From Ariel Klein :
Hi Myles,
Thanks for posting your thoughts on Spurs and Pochettino/Kane.
I didn’t watch the game or the highlights so had no idea Kane was not fit to play. But should a trophy-desperate team not somehow manage to overcome these obstacles, especially having been a goal up (also in last year’s semi-final against Chelsea) and essentially playing at ‘home’?
Sure, we rode our luck at times in winning the cup 3 times in the last 4 years but last year we not only beat City in the semi-final but we battered Chelsea with an heroic makeshift defence in the final.
Despite all their progress, there must still be something crucial missing with Spurs, don’t you think? Theirs is a different type of groundhog day to ours but it is still very much a Groundhog Day*.
On the one hand, our version of the film has been running for twice as long as theirs (I’m counting from 2009, the year after Fabregas-Rosicky-Hleb nearly won us the league). On the other hand, their current version is just the latest sequel of a film series which has been running for decades…
Anyway, I would be surprised if they escape fallout from the consistent short-comings these last few seasons.
How can Spurs keep holding on to top players whilst paying them the same wages as mediocre players at other big clubs? Can they hold on to Pochettino – especially if they lose some of their key players?
It’s been a while… but since the weekend, my Spurs supporting mates seem to be feeling less optimistic than my fellow Gooners…
Fingers crossed this continues beyond tomorrow night!
* I think it was you who first used the term Groundhog Day to describe our all too familiar February and onward failings.
Myles says:
Thanks, Ariel.
I wrote that about Harry Kane angrily but reluctantly.
It was bizarre and self-defeating to play a striker who was so unfit that he was unrecognisable from the goal-machine I know and love.
Yes, I have my own quirks and cliches, my particular prejudices and bad habits.
But I’m not gonna own up to Groundhog Day. I never saw the film in 1993 and I never saw it on TV or DVD either. So it’s not an expression I would naturally employ, except in reference to its use by other fans or writers.
On Spurs, I’m concerned about their immediate future. And concerned about their short & medium term future.
So I really hope Pochettino stays and keeps working on his project.
He’s done well so far.
Spurs, like Arsenal and Chelsea, has played a big part in my life.