's proved he would cope with the goals he has scored against premier opposition at European level.

Although, who am I to question the opinion of the brains of the group :)

I thought Kanoute did do well in the Prem. I thought he was very good at West Ham and did very well for us. He only left cos he fell out with Jol.
I agree it would be a gamble but then so is bringing any player in who doesn't have prior Premier League experience.

I think Berba even in his isolated Utd spell has shown far more than Forlan ever did. Can't see it being unable to handle the pressure at Utd, jsut don't think he's up to pressure of PL in general.

I'd be pro Kanoute too though. Thought he did well while with us.
But it's all about differing opinions :-)
Just want some transfer movement!
Hopefully if Milner moves it'll start the dominoes falling elsewhere.

Kanoute was fantastic scoring 7 in 9 and then he went off to the ACON to play for Mali and was crap from when he came back til the end of the season. He took alot of stick of defenders though.

The problem with Kanoute was his decision to play for Mali which pissed off the management as when he signed, he did so as a french player. He was on fire before the ANC scoring something like 8 goals in 8 (which led to reports of a bid from UTD) but when he came back, he only scored one goal and looked a different player.

I rated him very highly during his time at spurs. Fantastic target man but he fell out with the club because of the ANC and stopped trying for us.

You beat me to it Nobby!

Must be my muscle !!!

This is more like it! Marlenes husband and yiddover himself have gone a bit quiet though?

Ok, Kanoute wasn't terrible in the Prem but he didn't hit the heights here that he did in Spain. The Spanish league is slower but more technical than the Prem and suits certain players better. Like CG says, it's always a gamble when bringing in foreign talent therefore I think it's best to look at an individuals style of play and try to judge whether or not it would be suited to the prem. A striker who can shoot (accurately) on sight is probably more suited than one who likes to take time and make space for himself, unless the latter is very skillful.

I think there are good argument for both side on the players mentioned and i would use clive allen as an example! We got one fantastic season out of him playing to his strengths and thats whats required with all the strikers mentioned. More important for me is! Has harry learned from his mistakes?

If we forget for a second the names of the players harry has targeted, what can we learn about what Harry's plans are for the season in terms of formation? Parker (who I would love to see at WHL) and Joe Cole are so far the only confirmed outfield targets. By going for these players, I think Harry wants a shift to 3 in midfield as I couldn't see either player fitting into a 442 without us losing a good existing option.

Bostock is starting to pis@ me off with his moaning. nothing worse than young players talking shi@. great to see spurs pis@ing off west ham chairman sullivan. fuc@ing tool.

raver....and even more so if we have turned Parker's head!

lets get him to want to play of us

is the game on ESPN tonight?

post 143...plus Alan Harry has said that he wants to play this formation in a number of interviews!!!

Taking Harry's word around tactics and transfers often leads to a false path. I am encourage by the evidence as I don't think 442 will get you anywhere at the top level. In Bale in particular I think we have someone who would be fantastic on the left side of the front three. I know some see him as left back (including Harry) but personally I think we potentially have a midfielder capable of getting 10 goals a season on top of countless assists. I am expecting huge things from this season, if he can stay fit. Getting him that new deal was bigger (IMO) than the Harry or Modric deals.

I am hoping we start out like this

Gomes
Kaboul Dawson King BAE

Palacios Huddlestone
Modric
Lennon Bale

I didn't put a striker as none of the existing ones seem to fit into a lone striker role.

I can't see that happening, my thoughts are more along the lines of

--------Gomes
-Walker Daws King Bale
--Palacios Mod Hudd
---Lennon Bellamy(?)
-------Klose(?)
Call it a 4-3-2-1, or if the striker drops back, a 4-3-3.
Bale and Walker to provide the width with Hudd and Palacios sitting deep to protect the defence when they get forward.

Gomes
Kaboul Dawson King BAE
Parker Palacious
Modric
Lennon Pav Bale

No viable striker to buy. Pav looked good playing as the lone striker for Russia in Euro '08

As with Alans line up, I can't see Harry developing the defensive side to Bales game just to stick him up front.

That said, MK, the other day Harry brought Rose on in the game against Sporting and instead of pushing Bale back to LB and Rose playing left mid he put Rose on at LB. Maybe Harrys opinion is changing.

I agree with you MK that I can't see Harry doing that. By targeting Cole and Bellamy, he appears to have other plans for that position. I personally see Bale as perfect for that role. He's a match winner for us. He's proven that against top sides. Moving him to left back means we'll get a very good left back. However, I feel he can be a world class LM, in the mould of a giggs or a robben. No matter how good a left back he can be, I'd rather he had a world class left winger. They are harder to come by and much more valuable.

John Bostock is a bit of a tit, he needs to stop talking and really knuckle down. If Jamie O'Hara can play for Tottenham then so can if he just gets his attitude right. It's not foreigners holding English players back its the attitude of the English youngsters.

Bale is quick, powerful and direct but I can't honestly see him ever being a world class winger. He doesn't have a box of tricks and I think he will be worked out quite easily if he stays on the left wing. As a left back he could be devastating going forward and going backwards. I hope Bale can prove me wrong but I can't really see him being a left winger long term, he just seems too limited in what he can do.

The thing he said he wants the opportunity to go on loan yet that's exactly what the club gave him and he blew it. He must have known when he signed for spurs that it would mean he'd have to bide his time. There's no way he would have been told he would be first team material straight away. He can't even get into the first team at U19 level for England. He's got a lot to learn. Interesting when Sherwood was asked who he predicts will do well out the youngsters, he mentioned Mason and Obika. Two players who appear ready for championship football on the next ladder of their development. Bostock appears to think he's better than that.

What I like about Bale is that he's got enough tricks to get him beyond a player and at the end of it he delivers a wonderful final ball. IMO he's already a better winger than Lennon. Lennon who I admire greatly relies more on his speed than Bale and as we all know, does not always produce a good enough final ball.

Yeah, I didn't really understand the logic in putting Rose at LB...he would have conceeded a penalty if the ref got it right, fortunatly for Rose the ref didn't.

Bale is a bit of a speed merchant himself, albeit with a lot more strength than Lennon but I expect a lot more skill, creativity and trickery from a winger rather than just knocking the ball on and steamrollering through.

As for Bostock, like you say CG, how can he complain when the main competition for the position he wants are the likes of O'Hara, Jenas and Huddlestone..bloody foreigners eh?!

He's got plenty of skills. Did you guys not remember his bit of skill that led to the Crouch 'goal' against Pompey at Wembley?

If you consider how unplayable Lennon can be at times, I personally believe, Bale is already better. He's very much like Giggs or Robben in that he's got speed but he's intelligent with his play. I guess we'll see it as he gets doubled up on next season. That'll be the true test. For now however I feel there is far more doubts over whether Bale can be a world class LB than a world class LW. there's also much more to be gain than having a young Ryan Giggs than a young Ashley Cole for example.

Bale will be the best Attacking left back in the league. He is strong quick, can pass, cross and bag a few goals. I'm interested in what we will do at right back this season, as i was quite impressed with Kaboul. BUt we have Kyle Kyle, Corluka and Hutton. And Bostock is a twat, if he things he can blame jonny foriegner for his lack of oppotunatities. He needs to wake up and smell the coffee and put a shift in and then he may get his chance. You dont see, Rose, Townsend, Caulker, Obika etc all complaining and look at them now, all of them above Bostock in the pecking order

I have to agree with Alan. Bale has the ability to beat defenders. Watching him coast by two or three of them last season was a joy to behold. I couldn't work out whether he did it through trickery, speed, a dip of the shoulder or all three and I don't think the defenders could either. In the last half of the season he was our most potent attacking force. To put him back to left back we would lose more than we gain.

Bale has it in his locker to be either a world class LB or LW. He is really quick and deceptively strong so when he beats a defender playing at LW he does't need to bamboozle them with stepovers just drop a shoulder create half a yard of space and the has the option of the cross from deep or nipping through the gap and beating the defender for pace and strength to get to the by-line/into the box. At LB he needs to improve a bit positionally but is not scared of a tackle is good in the air, he's also always going to be a threat going forward when playing from LB, especially with a player who likes to cut inside in front of him like when Modders plays there. Whichever position he plays my favourite part of his game is the fact he always puts in a shift.

Jesus christ! Corluka what is that plank doing? Santos and bale look good though and maybe we could bag that rossi?

There is no shame in losing to world beaters like...

oh Villareal.

This is a valuable exercise for the champions league. They are moving it around really well and we are showing no discipline or patience. It's only a friendly of course.

Spuds a l'orange haha.
COWS!

You forget lads, a lot of the time when you see Bale marauding forward and ghosting past players he is actually coming from the left back position. Not all of his best work was performed from left mid, he can be just as effective from the defence, add to that it gives us an extra man in the midfield.

I assume Harry is trying Corluka out as a centre back...doesn't seem to be working.

Jesus! Calm down Baron...it's only a friendly.

Good to see guys like Dos Santos, Taarabt, Parrett, Walker, Naughton and...er well, maybe not so much Button. I think having so many youngsters did contribute to the lack of discipline and patience though.

It is a pre season game but the worry is that the league isn't that far away.
Harry did change the side around a lot to give the fringe guys a game.
and nice to see Gio Taarabt getting a game

hopefully the starting X1 against City will look at tonight and already know they will do better

COYS!

we went 3 or so preseasons without defeats and that for me as ive pointed out before is a problem!!!! harry is bould enough to try different things and see what other players can do and we all know that preseason results dont mean fuuuuuuuck all just ask jol and ramos!!

I think it was what Harry needed to do.
he needed to see the young guys against some real opposition.
and it would have been good for all of them

Was quite pleased with Walker and Gio, Bale and Niko. And I wasnt unhappy to see Jenas go of. It did show we lacked somthing up front and at the back. But hey ho, its pre season, thats what these games are for

GM - Completely agree. It was good to see them being pulled all over the place to be honest. These youngsters need to be tested. I have been very pleased with the quality of opposition we are facing this pre-season. In the states they were all match fitter than us and Villreal were perfect opponents given their style of play.

Trying corluca at centre back is as useful as trying steven fry!,he
is slow, weak in the mind as well as in the body,he looks like a frightned rabbit.
teams are moving (even in england)to pass with pace two touch in middfield,and pace up front,
LOOSE THE JOGGERS,

Yeah the result didnt bother me to be honest. It answered a rew questions, like what if Lennon got injured again and can our strikers score. Not sure on the defense, but I guess Harry is waiting to see if King is going to be fit.

BUT that is the point Mart, Harry tries it now not once the season has started. I have to admit i wasnt convinced with any of the defensive play really. Hutton, looked ok a few times coming forward but otherwise we looked a bit of the pace.

What i was alluding to was 'specialised subject the bleedin obvious'
if harry has to waste time doing something so dumb it is a worry,i will give him the benefit of doubt, but on the list of people who could play there he was going to be just behind jason dozzell,walker in the future?, hope he doesent'swoop' for chimbonda like before,that went well!!!!.

Yep great point wert! Might just be what our manager and players need? And us fans. Corluka is so laid back he thinks croatia still might qualifie for the 2010 world cup!

Don't worry Mart. The only reason why Corluka played centre was so that he got game time. He's defender so being there was not entirely irrelevant but the primary objective, I think, was to get minutes under his belt. There's no way Harry would ever choose Corluka over Bassong in a proper game.

Love to see the young guys on the pitch,and to loose wont hurt at all,
they got confirmation of the tech etc of the old 'jonny foreigner'
the old learning curve was very 'curvy' tonight

dont be slating Corluka.,its hard playing with 2 wooden legs.

Corluka is far too harshly treated on here by a lot of people. He's a good right back. Not the best but there aren't too many better in the Prem. Walker looks very promising though and in a season or two could hopefully make that spot his own.

That's the difference. Arsenal younsters perform, Tottnum youngsters are just young. And 'very promising', haha.

Baron you are a fool !!! It means nothing it was a friendly and anyway I seem to remember 2 of Tottenham's Youngsters performing very well against your bunch of pikeys last season!!! When it mattered.

Arsenal youngsters perform when asked to by Wenger, that's why he buys them. Maybe that time spent performimg for Wenger would be better spent in the gym though

Is this what Arsenal fans have resorted to? First it was celebrating the fact that Henry scored against us (not whilst playing for Arsenal) and now us losing in a friendly?

It's liable to be the highlights of Arsenals year...

the reason baron comes on here is that no-one types in english on the Arse web page!

That and imprisoning their captain to stay another year.

What's this about Arsenal's youngsters performing? When did that happen?

WHEN WENGER WAS GIVING THEM SWEETS!!!!

performing felatio...

Let's keep it objective ladies, I'm not interested in reading about your personal experiences.

Your team conceded four goals at home - it could and should have been more! - to an average European side. You'll do an Everton, your season will be over before it starts.

"your season will be over before it starts"

The more you post, the more certain I become that you are mistaking this site for an Arsenal one.

You want to keep it objective Baron? Ok, Button is our 3rd choice keeper and Dos Santos, Taarabt, Parrett, Walker and Naughton barely have 90 minutes 1st team experience between them...they were playing a team who regularly qualify for European competition and who are much further along in their pre-season preperations. Objective enough for you?

Do Taarabt and Dos Santos have 90 minutes 1st team experience between them? Or are you telling porkies, MK? The simple fact is that these youngsters are failures.

Failures? What have they failed at? They haven't done anything to be judged on...

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