The Summer Transfer Window POST MORTEM THREAD

[Matrix]

Poch has already said today (and quite rightly) that if we don't get our targets we aren't buying second rate shit anymore.

This is the correct strategy IMO and by definition it means that sometimes we will miss out.

The problem is out great chairman seems to wants to pay 2012 prices for our main targets. So what chance do we have to get our targets. You got to face up that the price structure has changed.

 

[13VanDerBale13]

if you were @igijedi, baring in mind how sensitive our fans atm, what would your next twitter post be for the official account

 

[dtxspurs]

if you were @igijedi, baring in mind how sensitive our fans atm, what would your next twitter post be for the official account

Christian Eriksen/Dele Alli contract pictures are literally the only thing that wouldn't get just massive shit right now.

 

[spursfan77]

At least we didn’t make the same mistake of buying shit squad players on the last day of the window. None have looked so far that they are good enough. Llorente, Aurier last year and sissoko, gnk the year before for example.

But apart from that it’s been terrible. Not to sell or buy a single player all summer just stinks of something wrong at the club.

I have also maintained all summer that the problem has been that we haven’t been able to generate cash through sales to buy players. That’s how we usually fund purchases and I think is a huge reason why we made no signings. That and the stadium is obviously a black hole for funds.

 

[SpartanSpur]

Poch has said he doesn't want to work with a DoF.

That opinion might have changed now! (or not)

Hopefully it was especially bad this year with all the stadium and naming rights stuff.

 

[Dillspur]

If the stadium isn’t paid off double quick, then serious questions need to be asked. We’re in the top 10/15 clubs in world football regarding turn over, had almost zero net spend the last few years, increased TV revenue where is the money going?

 

[Johnny J]

I don't get why you would doubt top 4. I'm currently looking at all 6 squads from us and our competitors on separate tabs and I still see our squad as second only to Manchester City's. I agree with you that the window has been poor and yes, maybe we need a DoF to handle transfers or something similar (though Pochettino is against this I think), but to look at our squad and those of our competitors and not think we are looking bloody strong is a bit much in my opinion.

How strong are we looking in midfield? Wanyama is injured for God knows how long. Winks has ongoing injury problems. Dembele needs to be "nursed" through the season. Dier is increasingly awful there. Sissoko.

We are strong in attack and defence but our midfield was weak even before the injuries. At the moment you're looking at Dier + either Sissoko and Dembele every game.

 

[cider spurs]

Only club in the top 5 European leagues not to sign a player.

Utter bollocks, of course we needed to add one or two.

Yes we are strong when every player is fit and firing. How many times did we manage to field our strongest eleven last season?.

We needed to strengthen, address a midfield nursing injuries and Dembele's ongoing decline. Not to mention maybe a player that transitions from deep to attack by way of swift, precise passing.

I'm not even overly bothered by the WF failure. Lamela and Moura up to speed allows me to excuse this.

But feck me, brand new stadium, one of the World's best I'm hearing...No, let's not make a statement signing, or at least one we need.

Far better to sign no-one and potentially be a laughing stock from the get-go once the injuries and post World Cup burnout kicks in.

No problem with the youth if good enough, but I for one won't be calling them out if not up to scratch because of the club's lack of ambition this window, maybe resulting in some of them being somewhat rushed into the mix.

As for we have a new stadium to pay for. Yep, but means feck all with no players in the fecker if this is how we expect to operate.

Oooh Toby stayed. Great, which rival is getting a steal at £25 million next summer then?.

Embarrassing, clusterfuck of the highest order. Every time we seem to be on the cusp of something great, the club has this uncanny knack of making us look like feck wits.

Top 5 leagues in Europe, only club not to sign a single player.

Brave?...Nah, thick as fuck.

 

[Deleted member 29446]

I can see #LevyOut signs if we get a few bad results - I really can. Fans are going bloody mental on twatter and social media. Not that I agree with it.

But we will struggle for top4 this season, we need someone in the top6 to have a bad season. If Kane, Eriksen, Dembele gets injured we're fucked big time. And there's only one man to blame here.

We need a director of football back, since Levy obvious thinks he's to smart for the TW. Guess what your little baldheaded chicken, you're not. Fuck off

 

[Blue]

Christian Eriksen/Dele Alli contract pictures are literally the only thing that wouldn't get just massive shit right now.

to be honest i think it will.

 

[AJW]

I see Everton bring in 3 players in 10 minutes and it makes me irrationally irate. This whole window just feels like a colossal fuck up from a brand perspective. Yes, it shows we can hold on to what we have, but it also shows we don't have enough bravery and ambition to take a risk or two.

Ive always been a fan of Levy bug today I'm utterly livid with him.

Bernard who will be on silly wages and agent supposedly wanted a big signing on fee

Mina who they paid 30 million for when Barca played 11 in January and he played 4 games for them and they still have a buy back clause

Gomes on loan for 3 million who is a big risk and probably big wages

I’m frustrated by our lack of signings but also have not really seen that many players signed by our PL rivals who I would have wanted

 

[King of the Lane]

Levy is a brilliant business man for things off the field but thats where it stops. He is the Arsene Wenger of transfers....Wenger was successful for a time but he never evolved his tactics and was left behind. Levy is like that transfer wise...he has outdated tactics nobody falls for anymore and is holding us back from winning things by refusing to pay the going rate...or quite literally pay anything at all!

This is absolutely shambolic and I know people say it every year 'we will struggle to get top 4' but i really feel this is the one we will struggle with. All the teams around us strenthened in key areas they were weak in and we havent addressed ours. We have a good team who have been improving but they have won us fuck all and anyone who thinks just keeping them together will bring us success is deluded and foolish.

Put it this way...Liverpool were miles off us a few seasons ago and last season they only finished 1 place below us but with a champions league final to their name. They have spent big and covered all the areas they needed to in order to go to the next level. We are being caught up and quickly.

Finally to all of the happy clappers who spammed, doh'ed, called some of us pathetic and that we need to get a life....maybe you finally see what the rest of us could see was happening a mile off. You cant defend this transfer window at all. If you are happy with just a new stadium and new contracts then good for you but football is a game...one you want to win and I am sick of not winning anything. I suspect the players are too hence Rose's interview and Walkers comments. If we miss out on the top 4 and Poch leaves..players will follow and we will look back on this as the catalyst. I just hope that doesnt happen.

 

[crokey]

I don't understand this sentiment that doing business in the market is an automatic way to improve and that every team around us is apparently so much better now that they bought new players?

When we have the 6th highest turnover and we pay the 6th highest wages, yet we finish 2nd and 3rd, by the laws of averages and by some of your own definitions of "improving", we will fall backwards to 6th eventually.

At least doing something radical like building a new stadium, building world leading facilities and biding our time in the market until we can abuse it to our maximum gives us the chance of cheating the system and ending up on top of the pile.

We either do some crazy shit and risk it for further success, or we follow the status quo of the big dicks with our medium sized dick and eventually end up muscled out.

 

[Darrenh61]

One thing I will say, lets absolutely bitch and moan about levy's disgraceful performance this summer (again) but outside of here, texts/whats app from rival fans, we stick together and it's all Liverpool's fault for ruining the market....agreed!!

 

[Hercules]

May I add, after speaking to one of the Liverpuddle ITK, who is family to their hierarchy.

They made a decision to act quick and incisive, before the market got crazy. They knew they would have challenges on their outs. They told those that would be available, with their agents the score. Lots more I cannot print.

In a nutshell. I DO NOT WANT TO HEAR THE BULLSHIT ABOUT WE HAD TO SHIFT FIRST, HG ‘Meh, meh!’

Daniel Levy COCKED UP! And before anyone starts defending him. Privately is known why I state this strongly.

For the record, I vote very strong-NO CONFIDENCE in DANIEL LEVY conducting our transfer business. And he SHOULD be removed from this role. Give someone else the budget, and let them deal with it!

STICK TO THE COMMERCIAL BUSINESS OF OUR GREAT CLUB Daniel.

Please nobody start singing roses over his Poch is happy. That is not technically true! There are reasons I have shared privately. And we run a great risk of him walking in 12 months.

 

[Ghost Hardware]

If our aim is to win trophies then we had to improve the squad as it is currently not good enough. If the goal is just to compete for the top four then not signing anyone is not such a big deal. Although, saying that, i am more worried this year then i have been in a while. But that will probably subside in time.

Personally I think its insane that we couldn't find a single player that would improve ether the first team or the bench. Im not really sure why we have scouts if all they could drum up is Grealish and Martial. I really feel like we had zero game plan for this window what so ever. Beyond that, nobody is going to convince me all is well, the only thing that will do that is results on the pitch and Poch staying. Now i don't expect him to leave despite what seem like a monumental fuck up but i feel like he said enough times over the summer that the squad needed improving that i just cant see him being all smiles and cuddles right now. And as a season ticket holder it does irk me that we are paying huge amounts for a seat in our lovely new stadium but the club cant bring in a single new player to improve us. Thats not going to make me love the club any less, but im not sure how Levy can justify from a business aspect charging top tear prices for what isn't top tear football. When i say top tear i mean City, Barca, RM, Juve etc. Now obviously i didn't expect us to spend the sort of money those clubs spend/spent, im not an idiot, but at least a suggestion that we are trying to compete with them for the top. Obviously sales and the dreaded home grown issues play a part, but really, one marque player is not going to send us spiralling especially if we really did have 150 mil to spend. Essentially it feels like Levy has gambled and none of us will know the results of that gamble until the end of the season. If it pays off then he will have played it very well, but if it doesn't then i would 100% expect Eriksen at least to be looking for a move on. Yes, i know he supposedly signed a new contract that will no doubt get announced tomorrow morning, but he's entering his prime and will want to feel like he is at a team challenging for honours. Ether way, at this point in time it feel like a big gamble that could have seriously bad repercussions.

The most annoying thing is, i feel like if we had just singed 1 good CM it would have gone soooo far in helping us achieve our potential as a squad. It really is the route of our struggles from an attacking and defensive aspect. But we are not here to discuss tactics.

Time makes fools of us all so we shall just have to wait and see who is wearing the cap next summer.

Love to all.

 

[MichaelPawson]

My last post for a while. This current feeling of 'so close yet so far' is so common for my sport teams. I truly shouldn't care or bother or put this much time into it. I am an American, so that may discount my opinion to a lot of you, but I feel as attached to this team as all of you. I am Jets, Knicks and Spurs supporter. All of my teams live in the shadow of the 1960's, all of them consistently invent new ways to hurt you emotionally, and most of all, all have been on the cusp of victory in some what recent times, to come up short and leave you with your head down saying, "Maybe next year". All play in major markets, all have really bizarre owners who do more harm than good in the eye of the fan but reality is all of my teams continue to increase in financial value so I guess you could argue thats a positive.

1. I have never in my entire life seen a sports organization move to a new city or stadium and fail to sign new talent for either branding purposes or for helping the overall team succeed. This is truly a first. Every team tries to do some sort of rebrand through a player and a logo. We haven't done neither. Not saying we need to necessarily do either, but in a competitive league like the Prem, where its become increasingly less top heavy since the 'Big 4' were a thing, this is truly a first. From the outside looking in, this is mind-blowing.

2. I am of the belief if you can't improve, don't waste your time and keep pushing on. I do agree with that sentiment. With that said, I wish the club would be significantly more transparent about the direction to go in. I think the games played with the media and how information is leaked costs us emotionally, and at some point it has got to effect the players and the overall team. Granted we don't know what happens behind the scenes and don't know what happens at the top, but the talent is out there and the targets are known and the messaging is always leaked from the club that they are going to commit to building this team bigger and better. I am baffled that the messaging continues to be the same, and the result feels the same. My example of the media effecting it: some player wants more, some player says "get someone you don't have to google", some player complains about wages -- it absolutely sends a message that effects the fans, inherently effecting the brand and image.

3. Levy. God. Where do I begin? I can understand how good of a business man he is. He is the type of guy you want a company to be run by as he will figure out a way to increase profit margins and increase stock value, reduce costs and promote talent from within. The flip side: most sport organizations are owned for either parking investment money for spending or for ego or tax rebates. I am amazed how he treats this like a business as much as he does, regardless of how over budget a stadium build may be or if we are in a recession. Fun fact: most sports teams operate in a MAJOR deficit. He treats this club as if they are a small market team. I think only the Pittsburgh Pirates are the only team that comes to mind that operates with a similar margin, and they are a small market team that has been irrelevant since the 70s and don't resemble the modern sports world of big money. Last summer, Levy moved a lot of bodies amazingly and it was one of the best windows I saw from a selling perspective. He has done some good business over time: Jan, Toby, Dele, Lucas, Berba, the flipping and buying of Keane and Defoe, VDV (although this looks like a one off now), Hugo, Modric, Scotty Parker (the redknapp special), Eriksen, and a few more. But how much of that is scouting? There are equal crap signings like Bentley, Bent, Pav, The War of Frazier Campbell, Chiriches, etc. While this may fall on the sporting director, the reality is that the money spent has never and doesn't ever seem to be like the ones of the biggest clubs in England, and even more so than Europe. We look for youth and bargains. Its just the fact we all know and can't deny. Whether its Levy or Joe Lewis or ENIC, something has got to give. We hear time and time again about 150m, or a war chest, or overdraft, and I don't doubt that the info is coming from a factual plce because I trust the ITK here. However, something isn't adding up. It always seems to come down to penny-pinching here and there, with bullshit negotiating tactics. The teams that win have all spent money to get there, and don't do it cruely. For fcuk sake, we are known for having the Chairman that fucks around. Is that good for selling players? Yes and that may be a positive. But Karma is real. Karma has bitten us before and it did this summer.

4. The ITK this window has been great and free flowing, but I think I need to take a step back and check myself in the mirror and learn how to remove myself. The amount of irrational emotional attachment is bizarre for a 28 year-old man with a steady job and a life. I admit, I am the sick fcuk here.

5. I won't stop supporting Spurs and won't stop loving our club and hope we dominate. I really do. Thats being a fan, and the hope is what keeps you around. But I believe Spurs management deserve a kick in the ass for the way this has been handled and if that comes at a harsh price, then so be it. Regardless of what the team thinks and manager thinks, this is a BAD PR move. Period. Everything, especially the way the media construes things, will be tied back to this one way or another. I know I'll get spammed, 'wtf' for this and a lot of negative reactions, but I am starting to prepare for life without Pochettino. Unless Madrid wind up doing something miraculous with Lopetegui, which as a managerial hiring reeks as the bottom last resort, I am having a really hard time telling myself Poch won't be their next year or PSG (if Tuchel doesn't work out). Positive, I don't see Poch going to another club in England unless something really bad happens between the board and him. I just don't see it. However, this window reeks of stale gum over chewed for too long. Like any other profession, the time comes where you have to move on to bigger and better things. We got 5 great years out of this experience and I couldn't be happier about it, but the reality is, bar us winning a title or two, the winds of change have got to be near. With a manager so connected to the players, you gotta imagine the ripple effect will be big when it happens. So yes, I may get negative feedback for this, and may get screamed at, but I am preparing myself as a way of addressing bullet number 4.

6. As always @Archibald&Crooks and @Rob, I work in the technology space. The website functioned flawlessly for the first window and handled a ton of users. Thank you for making this the mad house it is. @Hercules @rebrab @The Journalist @Gyid @Breezer @Trix @The Goat and anyone else I am missing, thank you all for keeping us entertained for the past few months. Granted, this is a shit show for everyone in some respect. You guys gave us something to do with our lives and probably also caused a divorce or two. Having said that, thanks for always making our summers interesting.

Holy shit, same here man. This is like running into someone on the street who has the exact same scar pattern on their wrists as you have.

I always thought there were some really interesting parallels between the Knicks in particular and Spurs, for some of the reasons you outlined above. The former broke my heart enough times as a kid that I'm jaded when it comes to Spurs letting me down.

 

[IfiHadTheWings]

"They have done business" - why is it that just buying and selling players apparently makes their team better? If that's the case then why aren't we replacing the entire squad every summer if there's this abundance of affordable and better players than we or Chelsea or anyone else already have?

Well they bought two quality options for their midfield lost Courtois but replaced him to a degree and didnt lose any of their big hitters...now you never know how players will perform so its a bit of an unknown but on the balance of if they seem to have strenghened a key area of the pitch with some quality.
Not to sure what your point is mate?

 

[pablo73]

I will reflect with no emotion, as at the moment I am farking ballistic.

Why there is a little semblance of understanding. I fear how far we are taking the piss out of Poch. If we made T4 (which I doubt) that will be another reason for DL to procrastinate further. Any little sign of unrest from within the squad etc, will see him regrettably race to do deals quick in January to appease all.

It does not make good reading, and I personally believe DL should stick to the commercial aspect of running the club, and let someone else handle the transfers, without his interference.

And I again for one minute do not buy all the PR spin doctoring ‘all is well’.

If there is one positive to come out of this transfer window please let it be this. I know Poch wasn't want a director of football bringing in players over his head but surely we could have someone whose remit was just to do the negotiation side of things

 

[Hakkz]

Christian Eriksen/Dele Alli contract pictures are literally the only thing that wouldn't get just massive shit right now.

Even that will get bombarded. They might as well hold on to those news a day or two.