I think Levy comes in for some unfair criticism over this.
It wasn't Levy or Spurs who made this public - it was press speculation (or some hack claiming to have seen people meeting in a hotel), which Ramos then confirmed by gobbing off about the dizzying offer he had received.
Spurs make a legitimate bid in private, only for the other party to go public on it - sound familiar?
Once Ramos had said that, then what could Levy do? The way it then had to play out was really unfortunate for Jol, but that was not Levy's fault - other parties had revealed our intentions.
Whether Levy was right to be firing Jol is debatable, but either way, he was doing the right thing in lining up Jol's replacement before dismissing him - there are plenty who would have slaughtered him if he'd fired Jol without a plan. The Getafe fiasco was certainly avoidable, and that was clumsy by Levy for sure - but again it was fuelled by rumour and / or someone leaking it.
Similarly with the Berahino saga.
People talk about Levy meeting his negotiation- match with that tw@t Peace, but there was only one person negotiating, all Peace was doing was saying no...anyone can do that.
That's not negotiation, which is about primarily reaching a satisfactory outcome for yourself (and secondarily a win-win).
What Peace has now done is p1ss off and alienate his biggest asset (and Pulis) and create a rift in the dressing room.
He now has to pay Berahino a sh1t load more money to stay or accept less money for him in January...either way it costs him and his club, the club he had been trying and failing to sell by the way.
Levy has done nothing wrong in my view...he just bid for Berahino, in private, following the rules.
With Ramos, Levy threw money at it to blow them out of the water.
With Berahino he upped his bids gradually, in order to find the optimum price.
Both ways he gets stick.
I think this is a great post. With regards to Ramos though, I think Levy is not blameless. Absolutely, the way it came out was not totally in his control, but this is why intermediaries are used, so that people are not photographed together, so that deals are not leaked etc...
I absolutely 100% agree with you that if you are deciding to sack a manager, it would be good if you have a replacement in before the speculators in the media drive everyone to insanity. However, I would say that in these negotiations/conversations (whatever you want to call them) there shoud be some confidentiality clauses, and to be honest I couldn't care less if it was Mourinho, SAF or Guardiola, if they "leak" information that puts the club in a weak position, they are effectively showing that they don't care about the club at all. I'd rather do without that type of manager.
My personal opinion is that you must treat people with respect, regardless of whether it is in a business context or non-business. That is how you build a culture and identity of a club. We have principles, we do things in the right way. At least, that is what I would always want the Tottenham Hotspur football club to always be associated with. In this episode, I think we looked like anything but.
I have made my feelings on Levy quite clear and this transfer window. I agree with your point about Berahino. I have ready the last couple of pages with interest and just want to put my two pence worth into the discussion.
Criticism - There is nothing wrong with criticism. It is a discussion and we are on a discussion board. However, I find it increasingly difficult to be able to put forward a point of view, when the only thing that is offered in return is "the transfer dealings should have been concluded sooner". Well, yes, it would be great if they were concluded sooner. We know that. Poch knows that. Anyone in football will know that. So why wouldn't Levy? I get frustrated with the principle that Levy is deliberately delaying deals till the last moment in the hope that he will get a better deal. I have put up numerous times now the times when most of our signings have taken place and it showed that the majority of the time the signings were in place at least 2 weeks before the end of the transfer window.
Then there's the "Levy is tight" argument. That either he is basically deliberately being tight with his money because he wants to keep it for himself or just doesn't like spending money. I ask anyone to please estimate just how much money Spurs have spent in transfers since ENIC and Levy took over and then compare it with other clubs. Then compare our transfer outgoings/sales with other clubs. Then put in the timing of the stadium announcement. You have to look at all of these things together. The facts will show that he is not tight. It will actually show that he has spent a hell of a lot of money on transfers, but has resisted "speculating to accumulate" since the stadium has been announced.
Then of course there is the "we pay the highest ticket prices in the league and so we deserve to be seeing the best players". If anything is sanctimonious, then it is this. Yes we pay
one of the highest ticket prices for what we see. What the club has done with that money and the other revenue that it generates is fully put it back into the club. The results of that is one of the best academies in the country, one of the best training facilities in Europe, a team that has consistently finished in the top 6 for however long and the plans for one of the best stadiums in the world. And who says Spurs fans are demanding!
The way I see it is that there is a fundamental difference in opinion between those who think more money should be spent on transfers rather than infrastructure. Either that, or people are suggesting that the club should incur debt (at a "manageable" level) to purchase more players. After all, success will mean more money which can then be used to fund a stadium. Both sides see the desire to have all of the above, it's just the ordering is wrong. Players before stadium. I fundamentally think this is where people are losing their common sense. Foundations need to be strong. If you were to assess the risk in getting the players first rather than stadium then there is not an argument or precedent in the world that I can see that would lead any sane person to choose that approach, particularly if it were their own money. I'm happy to hear these arguments and be proved wrong though. When you incur debt, it has to be paid off. Taking on debt is a way of taking future income now for a cost. So you take it now, you can't take it later.
What this all boils down to though is the desperation for success and being established in the CL and winning trophies. I get that and want the same. There are two clubs that have spent their way into the top 4. Look at just how much they have spent. An increase of the spending on transfers (say 3 £20m players) is not going to close this gap as much or with as much certainty as a new stadium.
Then of course there is the completely irrational statements that are "He's only doing it for himself or the pay off that he will get when he sells the club". What exactly is wrong with that? Are we expecting him to do this out of the goodness of his heart? Just why should he put up with the factual inaccuracies presented in the press, the abuse from supporters and the general stress of it all if were not for a big pay out at the end. He has put his money where his mouth is and is following through with a plan.
Finally, my feeling is that the criticism of Levy is a bit sensationalist. It relies on rumour, press reports and generally conclusions on certain events. In the main, I don't see those conclusions being free from bias. We've spent over £100m already on the stadium (in the last 2-3 years) and we are going to have to spend another £300-400m in the next 3-4 years. Any chairman needs to be assessed on the fundamentals of the club and where was the club when they joined v where the club is now or when the chairman/owners leave. There is no doubt whatsoever that Levy has done an excellent job. He has chosen to go on a long term plan to get us into the CL, and yet the naysayers are doubting the very person that is responsible for getting us from bottom half of the table flirting with relegation to top 6 flirting with top 4. Surely this is a little ungrateful? Surely he has earned the right to a bit of trust from us as fans that doesn't lead a contingent of us criticising his every move. So where there are situations that require the benefit of the doubt, we perhaps give it to him rather than give him the handicap of the doubt and assume that he's an imbecile that couldn't organise a bun fight in a bakery or a chairman that is holding back a club that he has brought so far.