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Spurs is as Spurs does

5 min read
by Vass Koni
We may have slipped right at the end, but there has been enough positivity along the way to give us hope for next season writes Vass Koni for The Fighting Cock

It’s going to be a painful summer for Spurs fans. Our end to the season and aim at least finishing second in the league was akin to a marathon runner slipping on the only wet patch nearing the finishing line and dislocating their ankle.

However we have come to the realisation that Spurs fans were born to suffer and that we seem do it with a modicum of Gallic “c’est la vie” having developed a skin so hardened that Valyrian Steel couldn’t puncture it.

If I wanted some comfort I could convince myself that this was all part of a master plan to keep Arsene Wenger in a job and keep the Woolwich Clan in a bitter war amongst themselves. They have labelled it St Totteringham’s day or some such nonsense, but this is not so much about Spurs failing but more about Gooners justifying their existence and convincing themselves that they matter, as they peer from behind their A4 laminated placards and voice protests on their fan TV channel. This was supposed to be their season. It wasn’t; it was ours and still is.

In saying this you may wonder as to whether I missed the last four games or the fact that Leicester won the league. I can assure you I didn’t. I was mad as hell after taking the family to WHL to watch the game versus Southampton and the pitiful display that followed.

[linequote]Some of the football that the club played has been lauded this season by commentators, pundits and opposing managers alike[/linequote]

We needed one point from the last two games to secure second, but we spectacularly failed to complete an achievable task. It should not have come as a surprise in fairness as we appeared to bail on the league in the West Brom game. We have not recovered; apart from one adrenaline fuelled frenzy against Chelsea where everything was indeed left on the pitch including our senses. Flip flops on. Buckets and spades at the ready.

But it is our season for so many reasons and that it has been our best performance in the Premier League should not be dismissed so readily. For so long this season, particularly around Christmas and the New Year, I have never felt so proud of being a Spurs fan. Something I haven’t felt for many a year.

Literally walking on air with a feeling of invincibility so much so that no rival team threatened my consciousness. Some of the football that the club played has been lauded this season by commentators, pundits and opposing managers alike. People like Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher and Graeme Souness were heralding us as the best team in the land.

Opposing managers were coming to White Hart Lane and doing likewise. We were first in just about every meaningful stat in the game (bar points of course and I take that argument). We were even first in number of players booked in a single game.

The teams that hate us seem to have grown too. For us the rivalry is Woolwich and that will always be the case. But ask Chelsea, West Ham, perhaps Liverpool and even Southampton fans who they hate and it will be Spurs. Good luck to them. It tells you more about Tottenham than it does about them. Hate, outside of it being a purely rivalry thing stems from jealousy I have always found, which means we must be doing something right.

This season we busted through the “lads it’s Tottenham” barrier and showed teams that our underbelly is not for tickling and we did it by being the youngest squad in the league…. Ever.

Spurs have now furnished the national team with a crop of talent that could stand them in good stead for years, but the entire group at White Hart Lane, as young as it is, has room to grow. The ceiling is very high indeed and we have planted foundations that can be built upon. We shouldn’t need wholesale changes each season any more. Just a gradual drip feeding of incremental change.

In addition the club has become known as a place where upcoming talent wants to be and with Champions League football on its way that will be a further magnet for talented players. The “selling club” mentality could soon be a thing of the past as players want to commit their futures to “the project” and the “philosophy” and indeed have done so already this season.

[linequote] Hate, outside of it being a purely rivalry thing stems from jealousy I have always found, which means we must be doing something right[/linequote]

Pochettino seemed to have his “contract signing photo opportunity suit” on very regularly. Most importantly though we have a manager that although may have made a few mistakes along the way, will also learn and has already reportedly been described by Sir Alex Ferguson to be the best manager in the league. The future is bright. Of course it is.

It is easy to forget this after having walked on air for so long this season that it almost felt like trudging through a quagmire blindfolded in these last four games. Perhaps player’s attentions turned to the Euro’s and staying fit once the league challenge was gone, and in some ways who could blame them when you see what happened to Danny Welbeck.

Perhaps a bit more squad depth, something we should address in the summer, will ensure that we don’t ever end the season again after game 34. That and the wrath of Pochettino, whose post-match interview after the Newcastle game was induced with refrained anger. That is a good thing by the way. Players can let themselves down but when they let their manager and the fans down it could and should get very uncomfortable.

So whilst it is easy to focus on the recent, we should really look back on the season as a whole. It was not just a step up from the previous campaign but instead was one giant leap for Tottenham kind. Our best Premier League finish ever and our most comfortable Champions League qualification ever.

Rival fans can and will in the end say what they like but things are not so bad. It is a nice place even if it feels hard to do right now, put a smile on your face. We go again next season.

All views and opinions expressed in this article are the views and opinions of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of The Fighting Cock. We offer a platform for fans to commit their views to text and voice their thoughts. Football is a passionate game and as long as the views stay within the parameters of what is acceptable, we encourage people to write, get involved and share their thoughts on the mighty Tottenham Hotspur.

Vass Koni

5 Comments

  1. Lawrinho
    19/05/2016 @ 10:08 am

    Nice article, Vas. Agree wholehartedly. We’ve so much to be proud of. It is indeed ‘our season’ , we’ve arrived as serious challengers, nothing changes that.

    I remember walking away from Stamford Bridge the other week. Completely stunned and speechless. Yes, devastated for obvious reasons, but equally in awe of what I’d just seen from the best Spurs ‘team’I’ve ever watched. The energy and combativeness was absolutely breathtaking, like NOTHING id ever seen. But as you rightly point out – we left EVERYTHING out there on the pitch that night. As I got my train home, I knew deep down that that was likely to be our ‘last performance’ this season and that we’d probably not get another point form our remaining games. I know it would have been wonderful to finish above them in second, but my feelings were reflected by Poch and Jermaine Jenas when they say that we are now bigger than ‘finishing above Arsenal’ and mustn’t forget that. We matter far more to them now than they do to us.

    I cannot wait for next season. COYS

  2. Russ
    19/05/2016 @ 4:44 pm

    Lovely article – especially the positivity. Agree with every word.

  3. John
    19/05/2016 @ 8:36 pm

    It’s perfect time to make a few plans for the future and
    it is time to be happy. I have learn this publish and if I may just I desire to recommend you some fascinating things or advice.
    Perhaps you can write next articles relating to this article.
    I want to learn even more issues about it!

  4. Paul Shelf
    20/05/2016 @ 11:12 am

    An Excellent read

  5. SamZ
    25/05/2016 @ 9:17 pm

    Well done, yet again, Vass. You have a wonderful ability to filter noise and remain focused on the important issues. My crazy, angst-filled Spurs brain always seems to be calmed after reading your Tottenham prose. 16/17 is going to be an insane season. COYS!

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