It’s been a really funny old week.
England have lost a manager who can’t speak English and want to give the job to a Cockney who says he can’t read or write or fill in a team-sheet.
Did you see Spurs 5 Newcastle 0?
Alan Pardew had half his best players out.
Newcastle had no midfield, so they were ripped to shreds by Tottenham’s tempo and penetrative passing.
Adebayor’s been rubbish for a month, so he needed a good game and produced a great game : four assists and a goal !
The best game Ade has ever played for Spurs. No question.
By far the best game he’s played for them.
Saha and Adebayor started as a pair for the first time and really suit each other.
Saha is a far better technician than Ade. It’s a dream pairing because Saha has two feet and runs the channels. His movement is fantastic and he’s very skilful, able to improvise from moment to moment.
Saha’s qualities are very rare. He has a football brain and he’s razor-sharp and he does things that the other Spurs forwards cannot do. Defoe doesn’t run the channels and neither does Rafael van der Vaart, who slows the game down and takes Modric’s space.
Tony Woodcock once said he believed in instant partnerships and I hope Tony’s seen this one.
FACT : Louis Saha scored two goals in 20 games for Everton, moved to Spurs, had 10 days training with Adebayor, and then scored two goals in 20 minutes.
Right now, Harry Redknapp’s Spurs is 4-4-2 with two fast strikers who showcase each other.
The fact that Gareth Bale did nothing against Newcastle was hardly noticed. But that wasn’t a coincidence.
The arrival of Saha is positive for Adebayor but negative for Bale, because it gives Bale less space to run into. If the two strikers can play with each other, they will play more with each other and less with him.
Just as this is happening, the Welshman’s head has been turned.
It’s the same old story that we’ve seen 500 times. Gareth Bale thinks he’s better than he is and he’s been told Real Madrid and Barcelona want him.
He said in the Standard last night that he’s talked to his agent, who compares Bale to Cristiano Ronaldo.
Taken at face value, the player’s comments are quite sensible:
“For the time being I’m happy at Tottenham, we’re playing good football. We are right up there and closer to challenging for the Premier League. There is no reason why we can\’t keep progressing.
“If you look at the likes of Ronaldo, when he started out wide and he got really good, people began to double up on him. He had to come inside, try and change his game and get on the ball and influence the game another way.
“Last season it was becoming a bit annoying for me because a lot of teams were putting a midfielder right in front of me and a full-back behind. It\’s hard to get the ball out wide when people are just standing there and there is no space.
“I wanted to come inside and become more involved, to come and get the ball and have an effect on the game. Thankfully, I have progressed this season and I am able to do that now.”
Most football fans know that Cristiano Ronaldo had a far superior range of skills at the same age.
But Bale’s agent sees a once-in-a-lifetime chance of moving a player to Spain for £50 million.
Myself, I like Bale because he’s a powerhouse who scores goals and makes goals. But if he thinks he’s the finished article then he’s even dimmer than your average footballer.
Right now, he wouldn’t hack it at Real Madrid or Barcelona.
He wouldn’t adapt as instantly as Ozil did. Few do.
If Spurs flog Bale and buy Eden Hazard, they will not be a better team than they are now, even though Hazard has more tricks and might play well with Saha.
Spurs are playing power football these days.What makes them exciting is their speed, momentum and penetration.
Selling Bale would be a gamble. Buying Hazard would be two gambles.
If they rebuild White Hart Lane, Redknapp will not have the budget he has now.
Tomorrow : a preview of Milan v Arsenal.