Antonio Conte - officially NOT the coach of THFC

[DeanoAustin]

Wtf is spending small? £160m this summer? On what planet is that small?

Don’t think transfer fees are our big problem. This is just an impression rather than me having looked into numbers. On the fees, we do okay but isn’t our wages to revenue ratio the lowest in the league?

 

[glorygloryeze]

Yeah cause the landscape didn't change with oil money.

Yes we could and probably should have done better. Liverpool as an example is brick though. 2nd biggest team in the country. Use leicester instead, the only team that has really done better and only in trophies.

The reason i brought up Liverpool is the example of how our excuses for not being able to get x or y player shifted over time. we were able to offer CL football (something we cried used to hold us back by not being able to) yet Liverpool - who hadn't been in CL regularly for over 6 years - were able to usurp us to get not just one but supposedly two targets that summer despite having ZERO European football to offer. It's not like in those years up to that we hadn't been able usurp them in a similar way (e.g. signing the likes of Dempsey and Siggurdsson over them).
Liverpool might be second overall in trophies but they had been a mess generally compared to us in the 2010s

 

[Grays_1890]

I guess why might find out over time (at least i hope). Could easily be Lewis giving extra funds but as in the past Levy making suggestions to stretch those funds to be used to buy 6/7 players instead of 3 or 4.

I would REALLY like to know why we bought Djed Spence, for example

Because the club feels it has a responsibility to pave the way for the future with young talent as well as buy for now.

Spence and Sarr will outlive Conte for example and even if he doesn't use them as an asset they could well go on and be so for the next.

The club will do things that are good for the clubs longer term prospect and why not?

 

[IulianSteaua]

Wtf is spending small? £160m this summer? On what planet is that small?

Last 10 years our transfer overall(ins and outs) is under -300M euros. Which means we have Levi that has spent less than 30m euros/season for transfers. If you want to make it funnier, take out the -131m euros overall from this summer and it would be under -170m euros for 9 years. So 18.5m euros/year spent on transfers.

 

[Grays_1890]

The reason i brought up Liverpool is the example of how our excuses for not being able to get x or y player shifted over time. we were able to offer CL football (something we cried used to hold us back by not being able to) yet Liverpool - who hadn't been in CL regularly for over 6 years - were able to usurp us to get not just one but supposedly two targets that summer despite having ZERO European football to offer. It's not like in those years up to that we hadn't been able usurp them in a similar way (e.g. signing the likes of Dempsey and Siggurdsson over them).
Liverpool might be second overall in trophies but they had been a mess generally compared to us in the 2010s

I agree on this to an extent and we covered it the other day, my biggest complaint of our transfer activity isn't how much we spent it's the almost panic at times and late selections on Moura, Bergy and the like when we got to the end of windows and thought we needed players and in reality wasted 40 odd millions on them. Added to that our record of buying "established" players has been abysmal, Eriksen aside the Bale money was horrific, Ndombele, Sanchez, Janssen, Emerson, Lo Celso, Regi

It was laughable that Bale was the Best replacement we could find for....well Bale GHod knows how many years later

If you go through our record signings it's a sorry look, literally everyone a failure

We have spent but spent horrifically

 

[Gazza Dazzla]

Last 10 years our transfer overall(ins and outs) is under -300M euros. Which means we have Levi that has spent less than 30m euros/season for transfers. If you want to make it funnier, take out the -131m euros overall from this summer and it would be under -170m euros for 9 years. So 18.5m euros/year spent on transfers.

But you know full well that we’ve built a 1 billion stadium in that time! The 0 spend during the build really shouldn’t need explaining, surely? Why don’t you look at the spending since moving in to the stadium and compare that to everyone else in the league during that time?

 

[SpurMeUp]

TBF to most fans; twenty+ years of ENIC/Levy constantly finding ways and excuses not to (at least try) push on is what has led to us looking like we have a 'sense of entitlement'. I don't think we do, but we like/prefer to watch good football and feel like we are trying to go places.

Hiring top class managers WHO EVERYONE KNOWS LIKE/NEED TOP-CLASS INVESTMENT but then carry on acting as though we still have a Poch or Jol (whilst charging the top dollar prices for tickets) is going to cause fans ask questions. That, to me at least, is not having a 'sense of entitlement'

Your argument is contradictory. You’re suggesting Levy shouldn’t have hired Conte? While at the same time saying Levy should have aspired to more?

 

[Baleforce]

I am not missing anything. People are trying to justify spending small because we got lucky once în a while with Bentancur and Kulusevski, which together are over €70m with all the bonuses and stuff(not that small în the end is it). Teams that have spent big, EVENTUALLY got big returns, ex mid 2000s Chelsea, mid 2010s City. Are there exceptions? sure(leicester's title) Are those exceptions sustainable? No.

other exceptions, Leeds, Sheffield Wednesday, Blackburn, Sunderland, Boro, Portsmouth, Stoke, they got a return on their spending alright, a return to the championship

if you can't cheat, you have to spend responsibly

 

[SpurMeUp]

Spurs fans have always been entitled

The trophy conversation is the perfect example, this club has delivered less than 20 trophies in 140 years, but the opinion seems to be we should winning yearly? (and watch some jump in on my mentality, accepting mediocrity, etc. etc.)

The fact that we are a more robust outfit than we have been probably since the 1980s is lost on fans. Despite the petro-dollars we are in the mix of the top clubs.

Of course you have ups and downs. But we’re in that group of clubs who have some shot at success. That is all you can ask of the business management team. They don’t run the footballing side. The irony is, that platform that Levy has created is tantalising. It does give a sense of entitlement. Villa or Everton don’t believe they deserve trophies. 20 years ago we were their equals, or possibly even worse off. Now fans think we should have trophies. Like that is some kind of fuking revelation. Of course we want trophies. Who doesn’t!

Sadly most people can only see the immediate, and lose the context.

 

[billyiddo]

I am not missing anything. People are trying to justify spending small because we got lucky once în a while with Bentancur and Kulusevski, which together are over €70m with all the bonuses and stuff(not that small în the end is it). Teams that have spent big, EVENTUALLY got big returns, ex mid 2000s Chelsea, mid 2010s City. Are there exceptions? sure(leicester's title) Are those exceptions sustainable? No.

Do you not understand that we don't have a bottomless pit of money to spend big until we eventually get it right?

 

[glorygloryeze]

Your argument is contradictory. You’re suggesting Levy shouldn’t have hired Conte? While at the same time saying Levy should have aspired to more?

No, i'm saying if you are going hire Conte, fine but act like you have a new style of 'big' manager; don't act like you still have a Pochettino

 

[DubSpur]

And she has zero interest in Spurs and sits on the board at Tavistock. His son also has zero interest in Spurs from a POV of running the club.

Lewis isn't getting rid of Levy, a man that's flipped his 55m investment into 3bn. If Levy goes its because Levy decides

Not true, she is interested in football (was engaged to Craig Johnson for almost 20 years) and goes to Spurs games regularly. She is on the board of Tavistock and involved in multiple companies so it's unlikely that she would be heavily involved but will more than likely have a greater interest than Joe.

 

[SpurMeUp]

No, i'm saying if you are going hire Conte, fine but act like you have a new style of 'big' manager; don't act like you still have a Pochettino

So you are saying Levy should have hired Conte, but should have spent more money? Somewhat confused here. What is your gripe?

 

[glorygloryeze]

Because the club feels it has a responsibility to pave the way for the future with young talent as well as buy for now.

Spence and Sarr will outlive Conte for example and even if he doesn't use them as an asset they could well go on and be so for the next.

The club will do things that are good for the clubs longer term prospect and why not?

This in itself would be fine, but RWB was one of the biggest priorities in the summer (possibly even the biggest priority).
You address that position for Conte to use now and then perhaps buy a backup who is a young prospect to use for the future, as rotation and post-Conte. Buying Spence but then also not getting that RWB that the manager WOULD use now: what's the point?
Again, it's like the poch days when after buying NO PLAYERS for about 18 months the first one we buy is Jack Clarke and even Poch got angry about that...

 

[thfcsteff]

I'm not going to get into yet another debate on the Poch sacking, it's been done to death, but you are really over simplifying those few months.

Agree with no further debate. Just to be clear, I was referring to the specifics of that spend.

 

[ricky2tricky4city]

I'd be inclined to give that view the benefit of the doubt - until i remember the long drawn-out pursuit of Djed Spence, a players that Conte says was a 'club buy', and hence Levy/ENIC would have decided to buy him.
Now does that not feel similar to when Poch etc were here before the brave new world of our new stadium? Or is it Conte being disengenious?

No one's being disingenuous....Conte himself has revealed the club policy and that includes some young talent. He's not dismissive of the club wanting to do that, he signed up to the project. I'm sure he's good with the two windows he's had so far, otherwise we'd know about it.

If you can't think of ways the club has changed the way it operates in the last 1,2,3,4 years then....?

 

[Grays_1890]

Not true, she is interested in football (was engaged to Craig Johnson for almost 20 years) and goes to Spurs games regularly. She is on the board of Tavistock and involved in multiple companies so it's unlikely that she would be heavily involved but will more than likely have a greater interest than Joe.

Haha being married to a footballer doesn't mean you have an interest in running a PL club.

I get some people might want this to be so but Joe Lewis isn't ousting Levy, absolutely more chance of getting sh1t out a rocking horse

 

[SpurMeUp]

Last 10 years our transfer overall(ins and outs) is under -300M euros. Which means we have Levi that has spent less than 30m euros/season for transfers. If you want to make it funnier, take out the -131m euros overall from this summer and it would be under -170m euros for 9 years. So 18.5m euros/year spent on transfers.

Honestly: that is massively impressive. We’ve been in the CL. Had some great seasons. Built a fuk off stadium. And now we are spending big. Are you really so blind to reality? The guy is actually one of the most accomplished chairmen around. So funny how some people can not see the wood for the trees.

 

[thfcsteff]

No it isn't a popularity contest and I'm sure Levy has realised, long ago, he's pushing water up a hill on that front.
I can't believe it's a negative that he sat down with a manager, that he clearly rated and had a close connection with (still does) to discuss refocusing and going again. Sentimentality getting in the way probably is the criticism here. Porch simply went because that refocus didn't work. Results and performances were poor...Poch went in those circumstances just like a 100 other managers (has Frank gone yet).
Jose went because he became a prick. Most likely via dressing room unhappiness, and the standard dreadful performances. I doubt Levy was aiming for 100% popularity with that one, being it was a week before a final.

IF it were sentimentality, I'd almost give it a pass. Not sure Levy does sentimental?

 

[DubSpur]

I guess why might find out over time (at least i hope). Could easily be Lewis giving extra funds but as in the past Levy making suggestions to stretch those funds to be used to buy 6/7 players instead of 3 or 4.

I would REALLY like to know why we bought Djed Spence, for example

Part of Paraticis job is to plan for the future and not just now so I'd expect him to being looking to buy players for the future (e.g Josh Keely and Spence) and not just players for now.