1-2-3 Wake Up!

Bear with me if you will…there’s a movie I always enjoy and cannot forget – White Squall (Ridley Scott, 1996), with the terrific Jeff Bridges. I recommend it unreservedly.

It centres on the story of a disparate group of young men who discover discipline and camaraderie on an ill-fated sailing voyage. A tragedy occurs during the perfect storm of the title and one of the principle characters is trapped below decks, with the boat capsizing.

He’s always suffered from nightmares, and has a trick to help – whenever he’s having a bad dream he tells his brain “1-2-3 Wake Up!” – it’s always worked and released him from whatever demons were possessing his sleeping mind.

As the ship starts to sink and water cascades into the cabins, we see him at a porthole, with mad staring tear filled eyes, frantically mouthing “1-2-3 Wake Up!” over and over again. It doesn’t work and he drowns – it’s an image I can’t shake.

The film moves on to the legal case & courtroom battle against the school master & leader of the trip – Bridges.

Okay – so what on earth am I referencing a movie for on a Spurs Blog? Well…

As this astonishing Premier League season, and our role in it has progressed I’ve found myself in unfamiliar territory – a kind of reverse nightmare – it’s not meant to be like this for us is it? At every turn, I see only progress, concrete building blocks, growth, improvement & a horizon that looks pretty close to a rainbow’s end.

So I keep pinching the fleshy bit of my wrist and when that doesn’t wake me I revert to the “1-2-3 Wake Up!” tactic above.

But it’s no good. Despite my best efforts to prove that I am dreaming and that my cynical, warped & worn out Spurs mind is toying with me, I can’t wake up. I’m not asleep and this is real. It feels vastly different to every other season I’ve experienced. All 38 of them. How so?

The Team
Here’s the nub and the foundation of everything that’s good right now. We actually have one. A pulsating, rock solid, forged in steel, unified group of youthful, ambitious, dedicated & committed players who all obey his master’s voice. No trouble making over inflated, over paid egos disrupting the rhythm. (Assuming Townsend is off double quick) A team that’s a joyful combination of home grown talent, carefully sourced youthful swagger and the odd wiser older international head. It’s a potent mix and has been built for the long term. Not thrown together to satisfy some notional and misplaced short termism.

[linequote]How far can we go – dare we dream, is there really a sniff of glory? I don’t know but the ride is thrilling, eventful, breath taking at times, gut wrenching and absorbing. We should enjoy, no relish it. We’ve not been here in a long while[/linequote]

Another important aspect of having a team where the sum is greater than the parts is the ability is has to absorb an injury or a suspension (Kane seems indestructible thank God) It’s also reassuring to know that we are not reliant on a single superstar player as we have been so often in the past – ask any fan leaving the ground who the man of the match was and you’ll get five or six different answers. For too many years all we had to encourage us to walk up the High Road was a single glorious stand out player compensating for an overall lack of quality in seven or eight other positions – Ginola the most extreme case when he shone in a sea of shit.

Who doesn’t love Eric Dier – surely the most startling revelation most have us have seen at Spurs – a promising, adequate reserve CB or makeshift RB who has morphed into the bastard child of Graham Roberts. Just watching Dele Alli elegantly canter around the pitch looking to nutmeg anyone who’s up for it, or chin someone who isn’t, brings a wide smile (of pride) to my face every single match.

The improvements witnessed in the performances and focus of Rose & Walker and whisper it, Lamela, is another huge plus this year.

Then of course you have the defensive triumvirate of France’s best export & the two Belgians – Toby in particular is one of the most infectious signings I can recall – a player that has made many other players better – just by being there.

I could go on, but as I said earlier – we all have our favourites and pick our individuals heroes on a weekly basis – the cast to choose from is a numerous as it’s ever been.
What’s also striking is how much fun they seem to be having. I was lucky enough to watch the team train in Monaco – and what stood out was the laughter amongst them. They do really seem to be mates having a ball.

The Form
Well you can butter my arse but here we are on New Year’s Day, with half the season gone sitting 4th, just a whisker behind the financially doped Man City, the startling surprise package of Leicester & a mere four points off the Top – temporarily occupied by the South Londoners. How apt.

We’ve lost two league games in 19. Read that again. We’ve conceded fewer goals than any other PL team (see Toby) & have the best GD in the division. I have never written or even thought those last two points ever before when talking about Spurs. This is alien territory.
A few highlights have included thrashing Man city & West Ham at the Lane & grinding out impressive away wins at places like Watford. With a winning goal worthy of its own trophy. Yes we’ve drawn too many, maybe – but if you’re drawing you’re still accumulating points…

It’s also been done in the right manner – we’ve put the dark days of possession obsession horizontal turgid suffocation football to bed – along with the chaotic, untrained, ramshackle mess of the gilet wearing unemployed chancer.

There’s a swagger to our play – a confident shimmy here, a dropped shoulder there and a beautifully worked team goal results. I love watching these boys play this stuff. Who wouldn’t?

[linequote]A team that’s a joyful combination of home grown talent, carefully sourced youthful swagger and the odd wiser older international head. It’s a potent mix and has been built for the long term. Not thrown together to satisfy some notional and misplaced short termism[/linequote]

How far can we go – dare we dream, is there really a sniff of glory? I don’t know but the ride is thrilling, eventful, breath taking at times, gut wrenching and absorbing. We should enjoy, no relish it. We’ve not been here in a long while.

The Boss
Of course all of the above is explicitly and expressly a result of the remarkable Poch. He’s making such a dramatic difference to so many aspects of the team that no one could have foreseen – least of all our Chairman, Lucky Levy.

I love so much about him. His calm authority. His attention to detail, his will to win, his complete intolerance of bad fit personalities (What a cull we witnessed in the summer – a purge in all but name.) He appears to be relishing his work – he is enthused, animated and above all else – ambitious. We are bloody lucky to have him. No soundbites, no cheeky chappy wisecracks, no back door briefings to media mates, no personal agenda to self-promote, swerve responsibility or elevate himself above others by sneering, blaming or blanking. He is a class act on every single measure. And he’s only been here 5 minutes really – imagine where we’ll be in 5 more years of Poch.

Unfortunately I think this will inevitably lead to him being the 1st Spurs Manager I can think of who will leave us for a “bigger, better” job – in Spain I would imagine. However’ he’s a couple of titles to win with us first.

The Fans
Well this is nice isn’t it? A united, positive, chest out, army with one voice. The return of something resembling an atmosphere at the Lane. The best of days when travelling away with the most vocal away fans around. It’s all smiles, beers, singing & believing in what you are seeing. It’s supporting your team in its purest form. Again, this feels different and better.

What has also struck me this year is how tuned in to performances our fans have become – capable of having a collective realisation and then voicing it, As One – the singing of Dembele’s name at the whistle at St Mary’s a case in point. We knew he was the difference and that his endeavour, vigour, bravery & muscle was the platform on which the victory was won. Away days are happy days right now. More please.

The Stadium
Finally. With 648 more seats than the closest other PL stadium. Call me childish, silly or pathetic, but I love that. Because I know how much it will irritate the latte supping iPad carrying scarf wearing Tarquins over there.

The stadium is only good news – we aren’t moving. We’re building a vast extension on the existing plot. I’ll still walk across Bruce Castle Park to the Lane just as I’ve always done – it’ll just be bigger. Those of you weeping into your Stella that the grand old Lane is going need to give yourself a shake. If we want this season to be the start of a new period of genuinely competing with the biggest clubs, and not a one off freak high water mark we need to dramatically increase our income.

I’m excited. I daren’t really start believing in what might be possible. I know we’re going to cock it up in some matches (probably). But I tell you what… imagine if we did.

So, I’m going to stop saying “1-2-3 Wake Up!” because I don’t need to – I’m going to relax into this new landscape, drink it up, smother myself in the sheer joy of being Spurs right now. Wide awake. I urge you all to do the same because you know that song we sing, it actually means something today.

“The thing I love most…”