My thanks go to Anton Lang, who hasn't written for Spurs Odyssey for a while.
It's a step to the left - Let's
do the Timewarp, Yeah!
Ah! The graceful attacking skills, the forwards all prepared to take a
chance, a midfield that worked its socks off to supply those same forwards,
a defence that, when asked, held its own and an international goalkeeper
that could grace any major club worldwide. Yes folks, that was Southampton!
Ironically, we could have been saying very much the above during the glory
years about a once great team that had spirit and belief about itself. A
team that had the measure of the top teams in the league and indeed, were
one of the big guns that other clubs feared playing and grabbing a result
against them would have been gloating material much in the line of what we
are seeing today with the Arsenal and Man U's of this world. Sadly, it is
all too far a distant memory.
Oh yes, there are occasional glimpses of those shadows of our past vis-a-vis
the recent home game against our North London neighbours and even two
reasonably decent performances against those Geordie boys in the hinterland
and those "South Hampshire Yobbo's" (see Whupert's comment re Spurs fans) on
New Years Day. Though we have struggled to put the ball in the back of the
net for want of a decent striker or two, we have shown those elements that
made Tottenham great many years ago are gradually finding feet within the
team again. The distressing thing is that they serve only to tantalise us
but feed mere morsels and to the opposition they feed great feasts. They
crow about our pride with comments such as: "The Glory Days of Spurs - Don't
make us laugh" or "When you play as well as that it reminds us all how bad
you really are".
Not that losing to Southampton is necessarily a bad thing, they are not the
perennial fall guys they have been in the past and Mr. Strachan has put
together a good team (let not Mr. Hoddle take too much credit for that)
which has shown that they can mix it in the Premier League now. No, what
really rankles is the complete lack of self respect shown by all of the
players bar Robbie Keane, who at least tried to earn some respect from the
fans, the voracious appetite of the commentary team who tucked into a feast
of negatives about the team selection, formation, style of play (or lack
thereof), the manager who "Always preferred a 5-3-2 formation even with
Chelsea, England and at the Dell with Southampton" - Mark Lawrenson MOTD.
They may be there to simply add commentary but for the most, they are
respected names in the business and do have more than an ounce of
credibility when it comes to tactical thoughts but when they can spot the
glaring inefficiency, lack of desire, lack of co-ordination, lack of...
well, complete lack of anything positive to say.
Yes, I was depressed at seeing the goals roll in, each one like a nail being
driven into the cross, which in some ways succinctly describes our game
plan - 'crucified', though even the faintest hope of us grabbing a goal or
two back kept me watching up to the third goal but the commentary - loaded
with bile for the Spurs effort - drove me away more than anything else. "How
can they say things like that about our glorious Spurs?. How can they defile
the memory of what Spurs once stood for - Entertaining play?" Well the
answer is simple. They can! And they were beyond question, echoing the
thoughts of most decent football fans and indeed Spurs fans in the country.
Our display yesterday demeaned the efforts of Southampton; they played a
fantastic game. Oddly enough, if they weren't in striped shirts and black
shorts but where in the famous white and navy blue I, along with many other
Tottenham fans would have presumed that it was indeed Spurs we were
watching, and the Spurs of yesteryear at that. They entertained, they moved
the ball around the St. Mary's ground as if there were no opposition (well
there wasn't in truth), they chased the game and they defended resiliently -
everything that we were once renowned for.
Oh I'm sorry fellow fans, it hurts. It hurts so badly that this effort you
see before you, this diatribe is all that I can think of to dispel my fears
for the rest of the season. I shall no doubt be looking at this again come
May and asking myself what it was all about, as no doubt some of you may be
asking now. I am sure, if you are all honest, for the most part, you'd agree
with the sentiment here raised. If not, then I might suggest that you take a
reality check and ask yourselves if you felt yesterday's match was good,
hard and honest Tottenham or just a team of overpaid, over-worshipped and
over-the-hill one time stars.
Rant over!!!
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