What I saw in the tunnel at Anfield proves Tottenham have no leaders, I’d take a sledgehammer to the Spurs dressing room
ON Thursday night, after covering Liverpool’s 4-0 win over Tottenham, I pulled into a service station on my way home and bumped into a big group of Spurs fans.It was nice of them to say, but to me, that is embarrassing.Troy Deeney has slammed Tottenham’s stars for going softCredit: The SunSon Heung-min was anonymous in their Anfield humiliationCredit: GettyAnge Postecoglou is under increasing pressure following the Carabao Cup embarrassmentCredit: GettyFans of a club like Spurs think a retired 36-year-old – who has never played at a club at that level – is what is needed.I was briefly linked with a move there in 2020 when Jose Mourinho was boss. It never materialised.But do I think I could have made a mark on that club, those players? Yes, because I don’t pussyfoot around. It doesn’t matter if it is Jose at Spurs or Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.I know I wouldn’t be a starter, but I could impact a culture, by training to the best of my ability, calling out people who are late to meetings or not pulling their weight.I would get in that dressing room, shut the door, and take a sledgehammer to it – metaphorically, of course – to show them what we need to do.Losing a Carabao Cup semi-final – one that was so important to the club – in that manner is entirely on the players.In games gone by with Spurs, you can blame the boss Ange Postecoglou, his tactics, the set-up is too gung-ho. But at least then they have had a bit about them.At Anfield, I was speaking to a few ex-Spurs players – proper legends. I asked them: Are you seeing what I am seeing? I thought I was being too harsh in my analysis.CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITSOne of them turned to me and simply said: No character, no fight, no chance.As captain, Son Heung-min was null and void. At 0-0 – and 1-0 up on aggregate – the team looked nervous but there was no belief they were ever going to win.’I just cannot get my head round it’ – Jamie Redknapp baffled by embarrassing Tottenham stat in Liverpool humiliationWhen it goes to 1-1 on aggregate, the same thing. No reaction, gone into hiding, doing the opposite of everything you should do in that moment.After Cody Gakpo’s goal in the 34th minute, while all the Liverpool players were celebrating, I would have got everyone in and told them: The next 10 minutes, we kick it into the corner and solidify until we get to half-time.Instead they self-imploded. They played quickly from kick-off before everyone was set. They conceded a stupid corner. No one took responsibility.I would get in that dressing room, shut the door, and take a sledgehammer to it – metaphorically, of course – to show them what we need to do.That midfield of Rodrigo Bentancur, Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr is meant to be a decent trio, but not one of them put their foot on the ball and said: Don’t worry, I’ll keep things ticking over.It was left to the kids to show a bit of leadership in Djed Spence and Archie Gray – a bit of quality, fight, determination. They weren’t great, but at least they didn’t quit.Anyone who has played the game will tell you most of those Spurs players quit, gave up. Not on each other or themselves, but quit on the manager, the fan base, everything.I made headlines by once saying Arsenal lacked ‘cojones’, but just look at this Tottenham team. They bottled it. They collapsed through fear.Even Richarlison appears to have become softer as a result of Spurs’ luxury digsCredit: GettyIf that group look at themselves in the mirror and say: ‘We gave it everything’, then they’re liars. They’re lying to themselves and they’re lying to the fans.And that’s why they are where they are.How many of those players will admit any of that performance was their fault? I’ll tell you: zero.Where are the leaders? I was in the tunnel at full-time around all the post-match interviews. I only saw one player do one, and that was Son. Other than that, Ange did all of them.That to me says it all. One of the experienced lads should have taken a few of those off the manager’s hands. Take ownership.If you’re an average player and get the chance to move to Spurs, you would be buzzing. You get paid extremely well, really nice stadium, good fans and there’s no pressure to win anything. Perfect, right?They beat Brentford last week and celebrated like they had won the FA Cup. They beat Swedish minnows Elfsborg in the Europa League and were posting on social media about ‘togetherness’.Where are all those posts now? You know what they do? They run, they’re scared. This is the problem, not just with Spurs, but with the new footballer.They only want to hear the good stuff. They want to be pally-pally.When people talk about Tottenham now, what do they say? Oh what a lovely set-up. The training ground, the facilities, the stadium is world class.In other words: Weakness. Softness. Comfort.I played with Richarlison at Watford. He is naturally a rough and ready bloke. A ‘you’re going to get it’ player. He would run over you to get the ball. A scrapper. The same when he left for Everton.Tottenham’s top 10 biggest signings: Hit or miss?1) Tanguy Ndombele – £52.7mNdombele joined from Lyon in 2019 with huge expectations after shattering Tottenham’s transfer record.But he would go on to play just 91 times for the club, scoring 10 goals and is now set to leave one year before the end of his contract.2) Richarlison – £49.3mRicharlison almost broke the £50m mark when he arrived from Everton in 2022 as Harry Kane’s back-up.And while his tally of 12 goals this season was a significant increase on the three from his opening Spurs campaign, he is being linked with a departure this summer.3) Brennan Johnson – £46.8mJohnson was signed by Ange Postecoglou last summer and has impressed in patches during his first season in North London.He scored five goals and 10 assists in 38 games and will look to build on that in the 2024/25 campaign.4) Cristian Romero – £44.2mRomero initially joined on loan from Atalanta in 2021, before his impressive displays saw him secure a permanent deal the following year.He is two games shy of 100 for Spurs and, while he can be reckless with his tackling at times, is beginning to form a promising partnership with Micky van de Ven.5) James Maddison – £39.4mMaddison was handed Kane’s No10 shirt after arriving at Spurs and hit the ground running with three goals and five assists in his opening 11 matches.But after getting injured against Chelsea in October, he failed to return with the same sharpness – managing just five goal contributions in 15 league matches as he missed out on England’s final 26-man squad for the Euros.6) Davinson Sanchez – £35.7mSanchez joined Spurs from Ajax in 2017 and played more than 200 games across a six-year spell.But he was always considered a somewhat erratic defender who did not play more than 20 games in a Premier League season from 2020 onwards.7) Pedro Porro – £34mPorro was another signing who originally arrived on loan in January 2023, before he signed permanently last summer.He has 54 appearances for Spurs under his belt, scoring seven goals and impressing under Postecoglou this season.8) Micky van de Ven – £34mRapid Dutch centre-back Van de Ven was named Spurs Player of the Season in his first campaign at the club.His pace, athleticism, and technical ability on the ball have made him arguably Postecoglou’s best signing to date.9) Moussa Sissoko – £29.8mSissoko came to North London for a substantial fee after being relegated with Newcastle and went on to enjoy five years at Tottenham, playing more than 200 games.Unfortunately for the French midfielder, he is best-known for giving away a controversial penalty for handball in the first minute of Spurs’ 2-0 Champions League final defeat to Liverpool in 2019.10) Giovani Lo Celso – £27.2mLo Celso joined on loan from Real Betis in 2019 – a deal that was made permanent the following season.He has 10 goals and eight assists in 108 games, with some Spurs fans still unsure about the Argentine.Spurs then bought him for £50m to change their culture, but because everything is so nice and laid on, you subconsciously become that type of person. It creates weakness.I remember talking to a rugby friend of mine at Saracens. He said when they went away with England, they would stay in a four star, not a five, purposely to make them a little bit uncomfortable.That will make you strive for more. What are you striving for at Spurs?If you’re an average player and get the chance to move to Spurs, you would be buzzing.It’s the best place to be. You get paid extremely well, really nice stadium, good fans and there’s no pressure to win anything. Perfect, right? More
