What now for Tottenham and Harry Kane? Even a voided season won’t solve that problem
Flawed planning in the boardroom, managerial chaos, the expense of the stadium and coronavirus add up to a painful perfect storm
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Your support makes all the difference.No wonder Tottenham Hotspur wish the season could be voided. Even before coronavirus became a household word, the campaign was a huge disappointment. No one in football is upbeat at the moment but the prospects are particularly bleak in north London.
Harry Kane has not helped the mood. The England captain’s comments in an Instagram conversation with Jamie Redknapp gave a clear indication that the striker is thinking hard about his future. Kane is cagey. He knows the impact of his words. This was no slip of the tongue. “I love Spurs,” he said. “I’ll always love Spurs.” He probably didn’t need to say much more. You half expected him to say “it’s not you, it’s me.”
Tottenham, as Kane knows, are not “progressing as a team or going in the right direction.” If they were, they would be desperate for the Covid-19 crisis to end and get back on the pitch.
In one sense the hiatus in the season is good for Spurs. It will allow most of their walking wounded to recover and Jose Mourinho should have most of his squad fit if and when the action resumes. Everyone else will be healthy, too, though, and most of Tottenham’s rivals will click back into an established pattern of play. Good teams have an identity. Spurs don’t.
Mourinho has shown few indications that he has got to grips with the squad at White Hart Lane, especially the defence. His team looks ragged at the back.
Spurs are seven points off the Champions League spots and, whatever fantastical contortions are taken to finish the fixtures, it would be remarkable if Tottenham can leapfrog Sheffield United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Manchester United and Chelsea. Even with Kane, they do not look good enough.
Mourinho told Daniel Levy that he could take this squad into the top four when he replaced Mauricio Pochettino in November. That tells you one of two things. Either the Portuguese was prepared to say anything to his new boss to get the job or he had not watched Spurs closely enough. Actually, there is a third option. Mourinho still saw himself as a miracle worker. That time has passed. The 57-year-old increasingly seems like a relic of another age.
Pochettino has his faults and his working methods were perfect for a young, inexperienced squad but his approach wore thin as the seasons passed. The Argentinian is the kind of manager who needs a regular turnover of faces in the dressing room. Levy has a reputation for being an astute manipulator in the transfer market but his wheeler-dealer skills are overrated. His tendency to wait until the last minute in an attempt to drive a hard bargain has never done his managers or incoming players any favours. Most new signings prefer a leisurely pre-season to integrate rather than trying to fit in to the team when the treadmill of competitive matches has already started.
What was really unforgivable was Levy’s failure to add depth in the summer of 2018. A bit of late business would have been welcomed by Pochettino. A number of unhappy players should have been replaced and problem roles – like the full back positions – addressed. The run to the Champions League final in Madrid last year masked myriad problems. The decline was under way well before the knockout stages but with a little foresight the previous summer Pochettino’s position could have been strengthened instead of letting things slide.
Spurs need new blood but the cost of the new White Hart Lane will have a significant impact on Tottenham’s spending power for the foreseeable future. Although Spurs posted record profits for the 2017-18 season and refinanced the stadium loan with bond schemes that will run for between 15 and 20 years, there will be a knock-on effect on the transfer budget.
If the season restarts behind closed doors, it will be especially galling for Spurs with their magnificent new ground sitting empty. The financial pain will get even worse.
It might be selling, rather than buying, that causes Tottenham angst over the next few months. There are only two ways to keep players at clubs: pay the going rate in wages or win trophies. Tottenham do neither. Kane is closer to the league’s big earners than his teammates but the striker could undoubtedly do much better elsewhere in terms of cash and medals.
It would be a calamity if the 26-year-old decided to exit the club. Not only would Spurs lose their talisman but the pandemic has depressed transfer values and turned the window into a buyers’ market. This would not be a good time to sell. Even Levy would struggle to make such a deal work in his favour.
Tough times lie ahead for Tottenham. Flawed planning in the boardroom, managerial chaos, the expense of the stadium and coronavirus add up to a painful perfect storm. Even scrapping the season will not solve the problems at White Hart Lane.
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