Preface: I'm nearing retirement age, never played soccer and am a relative newcomer to the EPL, having selected Spurs as "my team" in 2008. I won't pretend to know as much as others and I'm not interested in mixing it up with fans of rival clubs.
These are unprecedented times for Spurs, at least those of us who weren't born yet during the 1960 & 1961 seasons. Only time will tell if Spurs can maintain form over the course of an entire season, but even if they don't, there are many positive items to discuss, including but not necessarily limited to:
1) Ange Postecoglu - I follow a club in Scotland (Hibernian) so I knew he was the manager at Celtic, but I'm not going to pretend I saw this coming. What a breath of fresh air after Antonio Conte & Jose Mourinho! Positive attitude, exciting football and commitment to developing young players, plus he's quick with a sound bite. Is this a dream?
2) Excellent Facilities - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (New WHL!) and Training Grounds at Hotspur Way - Has anybody been there? A co-worker recently vacationed in London and attended the Spurs / Liverpool game - he sent me photos and it's amazing - World"s Longest Bar! Definitely a bucket list item for me.
3) Commitment to developing young players on the First Team and in the Academy ranks. The list of players 22 and Under on the main squad includes Mickey Van de Ven, Destiny Udogie, Pepe Sarr, Brian Gil, Brennan Johnson, Ashley Philips and Alejo Veliz.
I love minor league baseball and I love reading the Spurs commentators who focus on the youth ranks - Ange seems excited about the kids and so am I! Jamie Donley, Alfie Dorrington, Will Lankshear, Charlie Sayers, Yago Santiago are a few names we could see sooner rather than later. I'm happy to wait for 16 year-old's Mikey Moore and Luka Vuskovic!
Into every life a little rain must fall, and Spurs aren't without problems.
I) Daniel Levy & Joe Lewis - when Conte departed, the only thing I agreed with in his rant was, "this team has won nothing in twenty years under current ownership". Will Joe Lewis' problems with insider trading have any consequences for Spurs?
2) Bloated Payroll from Poor Signings we're unable to sell, even at a loss, namely Ndombele, Reguilon & Spence - I still have some hope Joe Rodon can have a great season at Leeds and maybe play a role at Spurs in the future!
3) Looming specter of Sheikh Jassim and the Qatar contingent. While it would be nice to have virtually unlimited funds, I don't want to be like PSG or Manchester City, I like the way Spurs develop from within and purchase "moderately" priced players during transfer windows.
Apologies for the length, but I'm excited about the club for obvious reasons and I'm hoping other Spurs fans are as well. #COYS
These are unprecedented times for Spurs, at least those of us who weren't born yet during the 1960 & 1961 seasons. Only time will tell if Spurs can maintain form over the course of an entire season, but even if they don't, there are many positive items to discuss, including but not necessarily limited to:
1) Ange Postecoglu - I follow a club in Scotland (Hibernian) so I knew he was the manager at Celtic, but I'm not going to pretend I saw this coming. What a breath of fresh air after Antonio Conte & Jose Mourinho! Positive attitude, exciting football and commitment to developing young players, plus he's quick with a sound bite. Is this a dream?
2) Excellent Facilities - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (New WHL!) and Training Grounds at Hotspur Way - Has anybody been there? A co-worker recently vacationed in London and attended the Spurs / Liverpool game - he sent me photos and it's amazing - World"s Longest Bar! Definitely a bucket list item for me.
3) Commitment to developing young players on the First Team and in the Academy ranks. The list of players 22 and Under on the main squad includes Mickey Van de Ven, Destiny Udogie, Pepe Sarr, Brian Gil, Brennan Johnson, Ashley Philips and Alejo Veliz.
I love minor league baseball and I love reading the Spurs commentators who focus on the youth ranks - Ange seems excited about the kids and so am I! Jamie Donley, Alfie Dorrington, Will Lankshear, Charlie Sayers, Yago Santiago are a few names we could see sooner rather than later. I'm happy to wait for 16 year-old's Mikey Moore and Luka Vuskovic!
Into every life a little rain must fall, and Spurs aren't without problems.
I) Daniel Levy & Joe Lewis - when Conte departed, the only thing I agreed with in his rant was, "this team has won nothing in twenty years under current ownership". Will Joe Lewis' problems with insider trading have any consequences for Spurs?
2) Bloated Payroll from Poor Signings we're unable to sell, even at a loss, namely Ndombele, Reguilon & Spence - I still have some hope Joe Rodon can have a great season at Leeds and maybe play a role at Spurs in the future!
3) Looming specter of Sheikh Jassim and the Qatar contingent. While it would be nice to have virtually unlimited funds, I don't want to be like PSG or Manchester City, I like the way Spurs develop from within and purchase "moderately" priced players during transfer windows.
Apologies for the length, but I'm excited about the club for obvious reasons and I'm hoping other Spurs fans are as well. #COYS
