Football 2025-26

[Neil]

1 hour ago, Skip997 said:

Predictable 

 

May as well wait till summer to get a new boss 

Someone who wouldn't have sent Harvey Elliot out on loan - a creative goal scorer is what Liverpool have been missing this season, after those summer sell offs.

[charlierc]

12 hours ago, thetime said:

 

Its certainly not done Liverpool any favours, with Szoboszlai suspended for 3. 

Apparently denying a goalscoring opportunity is just the one game ban, not 3. But yes, it's still very unfortunate for them to lose the player that's arguably been their best and most consistent performer. Especially as it means he misses a difficult looking trip to Sunderland on Wednesday. 

 

I will say having thought about it, the laws means that Haaland's foul on Szoboszlai in that chase meant the referees didn't really have much room to do anything other than disallow the goal. Shame in a way as it was quite something of a finish, but it is what it is. 

[balti-pie]

I'd be quite up for Spurs going down to be honest, i think itd be an adventure. Ive not been alive for us not being in the top flight (went down in 77, back up in 78, and i am a 79 vintage) but predominantly saturday games, no VAR, lots of new away grounds, the absolute epitome of tricky midweek away games at unglamorous northern towns vs the flash fancy dan southern pricks, i just think it would be a laugh. Plus hopefully the humiliation would sting the ENIC lot who are a bunch of negligent arseholes.

The cleanout of disinterested highly paid footballers would be quite the sight, to see who fancies staying and fighting on and who will disappear without a single backwards glance. There's so little fight in the whole squad. 

If life is about collecting experiences then Spurs have been every rung of the ladder between great and shite in my lifetime, we've won stuff and been genuinely brilliant, and have also been staggeringly, hilariously incompetent - this would be a brilliant change. I say bring it on, i dont care about debt service repayments and sponsorship deals, i could not care less about that sort of cobblers, i just want home defeats to an ever-growing army of crappy little clubs 😄 

[kaosmark2]

3 hours ago, balti-pie said:

I'd be quite up for Spurs going down to be honest, i think itd be an adventure. Ive not been alive for us not being in the top flight (went down in 77, back up in 78, and i am a 79 vintage) but predominantly saturday games, no VAR, lots of new away grounds, the absolute epitome of tricky midweek away games at unglamorous northern towns vs the flash fancy dan southern pricks, i just think it would be a laugh. Plus hopefully the humiliation would sting the ENIC lot who are a bunch of negligent arseholes.

The cleanout of disinterested highly paid footballers would be quite the sight, to see who fancies staying and fighting on and who will disappear without a single backwards glance. There's so little fight in the whole squad. 

If life is about collecting experiences then Spurs have been every rung of the ladder between great and shite in my lifetime, we've won stuff and been genuinely brilliant, and have also been staggeringly, hilariously incompetent - this would be a brilliant change. I say bring it on, i dont care about debt service repayments and sponsorship deals, i could not care less about that sort of cobblers, i just want home defeats to an ever-growing army of crappy little clubs 😄 

Honestly, our 1st season in the Championship was great fun. Not as good as the Sir Bobby years or the previous 2 years under Howe, but I went to a handful of away games where I could actually get and afford tickets, saw different players and teams, different grounds. And as you say, it gets rid of disinterested players more easily.

[pink_triangle]

For all the talk above Spurs going down, I am sure they will switch manager, get a new manager bounce and scrape through. I think I would prefer Brighton go down, I just find them a really uninteresting team, to the degree I often forget they are there!

[charlierc]

5 hours ago, kaosmark2 said:

Honestly, our 1st season in the Championship was great fun. Not as good as the Sir Bobby years or the previous 2 years under Howe, but I went to a handful of away games where I could actually get and afford tickets, saw different players and teams, different grounds. And as you say, it gets rid of disinterested players more easily.

I remember finding 2016/17 a lot more stressful. Felt like the quality of the division increased in between our two stints in the Championship. Think we lost 10 games that season, including home and away defeats to 3 different clubs.

 

I do find it a more interesting watch than the Premier League tbf given it's a wild scramble, even if its fuelled by hilariously unsustainable spending where every club has spent 100%+ of turnover on wages for at least 15 years.

 

As for today, I've been critical of the Ramsey signing so him finally getting a goal and by all accounts looking good is finally something and a hint the kid might have sticking power after all. So that's good. Though I'm aware the difficulty level will be different at the weekend given Villa, despite some iffy recent results, looks like a challenge and Spurs just look broken.

[charlierc]

1 minute ago, pink_triangle said:

For all the talk above Spurs going down, I am sure they will switch manager, get a new manager bounce and scrape through. I think I would prefer Brighton go down, I just find them a really uninteresting team, to the degree I often forget they are there!

I agree that this is likely what will happen. They have 12 days until their next game so this feels like the time you'd go and do it tbh. Give it Big Sam 'til the end of the season? Although of all teams, their next game is Arsenal at home, who you can imagine will be chomping at the bit to rub salt in the wounds.

 

Even if they don't go down, feels like it's a massive failure by their owners that they've wound up here, no? They have revenues up there with the rest of the ESL 6, yet finished 17th last season (I know they purposefully flubbed the PL to focus on the Europa League, but still), and now Thomas Frank seems to have just destroyed the reputation he'd carefully cultivated at Brentford by joining that dumpster fire. They just look broken.

[thetime]

Spurs are deep in the mire.

 

West ham played really well tonight. Should of finished the game, before Sesko go the equaliser. 

 

 

 

 

[kaosmark2]

1 hour ago, charlierc said:

I remember finding 2016/17 a lot more stressful. Felt like the quality of the division increased in between our two stints in the Championship. Think we lost 10 games that season, including home and away defeats to 3 different clubs.

 

I do find it a more interesting watch than the Premier League tbf given it's a wild scramble, even if its fuelled by hilariously unsustainable spending where every club has spent 100%+ of turnover on wages for at least 15 years.

 

As for today, I've been critical of the Ramsey signing so him finally getting a goal and by all accounts looking good is finally something and a hint the kid might have sticking power after all. So that's good. Though I'm aware the difficulty level will be different at the weekend given Villa, despite some iffy recent results, looks like a challenge and Spurs just look broken.

Yeah I'd agree with most of that.

 

I tuned in 25 minutes into the game today - I'd thought it was a 8pm kickoff - but Ramsey looked excellent in what I saw of the first half and it was a well-taken goal. Also really looked like the goal meant a lot to him and he was itching for it from the celebration. I thought we were much worse when Tonali came on, which is huge credit to Willock and Ramsey. I also thought Willock looked the best he has in 3 years until ~60 minutes, then he looked knackered for 10 minutes before he got subbed.

 

Villa's a tough one, I actually kinda want to lose it? I obviously won't be unhappy if we do win, but I'd prefer a CL run than a FA Cup run and we need some more league wins if we want a shot at being in the Europa. 

 

Spurs' 3 best attacks all exploited Trippier/Burn though, which shows our weakness. And Spurs scored from their 1st corner while we had 11 in the first half without forcing a save from Vicario. Our problems are still there even if a bad Spurs team didn't take advantage.

[thetime]

No surprise Frank has been sacked. 

[lost]

Is it going to start a bun fight for Alonso? I've seen him linked with Spurs, Man City, Liverpool and Newcastle recently.

[thetime]

5 minutes ago, lost said:

Is it going to start a bun fight for Alonso? I've seen him linked with Spurs, Man City, Liverpool and Newcastle recently.

 

Realistically he won't go to Spurs or Newcastle. Liverpool must be overwhelming favourite to get him in the summer, maybe earlier if there form doesn't improve. 

[Ben7amin_]

I suspect Roberto De Zebri will be appointed as spurs manager later today 

Edited February 11 by Ben7amin_

[balti-pie]

You'd have to be an absolute idiot to take the Spurs job at the mo - insane injuries, nobody due back any time soon, only about 3 or 4 players with any backbone in the whole squad - you're on a hiding to nothing.

 

 

Harry as a caretaker and Poch in the summer after the WC it is, theyre both idiots! 

[Ben7amin_]

Feel like no Spurs manager will escape Poch shadow till he has another bash -  

 

I must admit i am one of those who was absolutely furious when he got sacked.   

[balti-pie]

1 minute ago, Ben7amin_ said:

Feel like no Spurs manager will escape Poch shadow till he has another bash -  

 

I must admit i am one of those who was absolutely furious when he got sacked.   

Poch coming back would be beautiful, but its guaranteed to end in misery and his legacy being torn up in front of our faces. The planet doesnt want nice things for us, we had a trophy win last year so now we're paying for it for the next decade of misery and mismanagement

[Ben7amin_]

2 minutes ago, balti-pie said:

Poch coming back would be beautiful, but its guaranteed to end in misery and his legacy being torn up in front of our faces. The planet doesnt want nice things for us, we had a trophy win last year so now we're paying for it for the next decade of misery and mismanagement

 

Im not sure any other fans have as much Drama - we seem to hog it all 

 

Watching this space though - as we have all heard the rumours of Poch coming back at the end of the season -  But I cant see De Zebri being a short term appointment - so watching this news today  keenly.

 

Also be keen to avoid any more Ryan Mason time - preferably 

 

 

 

[balti-pie]

6 minutes ago, Ben7amin_ said:

 

Im not sure any other fans have as much Drama - we seem to hog it all 

 

Watching this space though - as we have all heard the rumours of Poch coming back at the end of the season -  But I cant see De Zebri being a short term appointment - so watching this news today  keenly.

 

Also be keen to avoid any more Ryan Mason time - preferably 

 

 

 

De Zerbi is a shorter, chippier Conte, there'd be an immediate turnaround cos he'd fire a lot of rockets up a lot of arses, but it would explode and he'd walk out in a huff because thats whats happened in every club he's managed. Which is fine, if he does so in mid-June, then Poch can get on with managing the USA to a second round exit and then head straight back home

[kaosmark2]

Says something about our away form this season that we're now a trigger point for a sacking.

 

But thanks Dr Tottenham.

[charlierc]

8 hours ago, Ben7amin_ said:

 

Im not sure any other fans have as much Drama - we seem to hog it all 

 

Watching this space though - as we have all heard the rumours of Poch coming back at the end of the season -  But I cant see De Zebri being a short term appointment - so watching this news today  keenly.

 

Also be keen to avoid any more Ryan Mason time - preferably 

 

 

 

Makes a change. Felt like for most of the 2000s and 2010s, we were the drama club with too much going on for its own good.

 

I can't help but think a return for Poch kinda wouldn't be as good as the first time. Don't know if that's a sign of me believing the "never go back" ideal or thinking he could've done better at Chelsea or the fact I don't think Spurs' player recruitment is as good as it was in Poch's first spell, but it feels like one of those things that, to quote Arctic Monkeys' first song on their first album, anticipation has a habit to set you up for disappointment.

[charlierc]

9 hours ago, lost said:

Is it going to start a bun fight for Alonso? I've seen him linked with Spurs, Man City, Liverpool and Newcastle recently.

I mean, we hired a manager sacked by Real Madrid in their previous job when we got Rafa Benitez, but it would be a real Hail Mary if we could get him to come join us. And that's assuming Howe doesn't find an alchemy that works and does enough in these final 3 months to justify another season at the wheel. Admittedly, last night is a flawed sample size given how awful Spurs were. If we can finish in a European place (big if but not necessarily impossible) or hell, win the FA Cup (which is less likely but hey, you never know), I think Howe's fine to carry on.

 

Man City, I guess it depends on what Guardiola wants to do. I'm aware that for a few weeks now, there's been rumours he might be leaving at the end of the season, but I guess we're waiting for the kind of fog to ascend on whether that rumour is true or not. Liverpool absolutely feels like its a job likely to be available, especially if they fail to quality for the Champions League for next season.

[Ben7amin_]

11 hours ago, charlierc said:

 

 

I can't help but think a return for Poch kinda wouldn't be as good as the first time. 

 

Our fans gonna demand it everytime things go bad for another manager - you would have though managing Chelsea would have put us of but no.   Basically we want to rewind time and got back to the day he was sacked and redo everything lol.

 

He inherited an absolutely awfull set of players with one or two gems the first time - it wasnt all about signings he really was very good at developing players and getting the best out of them.   I think a lot of people will forget how rough Son found it in his first season - but with a Pochetinho arm round him he turned him into a weapon -  Even players like Moussa Sissoko not the most gifted footballer (as im sure you know). but yet he got good performances out of him.

 

The one that grinds me the most - How good would Dele Ali have become if Poch had stayed. 

 

Basially his shadow will hang over the club until he has a second try 

[charlierc]

Forest sacking Sean Dyche, making it 3 sackings in a season... this feels like a bad idea. But then this has been a season seemingly propelled by bad ideas. I get they were bummed out to not get into the Champions League last season after spending most of it in the top 4, but was that really solid justification for Marinakis to blow up his relationship with Nuno and then hire Postecoglu, who really should've been a summer appointment given he'd have needed a different squad to the one he got?

 

It's also curious to imply that Dyche is somehow responsible for Forest missing 35 shots in their 0-0 with Wolves last night. That ridiculous miss by the new striker Lucca at the end of a 6-on-1 counter - woof.

[charlierc]

27 minutes ago, Ben7amin_ said:

 

Our fans gonna demand it everytime things go bad for another manager - you would have though managing Chelsea would have put us of but no.   Basically we want to rewind time and got back to the day he was sacked and redo everything lol.

 

He inherited an absolutely awfull set of players with one or two gems the first time - it wasnt all about signings he really was very good at developing players and getting the best out of them.   I think a lot of people will forget how rough Son found it in his first season - but with a Pochetinho arm round him he turned him into a weapon -  Even players like Moussa Sissoko not the most gifted footballer (as im sure you know). but yet he got good performances out of him.

 

The one that grinds me the most - How good would Dele Ali have become if Poch had stayed. 

 

Basially his shadow will hang over the club until he has a second try 

I'm aware many people have regrets about the final furlong of the Poch reign at Spurs, given there was first not signing anyone in 2018/19, then making a bit of a hash of a rebuild in 2019 that triggered a slow start, the exit, and the re-focusing of the Amazon documentary that was already in production into The Jose Mourinho Show.

 

Hasn't Poch himself said multiple times he'd have another crack? I can see why that would be enticing but again, I feel like I would wonder if it ever could go as smoothly. Spurs feel like they have a different structure right now to what worked in his first spell and I'm not sure the patience is necessarily there for the total reboot required to get back to the 2015-19 vintage. Feels like right now it can't be banked on anyway, can it? He can't really pop along until after the World Cup and his commitments with Team America so who knows if you can wait around. Or hell, if you get somebody intended to be an interim, they might do well enough to justify a full crack at it.

[Ben7amin_]

3 minutes ago, charlierc said:

I'm aware many people have regrets about the final furlong of the Poch reign at Spurs, given there was first not signing anyone in 2018/19, then making a bit of a hash of a rebuild in 2019 that triggered a slow start, the exit, and the re-focusing of the Amazon documentary that was already in production into The Jose Mourinho Show.

 

Hasn't Poch himself said multiple times he'd have another crack? I can see why that would be enticing but again, I feel like I would wonder if it ever could go as smoothly. Spurs feel like they have a different structure right now to what worked in his first spell and I'm not sure the patience is necessarily there for the total reboot required to get back to the 2015-19 vintage. Feels like right now it can't be banked on anyway, can it? He can't really pop along until after the World Cup and his commitments with Team America so who knows if you can wait around. Or hell, if you get somebody intended to be an interim, they might do well enough to justify a full crack at it.

 

Oh no I dont think this time is the one -  The board wanted De Zebri before and his resignation for me is too much of a co-incidence -   I recon Poch will take over the next time