Resurrection
My face is aching from the smile I’ve been beaming out ever since Tuesday night. I’ve had the songs of the night buzzing round my head wherever I go and swelled with pride at each newspaper headline and conversation overheard on the tube but the best is the knowing nod at everyone I pass in Tottenham colours, caps and badges. You can see them come. They’re over 10 feet tall.
The world has changed. Our club has changed. Anything seems possible. It was one game for Spurs but one giant leap for Yid-kind. We’re afraid of no-one anymore; not us, not the players and while we all run about in the afterglow of this giant footballing orgasm, there’s one man standing still at the centre of it all; one man unchanged and every quote from the lips of his translators can make me laugh or make me cry.
“I arrived to a sinking, depressed bunch of lads and you could see from how often their leads were overhauled that they didn’t believe in themselves any more.”
“Against Arsenal we scored five and could easily have scored many more. It was one of those games where every detail you draw on the blackboard in the team talks came off.”
“But the key thing you could see is the players now believe in themselves — we’ve won back our pride and our aggression.”
So says the man who made it happen, Juande Ramos but our pride is only the beginning.
“Having reached Wembley once, we now have to aim to win the Carling Cup Final and to get there again in the FA Cup,” he said.
“United will be a very difficult opponent because they are playing at a very, very high level and the game is at their stadium. But we will run and work to exhaust any and every possibility of beating them.”
“It’s always been my aim to make our biggest impacts in cup competitions because by the time I arrived there was no possibility of winning the League.”
He’s serious, isn’t he? He’s come here for nothing less. He’s not interested in qualifying for the Champions League, he’s here to win the league and you know what, I think he’s going to do it.
“Everyone involved with the club has to convince themselves that we deserve more, we have to be ambitious and say, ‘We are going to take that step forward’. The club has the potential to achieve this. Once this mindset has been achieved we can look long term.”
In the short term, of course, we’ve a date of destiny with those from the west - you know, seeing as it’s too late to win the league this year and all - and Senor R is by no means taking it lightly.
“Beating Arsenal like that in front of our own supporters and playing so well was like a final for us. However, going to Wembley is like a religious experience, a mythical venue in the home of football.”
“If you get to Wembley as a coach or a player then it’s like getting a Phd or being knighted, in football terms, like nothing you could experience anywhere else in the world.”
So, as fans does that make us Masters of Arts or the Right Honourable? I’m rather looking forward to that one.
Whatever we achieved on Tuesday night, one thing is clear and that’s that Spurs have rocked the world of football. Everyone is looking our way. The last time the scum took a kicking like that was 15 years ago and that was at the hands of none other than Red Face Fergie and his Manchester United. The eyes of the world are upon us.
This new found belief may not be enough against a ferocious United on Sunday but we can still reap the benefits in the short term because every player we try to sign in this last January week will have to sit up and take notice. Funny how Gilberto of Hertha Berlin is now pushing for a move before the window was up when before we had the Wembley carrot he was content with an agreement to move in the summer. We’d reached a deadlock with Tiago over wages and suddenly he’s willing to take a 30% cut to be with us by the weekend. And who knows perhaps this is just enough to tip the balance in our 103rd approach this month for Scotland’s Alan Hutton?
Doin’ the bagel dance.
The Bagel.
January 25th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
Copied from the Telegraph article on our offer for Woodgate:
Chimbonda’s future is certain to be away from White Hart Lane after he was quoted in today’s papers saying he was ready to accept a big money offer to join Kevin Keegan at Newcastle.
The French international is prepared to forgo a place in Spurs’ Carling Cup final side next month to move to St James’ Park.
“Kevin Keegan has approached me and they’ve offered more money,” Chimbonda was reported to have said in the Sun.
“I am definitely leaving Spurs. It’s all about the money. I don’t care about the cup.”
Chimbonda had already been identified as one of a number of underperforming players that Ramos was looking to move out of the club and Chimbonda’s willingness to listen to Newcastle’s offer appears to have sealed his fate.
I know that the actual quote is from the Sun but, if this is true, he can fuck right off for all I care…
January 25th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
“I am definitely leaving Spurs. It’s all about the money. I don’t care about the cup.â€
Sounds a bit over the top but it sounds like Chimbonda alright, coming from The Sun I doubt it’s spot on but, he can fuck off, he’s deffinitley got his mind else where.
COYS!
January 25th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
The long haul.
The long and winding haul. I for one don’t need any more false dawns. Whatever happens at Wembley, OT on Sunday is perhaps even more massive than it was a week ago.
After Arse dumped us out in the semi-final last year, we turned a corner and played the rest of the season like we should have done in the first months. It set up the belief that we’d arrived & 07/08 was the big one. Instead, we had 2 months of madness, like a plague, on the pitch, behind the scenes. A mega-egg on the face of everything Spurs.
Then the Dark, Silent One arrives from Andalucia and off we go again, on the up. And we get to a night without any real parallel, at least not in this century. We all walk on sunshine like it’s just been invented. It’s magic!!
The foolish and pathetic malice that found its way into the comments on your previous post was nothing more than that. It can’t take away one iota of the facts:
1) The contribution of the fans at the Lane on Tuesday was such that it really was heard right around the world. The evidence testifies to that. Portugal as one example: the TV, the press, endless (admiring!) e-mails, chats, website comments. The guys commenting the game live were astonished. They said they could only compare the fans’ performance to Anfield or Celtic. And asking themselves “How can 35,000 make themselves sound like 50, 60, 75,000?”. They loved it, they also knew that this was magic, live. You don’t get to see or hear that so often.
2) This was a total demolition, an utter annihilation of one of the most renowned clubs in the world, which the world at large also acknowledges. They play with a technique, a movement, skills in a style that fans who -hate Arse or love em - actually want to see and see their own clubs emulate.
They may not have put out their strongest side, but they started according to their principles and came to the Lane determined to beat us with their own game. They never abandoned that and the fact that they couldn’t touch us is a measure of how strong, unbeatable we were on the night.
3) The spat between Adebayor & Bentner - as they are about to attack an attacking free kick, for Lord’s sake!- was proof of how much the annihilation and the wall of sound hurt, as well as the knowledge that they were NOT going to Wemberlee. 2nd rate cup? No value? We only use the kids? Utter crap! They wanted it, even if they have the League and Champs L to console themselves with after. Nobody should kid themselves otherwise. Oh, and if Wenger didn’t see any of it, what/who the hell was he watching for an entire 2 minutes that delayed that free kick? What an ungracious scumbag he always is in defeat!
4) The “2nd string” kids theory. Time to debunk that one forever. Firstly, the whole squad has already been around plenty, got experience, know what winning is like. But if they are so green and innocent, how come noone has ever stuffed them like a Xmas turkey ever before? 5-1.
Second, Wenger generally knows what he is doing with his squad. No way did he tell them “Allez, boys! Et si vous perdez, no shit, it doesn’t matter a fig. This cup is full of merde anyway”. He was responsible, he got it wrong, he was out-manoeuvred from the start. They got shattered 5-1.
5) Finally, and most important to us, Spurs didn’t just win, they won they way we all want them to win, always: with style, with class - the Spurs way. Bagel, this win may have been a first for you and 1000s of others, but I was there from the 60s on, from the day my Dad took me to the Lane for the first time in May 61 to see Danny lift that Championship trophy. I’ve seen it loads if times, when it was normal, expected - not just a false dawn, or a one-off demolition. All too long ago.
This 5-1 was like a message to the whole watching world of what this club is all about. It goes way above the heads of those who felt they needed to come on here and elsewhere and pour abusive scorn on our parade. The watching world saw, felt and loved what it saw at the Lane last Tuesday. And THAT’s worth far more than if Arse go on to win everything still in their sights this season.
But, like the stuffing of Chelsea in 2002 at the same stage, it will count for nothing if it doesn’t actually serve to be the start of a consistent, sustained pattern, which yields victories and trophies on a regular basis.
It’s asking a lot for Sunday. But there’s every right to ask, to believe now. Maybe it’s what is coming after Sunday is what will really tell. But how we’d love a result against Utd & SAF!
Shit, I’m supposed to be working! This has gone on way too long. Your influence, maybe?
Best of bagels to you!!
COYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
January 25th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
PS - I started out about the long haul. This fucking comment turned into one. Sorry guys!
January 25th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
hahaha - great read….. form both of you’s looks some is applying for an apprenticship in the bagel factory.
One massive point not to be missed guys is that if we go up, and dont win…… its not the end of the world, like I’l not accepting defeat this early, but im just saying that in the end, the Special JUANde, has a plan, a blue print that he will implement, and i don’t think for one minute, that it will come off the rails if we win, lose or draw against United…
In closing, COYS
ps… don’t mean for that to sound negative
January 25th, 2008 at 1:54 pm
Stewie
Great stuff. You, like the Bagel, have a gift with words.
I don’t go back as far as you but was there (on the shelf) the last time we stuffed the scum. In ‘83 with Falco being the hero. Back then, we were the dominant force. The scum were just a byword for all that is bad and ‘orrible about the game. And we were the masters in the early 60’s with Danny, god bless him. (named my baby son after him).
Tuesday night meant more than it did back in 83. Why is that?
Maybe because our beloved Tottenham Hotspur have fallen short of what is expected for too long now. For me, Tuesday night eclipsed anything from the previous 2 seasons, which have been our best in recent years.
Well, we are on the road back to the promised land. We have a few hurdles to cross, like we did on Tuesday, but we know that we have greatness within our team, bubbling up to get to the surface.
We have shown what we are capable of. Now we have to show it again and again and again.
Billy would have loved what he saw on Tuesday night.
January 25th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
Does anybody know where I can download the game coverage from sky because I’d love to know how we sounded on the telly…
January 25th, 2008 at 4:40 pm
“Whatever we achieved on Tuesday night, one thing is clear and that’s that Spurs have rocked the world of football. Everyone is looking our way. The last time the scum took a kicking like that was 15 years ago and that was at the hands of none other than Red Face Fergie and his Manchester United. The eyes of the world are upon us.”
is this meant to be hilarious?
January 25th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
No, beating arsenal 5-1 is hilarious. That’s inspuration.
Excellent piece Stewie; from the heart. Who knows what the long haul will bring but we certainly ask for no better platform.
The Bagel.
January 25th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Thank god for that we’re back to normal.
Spuds have been granted permission to talk to Jonathon Woodgate over a transfer to White Hart Shame - home of the false dawn brigade.
Someone to keep Ledley company.
I assume you have all bought the dvd, that’ll take pride of place alongside the dvd commemorating your chelsea victory, didn’t you lose to blackburn that year ?
While being this weeks hard core seasoned fans, perhaps you should place an order for the 2007/2008 season review dvd, with those magical highlights of sunderland away and birmingham at home, and of course dropping all 6 to the Mighty Arsenal.
Just to finally burst your bubble, we sent out a stronger team to play Burnley in the FA Cup than against your lot, kinda tells you all about our priorities.
January 25th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Oh look, according to sky sports Chimbonda didn’t REALLY say all that stuff!
Yes he did.
No he didn’t.
January 25th, 2008 at 6:01 pm
Ki Ki: Just like your season review will be showing those moments from Tuesday night?
And stronger team against Burnley? I count only Toure and Sagna from that game that make your so called first team. Sure Gilberto and Eduardo played but you gooners have spent the last few days telling us that they’re merely reserves…? no sign of gallas, fabregas, adebayor and hleb in that team. You do know that if it really didn’t matter that much to you, then you wouldn’t have to try and keep justifying the defeat like this…?
Things really are back to normal now that you’re back here spouting bollox that you can’t back up yet again… COYS!
January 25th, 2008 at 7:17 pm
I did not see it!
I don’t want to sit here and bang on about how great Tottenham were and how Arsenal were beaten soundly by the better team. I also don’t want to drone on about the fact that they had Hleb, Gallas and Sagna on for the whole game, Fabregas on for three quarters of it, Eduardo and Adebayor on for a third of it (when Spurs had taken off Keane, Berbatov and Lennon) and the fact that, bar Traore and Fabianski, all of the players have premier league experience and therefore there was no 2nd string out on Tuesday night and no excuse for being completely annihilated.
read more….
http://blog.ukfootballfinder.co.uk/?p=72
January 25th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
The Alan Hutton affair. Bagel, £9m is a lot of money for a player that has really just completed 10 months of decent performances still interupted wie defensive naivity and rashness in the tackle. Going forward he can be awesome if afforded space….
More £3m or £4m player and even then that’s being generous…
Now, as is ma right as a Celtic fan…he’s pish, an ugly wifebeater and he sleeps wie his sister…..
Hail Hail
January 25th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
Nice words Keving.
January 25th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
For all you that accuse me of being a sofa fan, I’m off to the game tomorrow, if I’m honest, tuesday was a shock, but I did think Newcastle would be the banana skin, new manager and all that. They dont deserve keegan after the treatment dished out to Sir Bobby, but he is where he belongs, he will always have a place in my heart after facing the fans when he sold Andy Cole, thats honesty in a game that rarely displays it.
In a way I’m envious, amongst our fans ways are discussed to mingle when travelling away, at spuds people were advised to wait til the end of the (very short) police cordon, then look miserable and mingle. I guess you wont see that around there for a while.
I go to Peterborough and each game dont know whether it’ll be 8-2 or 0-5, each game a revelation. I go to see the Mighty Arsenal expecting a result, cos we’ve been spoiled, and am so disappointed when it doesn’t happen, no matter the opposition.
None of us expected tuesdays result, thats what footballs really about, and I do hope you improve, just think, if you became as good as ManUre, the north london derby would be a worldwide must watch.
But you’re a long way off, ManUre have been playing some seriously majestic football recently, and to go there and win is a big ask, expect cries of the weeks game tired us out etc etc
It’ll be interesting to see next saturdays excuse if you need one.
And just you watch out for Slavia Prague, we went there with a decent team, including one of their countries best players and scrapped a draw, whether you think your invincable or not, if we struggled, so will you.
January 25th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
But I still hate you all.
In the 3 games between us, despite the 5-1 whuppin, you’re still only 1 goal in front on goal difference, and a whoppin 6 points comes our way. If you had them points you’d be ready to challenge for 4th, but you dont, and you aint.
January 25th, 2008 at 8:59 pm
And Bagel, I usually read the blog, but I just cant face it yet, hope you dont mind.
January 26th, 2008 at 8:12 am
No problem, WHS. I’m glad you feel the pain. I don’t mean that in a sadistic way but it’s as important as the pleasure. We’d never feel this good ourselves if hadn’t coped with a lot of shit in the past. Man City’s turn-around with 10 men is the Yin to this Yang.
Can you send me an e-mail to thebagel@beefbagel.com please?
I need a quick word - nothing ominous. In fact, if anyone ever wants to e-mail me, then be my guest. I need to make that a bit more obvious somewhere on the site.
The Bagel.
January 26th, 2008 at 8:22 am
Keving,
Been enjoying your blog too. Good name and loving the touches of real life, eg canned vegetables at Morrisons.
I think you echo a lot of Spurs fans fears on Hutton but players just seem to have shot up in value over the last 12 months. I’m starting to sound like someone’s grandad but in my day you could have gone down the shops with £10m, bought yourself a Tiago and a Hutton and still had change for a pint of gold top, a packet of Quavers and squad player you’ll never use - say Darren Bent.
Football economics - very real and very silly.
The Bagel.
January 26th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Have you read this:
http://football.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,2239112,00.html
Interesting read on the insane economics of footie
January 26th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
If you wanna see the highlights that’s the vid.
The link to the site is this:
http://www.footyhighlights.com/?p=209
Happy watching!
Rofl Ki Ki… poor excuses again.
January 26th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Dang, i tried to look cool by embedding the video.
Ha ha, oh well theres a link there.
January 26th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Thanks for the kind words Bagel. It’s amazing the interesting things that happen in tinned vegtable aisles in the supermarket. Tomorrow i’m going to Tescos to hang aboot the fresh fruit and veg section…
Anyway, the market has went crazy, wie the fees being paid this week, £3m for Coosan tae Fulham, £5m for King to Wigan, £7m Woodgate to the Toon, is the signs that clubs do take leave of their senses in the Jan window. The summer window disnny seem as crazy, well £16m for Bent is crazy.
From Celtic’s point of view, it’s great we are getting priced out the market for coo’s like Marlon King ,Bobby Zamora, Harewood and others of that ilk, whom Celtic get linked wie on a reg basis, are now out of oor price range due to the fact we don’t have a Sky deal.
Today, we have signed a 20 year old from Boro…that’s the only players we can afford to sign from the English market…
There are bargins out there..we got a German internationlist RB for under £2m, Nakamura for under £2m, Boruc for £650,000 but had to pay £4m for Scott Broon due to interest from down south.
The days of us signing Sutton’s, Hartsons etc is long gone..at least Spurs are still on the gravey train..
Hail Hail
January 26th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
how many of you yids reckon your gunner win the carling cup then?
January 26th, 2008 at 7:46 pm
Heres one im having difficulty coming to terms with - the Arse saying they only field a second string/ reserve side.
So what is the point in that boast, if they put out a full team with every game in all competitions, due to suspensions or injuries they could well have been left with the side they put out on Tues.
Well I guess the answer would be that this comp doesnt matter.
Ask a Chelski fan now that they are through, most are well chuffed. And the fact is this could have been the only thing Arse could have won in two seasons.
January 26th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
We also have bigger fish to fry — we took off some of our best players in Keane, Berbatov, and Lennon, to rest them for the FA Cup.
[ Dimi's going to wembley, his knees have gone all trembly... ]
January 27th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
And now the dust has settled, it’s clear that you can see this seasons highlight may have passed.
In august, what would seem a foray into the unknown depths that include champions league football, finally ridding the burden of being londons bridesmaid club, stepping out of the Mighty Arsenals shadow and creating one of your own, all these achievements were very plausible, certainly for some of the contributants on bagel.
Would you have accepted an appearance in the league cup final and a mid table finish then ? Would you accept that those rewards were acceptable returns for a £40M preseason investment ?
Yesterdays result cheered me up - I expect 3 points on tuesday, and european football starts again soon when we welcome Milan to the Grove. Our season still has a lot of track to cover, our seasons potential still sits compulsively just out of sight, we can still emulate ManUre’s ‘99 season, and in my dreams we will.
Tuesdays result is now confined to the annals of history, a blip in an otherwise uninterupted journey, you couldn’t transform that into victory at old trafford so must assume the rest of this seasons march will emulate it’s predecessors with mediocre results and occasional moments of respite.
It’s time for your cries of ‘just watch us next season’ to ring out again, one day maybe, but not today.
January 27th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
Its clear that this season’s highlights MAY have passed.
Its also clear that this seasons highlights MAY not have passed.
We lost away to the champions. So must assume the rest of the season will be mediocre.
And compare this to Arsenal. Who MAY win every tournament they are still in.
Or, of course, WHS, Tottenham COULD win the league cup and the UEFA cup, and Arsenal COULD end up trophyless. Which is where this squad of players’ “uninterrupted journey” has taken them thus far…
In your rush to write an anti Tottenham post, you MAY have just written a load of speculative nonsense.
No, in fact - you have.
Anyway, I MAY have a cup of tea now. Or I MAY not. Until I know for sure, I’ll not bother you all with it.
January 27th, 2008 at 7:56 pm
Hi Oog
Very nicely put in your ever elloquant way
Ok we’re out of the FA Cup, but we can now concentrate on moving up the league & the Carling Cup Final
COYS!
January 27th, 2008 at 8:18 pm
Marks and Spencers fairtrade. Highly recommended.
January 27th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
Very well said oog, but I wasn’t rushing, patience was my virtue - after all, it wasn’t as though you were charging headlong into some record breaking unbeaten run. Nothing has changed, the personel remain the same, the problems are still there for all to see.
Or are they worsening? despite the fact that chimbonda cant wait to clutch the northern gold to his heart, he was good for you, and a crocked centrehalf, do you really need another ? Will this young saviour from north of the border be adding to or sipping from your well of experience ?
The cure of robinson must be contagious, as howlers once again disturb your progress, and jenas is so limited, huddlestone so unfinished, where does the midfield take it’s strength ?
While gushing at your extraordinary feats, you have allowed romance to blind you from reality and rushed to embrace the dream of spuds domination.
I expect that tea’ll wake you up.
January 27th, 2008 at 9:48 pm
Its true that I have occasionally allowed romance to blind me from reality, but thats not something to bring up on a football blog.
Care to tell me where I “rushed to embrace the dream of spu[r]s domination”?!
I was just pointing out that you were talking rubbish.
Or, to use your style…
“was oog just pointing out that whs was talking rubbish? Are whs’ posts worsening? Will Arsenal win the treble?”
[yes, yes, nonono]
January 27th, 2008 at 9:50 pm
Reality? We were hard done by to lose 3-1 in the end up at Old Trafford, that’s the reality. Do you see anyone diagreeing with that?
Did any Spurs fans expect us to go up there and give them a 5-1 hammering? No.
I don’t quite see what your getting at WHS but I get the feeling your in denial over the signs of a Spurs revival.
January 27th, 2008 at 10:54 pm
evening yids. hard luck today , i actually wanted you lot to win today believe it or not. But you never beat the mancs do ya!!
would of been good to maybe draw you in the proper cup!!
January 27th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
mr wilson
your right you are having a revival,old columbo does seem to have cracked it at spurs, he will turn out to be your best manager for….well……a long time!! i think you have finally got a man to challenge wenger n fergie but can he top them???