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Now, I want to make it absolutely clear that I am both respectful of and grateful to Harry Redknapp for everything he has done so far for the club that we love. He will always, quite deservedly, be a Spurs icon for his achievements. This article is not written in anger - I am the first to hold my hands up and admit when we have been thoroughly outplayed and deserve defeat, as was the case last night. This is not a criticism of 'Arry's management per se - our resurgence over the past couple of years is due in large part to his management style, and he has got the best out of players such as BAE, Bale, Lennon, Modric, Gallas and Dawson. My concern is whether he is the right man to take us on to the next level (any successful club must always be looking to progress), based both on his managerial weaknesses (for everyone, no matter how strong their strengths, possesses weaknesses) and his obvious desire to manage England.
As regards his management style, my concern is that he is not aggressive enough, that he doesn't possess that killer instinct, and that, ultimately, he is just too much of a nice guy. Now, either this is the case, and this reluctance to kill off games is being dispersed among the players, or else each of the players themselves naturally lack that instinct (the two exceptions being Modric and Bale, both of whom have been outstanding all season, and whose heads rarely, if ever, drop until the final whistle has sounded). Either way, 'Arry, as the team's principal motivator, has got to be the man to put that right, and I can't really think of an occasion this season on which we, as a team, have shown that particular instinct, the desire not just to beat, but annihilate the opposition. One recent example springs to mind - against Wolves, while leading 3-2, a Gareth Bale shot rebounded off the post, and Aaron Lennon, rather than following up aggressively and putting the ball into the open goal, slowed down and effectively let it run out of play. Would Man Utd, or Chelsea, or any other 'big' club, have been so complacent? West Ham, for me, was another example, and Redknapp himself revealed this particular weakness after the match, when claiming that anyone disappointed with our performace that day could not be a real football fan. I'm afraid I would have to disagree - as pretty a performance as it may have been, it did not get the job done. West Ham are a relegation-threatened side, and yet we, a team with alleged top-four pretensions, were unable to put a goal past them. If Redknapp is truly satisfied by that performance, then he has just illustrated my point.
Defensively, we have never been the best side, that's for certain, and while we have put in some outstanding defensive performances this season (Fulham at home, Milan home and away, and about 60 minutes of the game at the Emirates, to name a few), we keep making basic errors. Last night, while we held our line well, we failed to press Madrid when they had the ball, giving them the time to pick out passes. Now, admittedly, Crouch's itchy feet had left us in the lurch, and consequently to press too aggressively would have created too much space for their players, but at the same time, you cannot give players of Xabi Alonso's quality time to pick a pass, because they will murder you. Now, for those who might maintain that this was the result of Crouch's sending off, I would argue that we made exactly the same mistake against Wolves - we sat back, let them come onto us, pick out their passes, and get amonst us. It's all well and good playing a rigid defensive line, but if the line is so rigid that their players simply move around it, then it no longer serves its purpose. This was illustrated by Adebayor's second goal last night, which was almost a carbon copy of Steven Fletcher's 86th minute equaliser in the Wolves game - we held our line but failed to press, allowed a cross to come in, and failed to pick up their attackers. It's a rookie mistake, and one that has cost us on a number of occasions this season. This is particularly inexcusable for a defence that trains against Crouch!
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As for Redknapp's England pretensions, my concern is that if, as seems certain at the moment, he will replace Capello in a little over a year's time, would it not be better for the long-term future of the club to replace him now, while we are still in the limelight and have the opportunity to attract a top-class manager? If we fail to qualify for the Champions' League this time round, which is looking increasingly likely, then our task next season becomes even harder. Manchester City, assuming they replace us in the Top Four, will no doubt strengthen their squad, and will be an even tougher proposition next term. Chelsea have signalled their intent to remain a big player with their purchases of Torres and David Luiz, and Abramovich has promised more cash to splash in the next window. Man Utd and Arsenal are running away at the top of the league this season, and it is highly unlikely that they will have collapsed by this time next year, and Liverpool look a worryingly resurgent prospect under Kenny Dalgleish. All said, unless we can get our act together sharpish, we may have to face the fact that our current squad has peaked. Even if Bale and Modric remain with us next season, it is unlikely that they will be able to resist the lure of the Champions' League for long should we be unable to provide it, and if we are unable to replace them, which would be a tough task, the squad would surely be irrepairably weakened. And with Daniel Levy's unwillingness to put his money where his mouth is, it is unlikely that any top-class manager would be keen to take on the challenge of a Spurs side that is on the decline.
I'm not really writing this on the back of last night's result. Ultimately, we were totally outclassed by a superior side, and that's all there is to it. I'm writing this based on the past month or so of frustration, as game after game we have failed to take maximum points against the 'weaker', potentially relegation-bound sides. But last night effectively brought the past month's failures into the spotlight, and for that, perhaps it was the best thing that could have happened. For all I have written, I thoroughly hope that the team can galvanise and prove me wrong. We, and 'Arry in particular, tend to perform best when the pressure is on us - just look at our ending to last season (and the contrast of the 4-2 defeat at Burnley on the final day when 4th place was secured!). Now that the Champions' League is no longer a distraction (let's be honest, even the most optimistic fan cannot hope that we will be able to turn last night's deficit around next week), perhaps we can focus on the League and snap out of our current rut. Saturday's game against Stoke is huge - on the back of the public humiliation of last night, it could really be make or break, a test of the character of the squad and their willingness to respond to their critics. And whether or not you agree with me that 'Arry ultimately has to take responsibility for our weaknesses, surely we must acknowledge that these weaknesses exist, and that they must be soon corrected if we are to salvage anything from what, only 2 months ago, was shaping up to be such a promising season...
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