Joe
Lewis
Lewis (left) pictured at White Hart Lane with Spurs chairman; Daniel Levy (right)
Joe Lewis is very much the 'vehicle' that transports Tottenham but the driver is very much the current Chairman; Daniel Levy.
Levy's reign has seen a succession of managers (George Graham, Glenn Hoddle and David Pleat). With Martin Jol as manager, Spurs finished fifth in the Premier League, (their highest position until the fourth place finish in the 2009-10 campaign) and the club qualified for the UEFA Cup, a feat they repeated again the following season. However Levy's decision to fire Martin Jol after a poor start to the 2007/2008 season, when many of the players appeared to be unfit, was widely regarded as a rash move by Tottenham supporters.
The appointment of a new management team, including the highly regarded Juande Ramos as head coach resulted in some short-lived optimism amongst the Tottenham fans. On 24 February 2008, Tottenham beat Chelsea 2-1 at Wembley in the 2008 Football League Cup Final to win their first trophy in nine years, and their first under Levy's reign, and gain automatic qualification for the UEFA cup. A year later they reached the final for a second successive year, this time losing to Manchester United on penalties. However, at the start of the following season Spurs' league form took a disastrous turn which culminated in their worst ever start to a league campaign in 2008/09.
In the late hours of 25 October 2008, Daniel Levy took the decision to fire Sporting Director Damien Comolli, Head Coach Juande Ramos, first team coaches, Marcos Álvarez and Gus Poyet. Levy then installed Harry Redknapp as the new Head Coach of Tottenham. The move proved hugely successful, as a dramatic upturn in Tottenham's form on the pitch saw them steadily climb out of relegation zone to eventually finish in eighth position. Further progress was made in the 2009/2010 season, with Spurs finishing in the top four and winning entry into the qualification round of the UEFA Champions League for the first time. 2010-11 saw another excellent season for Tottenham, as they finished top of their Champions League group, beating holders Inter Milan along the way, and then dispatching AC Milan in the knock-out stages. Their exciting Champions' League run ended at the hands of Real Madrid. Tottenham finished fifth in the Premier League 2010-11 season, missing out on Champions' League qualification but securing a place in the Europa League after overtaking Liverpool with victory at Anfield in the penultimate game of the season.
The summer of 2011 was a tough time at Tottenham, with Chelsea trying to sign star player Luka Modric, however Levy refused to sell. After losing to both Manchester clubs, Spurs won ten of their next eleven Premier League games, drawing the other. The club equalled their best ever Premier League run of six consecutive wins, also achieving their best league start since the double-winning team of the 1960-1 season, gaining 31 points from a possible 39.
On 14 June 2012 and after failing to reach the champions league, Redknapp was sacked by Levy despite finishing 4th in the Premier League. On 3 July the club appointed former Chelsea and Porto boss Andre Villas-Boas as new head coach.
After Tottenham finished outside the Champions League places at the end of the 2012/13 season, in a protracted summer transfer deal Levy negotiated the sale of star winger Gareth Bale to Real Madrid for a world record transfer fee of £86 million. Following some poor results in the first half of the 2013-14 season, including a 5-0 home defeat by Liverpool, Levy sacked Villas-Boas on 16 December 2013. Assistant coach Tim Sherwood was subsequently announced as manager following the sacking of Villas-Boas. Despite signing an 18 month contract with Spurs, and leading Tottenham to a 6th place finish in the Premier League, Sherwood was himself sacked at the season's end on 13 May 2014.
Tottenham Hotspur's New Training facility opened in 2012
The new architecturally designed Tottenham Hotspur Training Centre has been built on 77 acres and is located on Hotspur Way, Enfield. It is the home of the Club's First Team and Academy and is recognised as one of the best in Europe.
The state-of-the-art facility - which includes a covered artificial pitch, world-class player preparation areas, pool and hydrotherapy complex, altitude room, large-scale gymnasium and specialist sports rehabilitation suites - will support the Club's ambitions to attract, develop and retain the highest quality talent.
There are 15 grass pitches across the site including four dedicated solely for First Team Training and one and a half artificial outdoor pitches with floodlighting. The First Team Match pitch is built to exactly the same specification as the pitch at White Hart Lane.
new stadium currently under construction,, due to open in 2018
ENIC are currently overseeing the redevelopment of the entire club's stadium and the surrounding borough of Tottenham.
In October 2008, Levy presented plans for a new stadium for Tottenham Hotspur. The intention was to build it adjacent to the current stadium, White Hart Lane, and for it to hold 56,264 spectators. The new stadium complex would also include leisure areas, public spaces, a museum, restaurants, a supermarket and shops, a hotel and apartments. The development was called the Northumberland Development Project (NDP) and work could start on the project soon after it received planning permission by Haringey Council, probably at the end of September 2010.
The scheme was delayed due to a local business refusing to relocate from the plot intended to construct the new stadium. Archway Steel of Paxton Road - the street adjacent to the current White Hart Lane stadium, behind the club's north stand - contested the legal grounds for Tottenham obtaining a Compulsory Purchase Order (COP). Haringey Council was granted permission to issue a Compulsory Purchase Order to Archway Sheet Metals by Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in June 2014 on which, the Steel Works company appealed.
However, the firm had its legal bid against a compulsory purchase order rejected at the High Court in February, 2015. Archway has announced that it will not be appealing the decision, meaning that Spurs can proceed with their £400 million redevelopment of White Hart Lane.
New stadium TimeLine
April 2008 - Spurs began investigations into the Wingate industrial estate adjacent to White Hart Lane with a view to stadium expansion.
December 2008 - Designs for the new stadium are unveiled. An intended completion date of the start of the 2012-13 season was revealed by Daniel Levy.
April 2009 - Tottenham announce they will issue 30m new shares to raise £15m for the first stage of the proposed development.
October 2009 - Planning application to Haringey Council is submitted.
May 2010 - Tottenham withdraw planning application and submit a revised plan.
March 2013 - West Ham are confirmed as Olympic Stadium tenants and Tottenham focus all attentions on the current project.
April 2013 - Public Inquiry is held about last remaining properties to be acquired.
July 2014 - Secretary of State Eric Pickles grants compulsory purchase order for the last piece of land.
February 2015 - Archway are informed there is no legal flaw in Tottenham's compulsory purchase order, removing the final hurdle.
Results in the League during ENIC's tenure.
Ultimate ownership of the Club
Of the total issued share capital of Tottenham Hotspur Limited, ENIC International Limited own 85.0%.
Mr D. Levy and certain members of his family are potential beneficiaries of a discretionary trust which ultimately owns 29.4% of the share capital of ENIC International Limited.
Mr J Lewis has an interest of 70.6% of ENIC International Limited.
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