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Daniel Levy - Chairman

Raziel said:
No mate, nothing personal (I try, as hard as that is when we discuss things that are our passion, never to take it personal). And sorry .. long ass post incoming

- Levy/ENIC could sell, perhaps inevitably will sell at some point.

What frustrates me is

- The either quick flip or milking club narrative (which after 19 years is way beyond dead horse stage)
- The other point of whenever the club reaches a point (CL, stadium, Jose, whatever), the "ahhh, right, yes they will sell now" as if Spurs is some hot potato that ENIC is trying desperately to get rid off as quickly as possible (see first point again)

It is a lazy narrative, I've yet to see a single reason why an imminent sale is likely other than the same old same old with not a single fact to back it up.

So let's get to your points, what do I see (and personal opinion, I probably know fudge all)

- ENIC has Spurs as a great investment vehicle that will turn around a 60-80M investment into a multi-billion dollar asset
- In Levy they have a great CEO that is also emotionally invested in the club
- In the next 5-10 years the value of Spurs and football will likely still go up (with success and further growth in overseas markets)
- If they could buy into a joint NFL franchise +Spurs it could potentially create the single most valuable sports asset in the world (exceeding Madrid and United)

So where/why would they sell

- Someone makes an offer they can't refuse (unlikely as potential buyers could probably buy other clubs for far less up front)
- The NFL thing doesn't pan out and perhaps a NFL franchise reverses the deal, offers to buy Spurs instead (similar to point above)
- Something happens with Levy (personal/health/fall out with ENIC), he is the key and the visionary
- ENIC/Lewis run into financial problems due to other businesses and need the cash

Most likely (again my opinion)

- ENIC/Levy continue the plan for another 5-10 years, work the NFL angle, get some trophies and on field success, pay down the debt and re-evaluate do they continue or sell out at that point

Hence I simply don't see a sell scenario (where we are actively trying to sell/market the club, not where an amazing offer comes in) in the next 3-5 years minimum.

Levy\s weakness/faults

- Same as everyone else, there are moments where all of us believe we could have been that bit more aggressive in buying/paying/keeping a certain player or investing in squad
- Perhaps too much patience, too much the long game
- It also took him a while to learn, quite a few missteps in the first 10 years, really the BMJ/FA appointments were where he seemed to grasp the needs/model and also stop caring too much about fan/media opinion

He is not faultless, but as I said, it's kind of like nitpicking Messi's game, sure he has areas that aren't great in isolation, but once you actually compare to others you realize what you have.

One day Levy will leave (he has said he is just a custodian) and I will still support Spurs, just as I will whenever x player or manager leaves.
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You certainly don't have to apologise, I've bored enough of you with walls of text in the last couple of days!

I think I get your viewpoint now. You get frustrated when you hear people call Spurs a cash cow for ENIC and also that they're in it for a quick buck. I totally agree that 19 years on, we are well past 'quick buck territory' and that they clearly do not take money out of Spurs. So I see where you're coming from there. I do think this has made you maybe over-zealous in your replies to some criticisms, which can sometimes be in that general direction (they will eventually sell) without making it seem like they're in for a quick buck.

Thank you for your reply and also thank you for the list of faults. While I don't quite agree that Levy is the Messi of chairmen :D, I will reiterate that I think overall he's done a very good job. And I do think it is interesting that our list of his faults, from two people who may initially seem on opposite ends of the equation, are very similar. Shows the polarising nature of debate on the internet I guess!
 
We endured decades of drought and building brick by brick, step by step, whilst our neighbours splashed out on a new caravan.

I don't want Spurs to win the odd cup and fade away... I want Spurs to win multiple cups and titles and be right at the top of the PL and CL for decades.

That will only happen if our finances are right, if the stadium and training ground are right, Levy has steadily got us into this position to become a regular at the top table for the foreseeable future.
 
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Bullet said:
We endured decades of drought and building brick by brick, step by step, whilst our neighbours splashed out on a new caravan.

I don't want Spurs to win the odd cup and fade away... I want Spurs to win multiple cups and titles and be right at the top of the PL and CL for decades.

That will only happen if our finances are right, if the stadium and training ground is right, Levy has steadily got us into this position to become a regular at the top table for the forseeable future.
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Now all we need is a sugar daddy to splash the cash
 
thfcsteff said:
I have to agree, the figure sounds bizarrely big, however for the right business/consortium I don't think so. But I have to ask, are you really suggesting that less than 30 people in the world could afford to buy at that price? Because the conservative estimate is that there are 2500 of the filthy rich feckers, with a quarter of that figure nestled in the USofA!
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And for further context, wasn't our market cap. approx. 25 million or so when ENIC bought in?
 
Come writers and critics, who prophesize with your pen
And keep your eyes wide, the chance won’t come again
And don’t speak too soon
For the wheel’s still in spin
And there’s no tellin' who that it’s namin'
For the loser now will be later to win
For the times they are a-changin'
 
I would agree we are to successful to be sold. The price for us would be to high for most people.

The way for a club on the up to make money would be to explore the China market not the American market. The Chinese have put a lot of money into football, they want their national team to be a success and win a world cup for national prestige. They have put so much money into the training of Chinese players.

A smart person would look to buy a few young Chinese players, the first great Chinese player to be a success in Europe will be a gold mine.
 
Danishfurniturelover said:
I would agree we are to successful to be sold. The price for us would be to high for most people.

The way for a club on the up to make money would be to explore the China market not the American market. The Chinese have put a lot of money into football, they want their national team to be a success and win a world cup for national prestige. They have put so much money into the training of Chinese players.

A smart person would look to buy a few young Chinese players, the first great Chinese player to be a success in Europe will be a gold mine.
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- We own the Korean and to some extent a bit of the Asian market with Son
- China is different re it's an audience, America pays much higher sponsorship deals (especially for stadiums), Levy is looking to sucker an American company with a 2 for 1 audience

The point about a chinese player stands though ..
 
Nigeyman said:
Protects us, keeps us one step ahead of our rivals, most of what he does is for our betterment...thinks about tomorrow not just about today.

best Chairman in the world!
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I agree with you but he's brought an approach that isn't really suited to football. If he'd come in and said, "my plan is a 20 year plan" I'd say most fans would have said "don't f**king bother mate"". It's an approach that isn't unwelcome only in football, the rest of life seems to be the same. To quote the great Freddie Mercury "I want it all, I want it all and I want it now".

That to me is what makes Levy's achievements all the better. He's built a football club on another level to what he inherited in every single way. Slowly but very surely. The infrastructure we have, the team we have, the manager we have and the level of performance have all improved immeasurably. All that's missing is the trophies and Levy has just hired the best man to get us some of those.
 
DeanoAustin said:
I agree with you but he's bought an approach that isn't really suited to football. If he'd come in and said, "my plan is a 20 year plan" I'd say most fans would have said "don't f**king bother mate"". It's an approach that isn't unwelcome only in football, the rest of life seems to be the same. To quote the great Freddie Mercury "I want it all, I want it all and I want it now".

That to me is what makes Levy's achievements all the better. He's built a football club on another level to what he inherited in every single way. Slowly but very surely. The infrastructure we have, the team we have, the manager we have and the level of performance have all improved immeasurably. All that's missing is the trophies and Levy has just hired the best man to get us some of those.
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And the thing that is most impressive from what you outline....is just the sheer resilience of the man. To have such a long term plan in this environment and faced by the mindset of many modern supporters he must have rhino skin.

He is basically a brilliant decision maker. He gets the odd one wrong, BUT he gets many more right than most other chairman.

What he probably doesn't do is listen to too much noise. It's distracting and in the most part a waste of time.
 
His timing of when to change a manager certainly seems decisive and I don’t think there’s been a single time when results haven’t immediately improved.

Perhaps Ramos and Sherwood are the only question marks. But Sherwood was essentially a caretaker boss who still got us up the table eventually and Ramos won our trophy so it’s pretty excusable.
 
Craig_J said:
His timing of when to change a manager certainly seems decisive and I don’t think there’s been a single time when results haven’t immediately improved.

Perhaps Ramos and Sherwood are the only question marks. But Sherwood was essentially a caretaker boss who still got us up the table eventually and Ramos won our trophy so it’s pretty excusable.
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Think you'd have to question Hoddle and Santini too. Maybe AVB. But the impressive thing is, he's made some pretty big mistakes but none of them have derailed his vision for the club. When he goes, what he'll have left behind for the community and club (i.e. the stadium and training facilities) will be mind blowing. The only thing he's missing is trophies. If he can add some of them through Mourinho, even the detractors will have to change their opinions.
 
DeanoAustin said:
Think you'd have to question Hoddle and Santini too. Maybe AVB. But the impressive thing is, he's made some pretty big mistakes but none of them have derailed his vision for the club. When he goes, what he'll have left behind for the community and club (i.e. the stadium and training facilities) will be mind blowing. The only thing he's missing is trophies. If he can add some of them through Mourinho, even the detractors will have to change their opinions.
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I was over the moon when we gave Glenn the job and if it had not been for Friedel we would have won 2002 cup final, but it goes to show that the best players rarely turn out to be the best managers.
 
parklane1 said:
I was over the moon when we gave Glenn the job and if it had not been for Friedel we would have won 2002 cup final, but it goes to show that the best players rarely turn out to be the best managers.
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Yeah me too especially after that Gooner prick. I was sure Hoddle would do well for us because he's got such a great football brain and he is Tottenham. I know the end was night though when Southampton whacked us 4-0 in the cup. Hoddle went on for a while after that but the writing was on the wall. Desperately sad he didn't do it for us.
 
Hootnow said:
I think this comes down to a difference in expectation and what people may consider to be admirable or normal and where I find some fans comments slightly strange.

Let us be totally clear here and reiterate that 'their build' of the stadium, the train station, the training facilities has, as far as I'm aware (and please correct me if I'm wrong), come completely from club money.
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They're the shareholders of the club - the club's money is their money.
 
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