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Member
Mar 11, 2005
340
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The summer transfer window is arguably the most interesting time of the year for a Spurs fan. I must admit to reading all of the transfer rumours with slightly more interest than the match reports of a game I’ve just seen us play. We all know that a good 90% of the ‘stories’ that the tabloids churn out are pure fantasy, but that’s what makes it almost fun.

At this relatively early stage of the summer it seems that we’re set to be overloaded with rumours about our front line, what it needs and what it doesn’t. I think it’s fair to say that many of us Spurs fans are eager to see the goal tally rise next season. Supporters want to have a striker who is in with a chance of finishing as the top goal scorer at the end of the season.

These rumours linking us with various strikers make me smile. The response from some of the fans also makes me smile. It is nothing new to suggest that fans of football clubs have their favourites. But it seems to me that there is such a thing as a ‘fashionable’ footballer.

All of this talk about us being linked with Ruud van Nistelrooy seems to have exited many Spurs followers. “At that price we would be stupid not to” appears to be the most common reply on this website. “Dump Bent or Pav” also regularly pops up.

I have written this article, as I am interested in finding out why exactly fans are desperate to have ‘fashionable’ names in our team and are so quick to write off ‘unfashionable’ players.

Roman Pavlyuchenko joined the club after the start of last season. Signing on 1<SUP>st</SUP> September he not only missed the whole of preseason but also our first three league games. Nevertheless, over the course of the season he contributed 14 goals in 26 starts in all competitions (including goals against Liverpool (3) and United). I think that is a pretty sound return given the circumstances – a player not really seen as first choice up front and therefore not started in every game, a player who doesn’t enjoy full backing from the manager, a player who many of the fans don’t even rate.

Darren Bent, in contrast, had a fine preseason. At that point it seemed that many of his detractors were ready to give him a chance. We began the season in spectacularly poor fashion, yet in our first 12 league games alone, Bent scored 7 goals, including goals against Chelsea and Arse***). Add to that a hattrick and another goal in the UEFA Cup between the league games. At the end of the season, Bent had a return of 17 goals in 28 starts in all competitions. A very good tally that saw Bent as the joint-highest English goalscorer (behind Gerrard and his four penalties) in arguably the best league in the world. Not bad at all considering the circumstances – a player who was up front alone for quite a few of those starts, a player who was dropped when Defoe and Keane returned, a player who doesn’t enjoy full backing from the manager, a player who many of the fans don’t even rate.

Both of these players are seen as ‘unfashionable’ by many fans, while the likes of Keane and Defoe are worshipped. As a result, many are too eager to overlook their impressive contributions in favour of new faces, or old faces returning. They are the first two names put forward of the four strikers we have and I cannot understand it.

If Defoe had started the season with us and had scored 17 in 28 starts, everyone would be singing his praises. If Arshavin had signed three games into the season and scored 14 in 26, he would be rivaling Keane for worshippers. Incidentally, Arshavin was on the score sheet in just 3 of his 14 starts (a total of 6 goals in 14 starts thanks to 4 in one game). (I understand that they are different players, but this supports the ‘fashionable’ point I am trying to make).

What is the point in replacing Pavlyuchenko with van Nistelrooy?
Why on earth would we want to sell Bent – our top scorer, a proven Premier League striker?

Unfortunately I expect Bent to leave this summer. Bringing back Defoe was like a punch in the face, especially given Harry’s love affair with the former Hammer. No matter what Bent does, he knows he will not get start ahead of a fit Defoe. (That’s not to say I don’t rate Defoe). I also expect that Bent will do well wherever he goes. Personally I hope we keep them both and resist the temptation to bring in the ‘big name’ that so many crave.
 

paxton_soul

Grand Poobah
Jul 4, 2004
468
21
Broadly agree.

In fact it is my belief that Bent will go and Keane may follow him.

I think Keane simply didn't want to come back but Liverpool are short on money and couldn't afford the installments they owed us. His performances (especially toward the end of the season) were lack lustre to say the least.

I suspect, but have not one shred of proof, that he only agreed to the humiliation of returning (and having made such a big song and dance about leaving it was just that) on an undroppable clause.
 

newbie

Well-Known Member
Jul 16, 2004
6,051
6,342
If you look at goals scored away from home i think it would be a safe bet Darren Bent finished top he scored 10-11 prem goals away from home thats amazing when you consider Robinio i dont think score any goals away from home.
 

JimmyG2

SC Supporter
Dec 7, 2006
15,014
20,779
Absolutely agree with almost every word of this. Not one of the replacements rumoured are an improvement on what we have already, fashionable or unfashionable.
To spend anything on a 33yr old, out for seven months with a recurring knee problem, and on £70 thousand a week seems a pointless risk to me.
I rather they gave the money to the Academy or used the £1 million or so fee on a couple of bright youngsters.
I notice that you avoid the tricky Robbie Keane problem, of our four 'strikers he's the one that would be top of my transfer list, although in fact I would be happy to start with our current squad in the name of gradual progress and stability.
 

DC_Boy

New Member
May 20, 2005
17,608
5
I think we should keep all our current strikers, and add a 'good in the air' striker. Mr RVN fits the bill for me.

I would also like us to get Tuncay as he can add goals from midfield, and play up front if necessary.

Get Scharner and Warnock in as well and I think that's us sorted.

Of course, whoever Harry buys will be probably better than my suggestions :)
 

El_Stackos

New Member
Nov 19, 2004
10
8
Season ticket since before he arrived - bent = not good enough for Spurs, bearing in mind of course we're not that good, all his goals were tap ins too. Sell him, cut your losses, admit you made a mistake signing him and bloody flog him...hate to say it about our player but when your numbers up...
 

striebs

Well-Known Member
Mar 18, 2004
4,504
667
Broadly agree.

In fact it is my belief that Bent will go and Keane may follow him.

I think Keane simply didn't want to come back but Liverpool are short on money and couldn't afford the installments they owed us. His performances (especially toward the end of the season) were lack lustre to say the least.

I suspect, but have not one shred of proof, that he only agreed to the humiliation of returning (and having made such a big song and dance about leaving it was just that) on an undroppable clause.

Guaranteed starts and be immunity from substitution would never be put in writing and wouldn't even be assured verbally .


For what was supposed to be his boyhood club Keanes departure was hardly overblown and he conducted himself with dignity as he always does .

Don't you think it was somewhat pointed that just after extending his contract he said he would "stay at Tottenham as long as he felt wanted" ?
 

JoeT

Well-Known Member
Jun 7, 2005
3,813
935
Of our four strikers Keane is the enigma here. I just don't understand what happened to him after he came back from Liverpool. Did HR tell him to play so far back all the time or was he ignoring instuctions just about every week? Is it me, or have his skills (and maybe fitness) taken a backwards step? Does a player reach a time in his career when he falls over a cliff? If all of this is true then Keane should be the one to be moved on....Captain or no Captain.
But will HR do it?
 

Black

Well-Known Member
May 21, 2007
4,807
4,872
Season ticket since before he arrived - bent = not good enough for Spurs, bearing in mind of course we're not that good, all his goals were tap ins too. Sell him, cut your losses, admit you made a mistake signing him and bloody flog him...hate to say it about our player but when your numbers up...

how come no one else could score 12 tap ins, another 12 tap ins and we could have been in europe :shrug:

i don't really like our options up front anyway
 

striebs

Well-Known Member
Mar 18, 2004
4,504
667
Of our four strikers Keane is the enigma here. I just don't understand what happened to him after he came back from Liverpool. Did HR tell him to play so far back all the time or was he ignoring instuctions just about every week? Is it me, or have his skills (and maybe fitness) taken a backwards step? Does a player reach a time in his career when he falls over a cliff? If all of this is true then Keane should be the one to be moved on....Captain or no Captain.
But will HR do it?

Keane has his faults but currently he is the only one of our strikers who is a leader . Take him out of the equation and I think it will revert to being chaos up front .

After 6 seasons of consistent goalscoring it's seems a bit premature to talk of moving him on .


I really do think the problems started well before Keane went to Liverpool , certainly by the time the atmosphere deteriorated following the CC victory and possibly before that during the Jol knifing .

Nobody was performing to their potential following the CC and I wouldn't want to remind anybody what the atmosphere was like at The Lane .

Harry knows what he is doing and will do the right thing for Spurs whatever that may be .
 

18Klinsmann

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2005
1,254
494
I see your point, and I do think our frontline have done well this season. It would make good sense to hold on to our current strikers and make them develop a good understanding.
However, I cannot get rid of the feeling that between our four strikers there is no real partnership or even what seems like a potentially good one. They all provide us with good individual options, but we need a partnership. RVN or someone of his stature and quality would add that potential I think.
 

read

Member
Mar 11, 2005
340
1
I think we should keep all our current strikers, and add a 'good in the air' striker. Mr RVN fits the bill for me.

I would also like us to get Tuncay as he can add goals from midfield, and play up front if necessary.

Get Scharner and Warnock in as well and I think that's us sorted.

Of course, whoever Harry buys will be probably better than my suggestions :)


so we'd have Keane, Defoe, Bent, Pav, Ruud and Tuncay? not so sure that would really solve anything at all.
 

read

Member
Mar 11, 2005
340
1
Season ticket since before he arrived - bent = not good enough for Spurs, bearing in mind of course we're not that good, all his goals were tap ins too. Sell him, cut your losses, admit you made a mistake signing him and bloody flog him...hate to say it about our player but when your numbers up...


this is exactly the point i am trying to make.
the club's top goalscorer in a poor season, level with rooney and robinho and only behind liverpool's captain fantastic in terms of english scorers and he's still not good enough for some.
 

read

Member
Mar 11, 2005
340
1
I see your point, and I do think our frontline have done well this season. It would make good sense to hold on to our current strikers and make them develop a good understanding.
However, I cannot get rid of the feeling that between our four strikers there is no real partnership or even what seems like a potentially good one. They all provide us with good individual options, but we need a partnership. RVN or someone of his stature and quality would add that potential I think.


if we bring in Ruud, one or more strikers will leave. how are the remaining strikers going to find partnerships? as long as we have four strikers, all of whom are good enough to start every game, there will be enough rotation for none of them to work properly on a partnership - especially given that we have no european games this season.
 

onlyonekeano

Well-Known Member
Dec 28, 2004
198
283
The problem with this article is that is tries to use cold hard statistics to convince people away from their opinions about players, which they have formed from what they see on the pitch. And crucially, football is played on a pitch - there is much more to how we rate a striker beyond the number of goals they have scored in a number of minutes. We need to assess their overall impact on the team over the course of the season.

The fact remains that a significant proportion of regular Spurs watchers, perhaps even a majority, have come to the conclusion that despite his impressive goal tally, Bent does not offer enough in his overall play to command a starting place in our line up. That's not to say he doesn't have his benefits - he is clearly a hard worker and excellent finisher - but if we can fetch say £12m for someone who isnt good enough to be first choice and replace him with somebody who might foreseeably challenge/complement Keane and Defoe, then surely that makes sense.

Similarly with Pav, yes he has had his moments this season, in particular that FA Cup game against Wigan, and I think most would agree that he is certainly a talented footballer. However, there is also much evidence to suggest that he isn't quite what we are looking for in our 'target man' striker position - see: Carling Cup final, last game of season vs. City. Again, if we can recoup good money for him and spend it on someone who the coaching staff have identified as being better suited to our team (I'm not going to throw names around because I trust Redknapp to do his job better than I could) then why wouldn't we do it?

Basically my point is that while Bent and Pav are clearly good strikers with respectable scoring records, they could potentially be improved upon...if Redknapp has identified players that we feels will offer more than these two (not necessarily true from all the rumours, but probably is), and they are affordable, then surely we trust his judgement to deliver the goods and improve our playing staff.
 

mdharris

Well-Known Member
Oct 12, 2005
1,771
3,033
The summer transfer window is arguably the most interesting time of the year for a Spurs fan. I must admit to reading all of the transfer rumours with slightly more interest than the match reports of a game I’ve just seen us play. We all know that a good 90% of the ‘stories’ that the tabloids churn out are pure fantasy, but that’s what makes it almost fun.

For a time, maybe, it is sort of fun to imagine how those whom we've been linked with would fit in to our team.

But it gets old very quickly. Im already wishing there was a spurs game on the tele, plus we were really beginning to play well at the end there, so this summer cant end soon enough in that respect
 

Spurs_Bear

Well-Known Member
Jan 7, 2009
17,094
22,286
this is exactly the point i am trying to make.
the club's top goalscorer in a poor season, level with rooney and robinho and only behind liverpool's captain fantastic in terms of english scorers and he's still not good enough for some.

My issue with Bent is not that he doesn't score goals. His scoring record is impressive, especially this season, but I just feel that he doesn't offer enough else. Now I know that seems a bit silly when goals are obviously very important, but he doesn't create goals himself or for others, and although improved, cant hold the ball up allowing others to play round him.

I did feel sorry for him when he was dropped in favour of Defoe/Keane and Pav, but he isn't half as effective when he plays in a pair up front, he was better when Modric played at the top of the midfield when Harry first came in, so that may have been why he went down the pecking order.

It's a cliche that gets used a lot "he would go to another club and do well" but I really don't think Bent is a top 6 player, unless he plays up front on his own.

Of course, that is only my opinion and I fully expect others to disagree, but that's why we love the community!
 
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