NORMAN GILLER'S SPURS ODYSSEY BLOG No 487
Submitted by Norman Giller

Manchester United clueless, or Tottenham Hotspur ruthless? That was the question we were all asking after yesterday's dismantling of ManU by a Spurs side registering their fourth successive victory.

My view is that the answer lies somewhere in the middle. Tottenham were at times magnificent, but we have to judge a pulsating performance with the balancing admission that this is the poorest United team since the dawn of the Premier League.

As our guru Paul H. Smith reports HERE, Tottenham were playing some scintillating football even before the controversial sending off of United skipper Bruno Fernandes after a rash challenge on James Maddison. I thought a yellow card would have been sufficient punishment, but I had the advantage of making this decision after seeing several action replays.

The goals from 'Brengun' Johnson, Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke clinched a convincing away win that would have been even more emphatic if Timo Werner had worn his shooting boots.

His misses were frustrating but there was no excuse for the keyboard warriors coming out from the woodwork to take pot shots at the highly skilled German international. He will score vital goals for Spurs, please believe it. It's ridiculous to take him apart for what every striker goes through, missing the target. What sort of support is that, to pull one of your own players apart?

Brennan Johnson went through similar treatment but has now silenced the snipers, who should be ashamed of themselves for turning on their own players.

And while I'm in moaning mood, how about those morons who blackened the club's name with their homophobic chants during the win at Old Trafford? It was so bad that the club had to issue a statement last night distancing themselves from the sickening choruses and promising strong action against anybody caught using abusive language.

There is a small minority of Tottenham fans who have become the enemy within and this old git is appalled by their mindless behaviour. They will no doubt laugh in my face but they are scarring the Beautiful Game and giving our great club a bad name.

Let's end on a high note. As heartening as it was to see Tottenham making the net bulge, for me the real highlight of this performance was the dovetailing at the heart of the defence of Cristiano Romero and dashing Dutchman Micky Van der Ven. We have arguably the finest central defender pairing in the Premier League and I am hoping they can shut out the forwards of Ferencvaros in Budapest on Thursday.

A fifth successive win would be tasty and set Spurs up for Sunday's visit to Brighton to face opponents who can be brilliant but erratic. I can remember when Spurs fitted that description!

COYS!

Week SEVEN of our eleventh season of the Spurs Odyssey Quiz League, and the question is:

Who has won 136 caps, been a World Cup runner-up and which Dutch club does he now play for after his stint at Spurs?

Please email your answer to me at soqleague@gmail.com and make the subject heading Quiz Week 6. Deadline: midnight this Friday. I will do my best to respond to all who take part.

The rules are the same as in the previous ten seasons. I ask a two-pronged question with three points at stake - two for identifying the player and one for the supplementary question. In the closing weeks of the competition I break the logjam of all-knowing Spurs-history experts with a real stinker of a tie-breaking poser that is based on opinion rather than fact.

This year's main prize will be a framed certificate announcing the winner as SOQL champion 2025, plus three signed books to be revealed at a later date.

Last week's question: Who has won 65 caps, wears the No 30 Tottenham shirt and from which club did he join Spurs?

Answer: Rodrigo Bentancur, Juventus.

See you back here on Monday. COYS!

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