Bridging the Gap

[PT]

Liverpool are part of the top four regularly because of their deserved European reputation. They can draw players in from Europe who wouldn't otherwise come to UK.

Their allure, based on their history provides the platform for attracting top European and British players.

 

[Modric]

Liverpool are part of the top four regularly because of their deserved European reputation. They can draw players in from Europe who wouldn't otherwise come to UK.

Their allure, based on their history provides the platform for attracting top European and British players.

British and foreign players don't care about history. They care about big wages and champions league football, something Liverpool have been able to offer almost every season in the prem since it's inception.

 

[PT]

British and foreign players don't care about history. They care about big wages and champions league football, something Liverpool have been able to offer almost every season in the prem since it's inception.

That's my point dude. It's reciprocal. Because Liverpool are giants in Europe and successful at it too, they can lay claim to top European players who want European Champions league competition, and thereby assist Liverpool in a successful domestic competition - and so it goes on.

 

[lifeof...]

............... getting in mourinho

..............basically they had a project - win the lge,


...........cfc were already in he CL,

as you say CFC had already broke the top 4 with out "the jackpot" as you put it....

They, the club, had the desire, ambition, belief, and a defined goal..."win the league"

They got Mourinho.... who took them the next step. (winning the league)

We Spurs can do this...The Board have make the right move 1st.

 

[lifeof...]

Liverpool are part of the top four regularly because of their deserved European reputation. They can draw players in from Europe who wouldn't otherwise come to UK.

Their allure, based on their history provides the platform for attracting top European and British players.

And they don't cap the salary.....Which is the more vital point in actually obtaining the player...Would Torres be at Liverpool now if he was on 50 odd k a week?

 

[Modric]

That's my point dude. It's reciprocal. Because Liverpool are giants in Europe and successful at it too, they can lay claim to top European players who want European Champions league competition, and thereby assist Liverpool in a successful domestic competition - and so it goes on.

Reciprocal eh? I'd like to say I've learned my one word for the day but I've just looked it up and I still don't understand.

 

[MarkinJapan]

Unfortunately what we need is a shit load of luck, and quite a few new players who probably won't want to come to us.

There's no point pining for 4th. It might happen but if I was a betting man I'd say we will not finish in the top 4 in the next 5 seasons... and to be honest probably the next 10.

Keeping my fingers crossed for the billionaire arab.

 

[Reece]

maybe in the next 5 we won't .. but a shit load can happen in 10 years, just ask man city, leeds etc.. fair enuff , man utd etc are still at the top like 10 years ago, but things change and spurs have a bright future, coys! ready for the merkle next year

 

[raf18]

the first step for me would be to actually do an everton and break into it. Once we are in, it will give us a solid foundation to build on and give us the ability to attract those players that are perhaps JUST out of our league e.g. barry, alonso last season etc.

The problem is that we keep failing to do it. A VERY risky resolution is to just keep all of our best player until we do it and risk letting them run out their contracts. If you think about it (and i know this is all easy to say now), we could have had a team with carrick, berbatov, keane, palacios and modric in it! add to that our solid defence this season!

 

[hellava_tough]

the first step for me would be to actually do an everton and break into it. Once we are in, it will give us a solid foundation to build on and give us the ability to attract those players that are perhaps JUST out of our league e.g. barry, alonso last season etc.

The problem is that we keep failing to do it. A VERY risky resolution is to just keep all of our best player until we do it and risk letting them run out their contracts. If you think about it (and i know this is all easy to say now), we could have had a team with carrick, berbatov, keane, palacios and modric in it! add to that our solid defence this season!

I hear what you're saying

If we want to break into the Top 4, then at some point we'll have to change our transfer policy. simply put, we'll have to do what Villa did with Barry last season - tell him to stay.

If we don't, then we'll always be a feeder club for the teams above us. It's even got to the point where it hinders us more, than it helps other teams (Berbatov anyone?).

 

[SpurSince57]

I think consistency is the key. If you look at the top four, and Everton who have probably been the most successful outside the top four, then they have relatively long term managers (excluding Chelsea who have just bought their way to the top).

I think with a couple of tweaks we can steal ahead of the likes of Villa and Everton and I think being the best of the rest needs to be our first target. If we can cement a position as the 5th best team in the league next season then we can build from there hopefully with it coming together in time for the new stadium.

I think we're much better positioned now that we've got rid of the 'continental' structure which didn't seem to have any benefits (none that the club could really explain anyway) and seemed to have alot of drawbacks (in that Jol and Ramos couldn't 100% do their own thing transfer wise).

If we stick with a sensible base for the next two seasons then I can see us being alot more like Everton and then we can go from there.

That's not entirely true, certainly if you mean that Abramovich's billions took them from nowhere to the top. Yes, they did spend big and pay big, to the verge of bankruptcy, but they were already a top four side when Abramovich bought in, after a steady slog over ten years.

Look at Liverpool; Benitez has been in charge for five seasons now, and spent an awful lot of money—and last season was the first in which they've mounted a credible title challenge. There's a glass ceiling within the top four, as well as the one beneath them.

 

[Reg]

:roll:....And so it begins.....................

What about...

"What will it take not to have such a dreadful start that our season is over before it's begun"...before we start this top 4 shite. If we haven't embarrassed ourselves in any way by Christmas then we should look at the top 4 question".

 

[raf18]

ye nice one reg. i keep looking back on that season where sheringham scored a last minute pen against southampton to keep us top of the league or to get us there. It would be great to get a good start for once.

no doubt about arsenal getting an easy home game to start with whilst we probget burnley away or summin.

 

[night-watchman]

:roll:....And so it begins.....................

What about...

"What will it take not to have such a dreadful start that our season is over before it's begun"...before we start this top 4 shite. If we haven't embarrassed ourselves in any way by Christmas then we should look at the top 4 question".

cheer up mate :wink:

this thread is purely hypothetical discussion, not one person in this thread so far has actually said that we will do it next season, just talking about what it will take to break it.

 

[camaj]

I don't think it's that hard, our biggest problem is the professionalism of our players, we only seem up for the glamour games, no one seems bothered about playing Pompey and that's reflected in our results. The other problem is consistency. It's astounding with such a big problem in this area that people would sell Pav, Bently and Bent after just one season. Players generally play better once they've settled but few get that chance at spurs.

 

[steve]

I don't think it's that hard, our biggest problem is the professionalism of our players, we only seem up for the glamour games, no one seems bothered about playing Pompey and that's reflected in our results. The other problem is consistency. It's astounding with such a big problem in this area that people would sell Pav, Bently and Bent after just one season. Players generally play better once they've settled but few get that chance at spurs.

I do, at the moment it's almost impossible. As someone pointed out earlier we could've had a team of Carrick, Modric, Palacios, Lennon, Keane and Berbatov, but we can't hang onto our best players when the big boys come calling. It could be Modric and Lennon in a years time if there stars continue to ascend and then we're back to square one again.

To qualify AND stay in there is reliant really on the others around us even more so than ourselves. Maybe if Wenger leaves Arsenal we might reel them in, but even then we can't be sure of it, but right now can we get there and stay there? No chance....

 

[stemark44]

I don't think it's that hard, our biggest problem is the professionalism of our players, we only seem up for the glamour games, no one seems bothered about playing Pompey and that's reflected in our results. The other problem is consistency. It's astounding with such a big problem in this area that people would sell Pav, Bently and Bent after just one season. Players generally play better once they've settled but few get that chance at spurs.

Other than Carrick and Berbatov - who we didn't want to sell because we knew they were good players - what other players have we sold who have gone on to bigger and better things?
I can't think of any apart from Kanoute and he was sold because he fell out with the manager,so consistency isn't a problem its lack of quality.

That is the biggest factor that has stopped us becoming a top 4 team - we have spent a ton of money but we still have at least 8/9 players in our squad who just aren't good enough.

 

[Michey]

What would it take for Tottenham to become a top four club?

Buy better players!

Chelsea are about to buy Zhirkov and we're discussing players like Jones, Downing etc. We've spent stupid money on players like Bent and Bentley instead of doing professional scouting.

 

[johnmc]

That's pretty accurate Michey, we have paid silly money for average players. The last 2 or 3 transfer windows before Harry arrived set us back immensely. Identifying the right players and building a rock solid tough squad is paramount. This can't be done overnight and patience is a must. I think the board ran out of patience under Jol and that cost us. I am not saying Jol would have got us 4th but his sacking set us back. If you do break into the top 4 it then becomes even more difficult to stay there. So more investment is needed. And so it goes on.