Tribal Identification

#3
Everton today are were Tottenham before Pochettino instilled a more robust mentality and nurtured young players over the last few years, but Tottenham are still no where near where Manchester City is - and sadly just as they had the potential to get there, the whole deck of cards so well assembled by Pochettino may yet come crashing down. Tottenham's hierachy don't think in the same way that Manchester United and Real Madrid do, which is why Tottenham despite its fantastic new stadium are far from being considered as one of the "Big Boys" of professional soccer. Reply

#5
The top managers in the league know the importance of playing mind games. Remember when Mourinho labelled Arsene Wenger, the manager of Arsenal as an "specialist in failure". This to the manager who created the Invisibles. When the heat got put on Mourinho he simply kept telling everyone about his three league titles and how he has more titles and all the current managers in the Premier League put together - but that just kept him from being fired sooner. The person who played the greatest mind games was Sir Alex Ferguson - he did not need to resort to Mourinho's cheap tricks and insulting behaviour - he simply created an air of superiority and had opposition teams mentality beaten even before they kicked a ball. In assembling Ferguson's right hand man to support the new caretaker Man United manager - it is a clever move to re-instill the mentality of the Alex Ferguson era, and no doubt Pochettino is being introduced to that mentality as we speak. Would love to know how much he and Ferguson now talk on the telephone behind the scenes. https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11661/10277696/sir-alex-ferguson-and-mauricio-pochettino-have-lunch-in-london Reply

#5
The top managers in the league know the importance of playing mind games. Remember when Mourinho labelled Arsene Wenger, the manager of Arsenal as an "specialist in failure". This to the manager who created the Invisibles. When the heat got put on Mourinho he simply kept telling everyone about his three league titles and how he has more titles and all the current managers in the Premier League put together - but that just kept him from being fired sooner. The person who played the greatest mind games was Sir Alex Ferguson - he did not need to resort to Mourinho's cheap tricks and insulting behaviour - he simply created an air of superiority and had opposition teams mentality beaten even before they kicked a ball. In assembling Ferguson's right hand man to support the new caretaker Man United manager - it is a clever move to re-instill the mentality of the Alex Ferguson era, and no doubt Pochettino is being introduced to that mentality as we speak. Would love to know how much he and Ferguson now talk on the telephone behind the scenes. Reply

#4
If every team played like Everton, it would make it so easy for Spurs. Everton were not simply victims of a disqualified goal for a push that hardly was a push but victims of their managers own hubris in trying to play Spurs at their own game and players who walked while Tottenham players ran. Only Liverpool and Manchester City can play Spurs at their own game. Losses against Arsenal and Watford for freakish results but those teams on the day played their own game. The most freakish result was Crystal Palace beating Manchester City this weekend, but that is what makes the Premier League so fascinating, on any given week the teams near the bottom have the possibility to scalp the the teams at the top. Remember the last time Liverpool were top at Christmas, they lost points to teams from the lower half and made slip ups that lost them the title. The other teams that were top at Christmas in recent years (Chelsea and Manchester City) simply went on to win the title. It is the banana skins that we cannot predict and Tottenham had their own banana skins (a.k.a. West Bromwich Albion) in the year they surrendered the league title to that now miraculous and extraordinary story of Leicester winning the league. Reply

#6
Ah! but Jan Manchester United are odds on to get Pochettino in the summer and Alex Ferguson and Pochettino met over lunch some time ago https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11661/10277696/sir-alex-ferguson-and-mauricio-pochettino-have-lunch-in-london, so the United renaissance may come at the expense of the Tottenham ascension and Pochettino has been the United acquisition goal all along. The only hope Tottenham fans have is that their players see this final six months as a last hoorah because once Pochettino goes, so goes some of his current best players. Spurs are a financial business but not an investment house like Manchester United, as a financial business the Tottenham Chairman will get $50 million for Pochettino's release $250 for selling Harry Kane and $180 million for selling Delli Ali and maybe $150 million for selling Christian Erikson - and if those sales are done, that just covers the cost escalation on the new stadium. As a financial company one would have thought it best to put a cap on cost escalations in the stadium build - so Spurs will eventually have a shiny new stadium but start over again. As an investment house - United can spend big, but Liverpool have spent big also and Spurs expenditure on players is a net gain for the financial house - think about that, Spurs did not spend 0 dollars this summer, they clawed back money from their transfers. A big league investment house trumps a small office financial company anytime - and that is the real game of professional soccer today. Reply

#1
Being born in London, my natural affinity should be with the England team, but that affinity was challenged again when in 1983 the Indian cricket team beat England to reach the World Cup finals (Prudential Cup). My affinity with the England team was first tested when I found myself crying with the Scots as the Scottish soccer fans overcome with victory over the old enemy tore down the goal post at Wembley and pulled up turf to take home with them as a momento - and then I began realizing the patriotic conditioning. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3927302/Recalling-iconic-moment-Scotland-fans-stormed-Wembley-pitch-snapped-crossbar-stunning-England-1977.html Today I still get a little teary eyed when I see the passion in those supporters and what it meant to beat England. Now I live next to Toronto, I fear the Toronto Maple Leafs finally winning a Stanley Cup, but my kids being born in Canada are fully conditioned to American sport and so with Toronto 4-1 ahead in their conference champion game and with just 3 minutes to go, my kids became brutal wretches making sure I knew my place when it comes to supporting a hockey team, but then something magical and wonderful happened, Boston started scoring late goals. For the India win I realized some roots, for the Scottish win I felt the passion for their history with the English and with the Boston win - it was a chance to stick it to my kids who were sticking it to me - and by the time Boston scored the elimination winner (5-4) I was jumping three foot in the air and screaming "IN YOUR FACE" to my Toronto loving kids - and then it woke up my mom and Grand-ma stood at the doorway with a disgusting look saying "what the hell are you teaching them - you are a father not a neanderthal". That perspective did not change the glee. Hope the same thing happens to the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Toronto Raptors this year ! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdvoDFTcTLw Reply