Tottenham fans, answer me this...
Supporting a football club for whom success is a rarity means that any degree of success is to be savoured. This I know especially well, given the situation that West Ham find themselves in at the moment. As a consequence, I have no truck with people associated with clubs for whom success comes somewhat easier and more often complaining when what they have achieved in the present is slightly less overwhelming that what has been achieved in the immediate past. And you'll often find that this ire is most often directed at Tottenham. Tottenham fans have often struck me as having this over-developed sense of entitlement; they see themselves as a "big" club, and think because of this they should automatically have success akin to that of Arsenal. Further to this, I have often seen that, if they achieve something, it is not a case that they seek to strive to have it again, but simply feel they should have it by right, and anything less is not worth bothering about. What do I mean?
It is a goal for football clubs to be successful, and the most tangible way of measuring success is through winning trophies. However, owing to the way football is in the modern age, winning trophies is exceptionally rare for all but a handful of clubs. So, for the rest, the next measure of success is qualification for European competition (i.e. the Champions League or the Europa League). Most clubs strive to earn qualification and savour participation if and when they achieve it. Of course, the Champions League is the pinnacle but, because it is so difficult for most clubs to qualify for it, owing to the stranglehold that the richest clubs have over the qualification places. Because of this, clubs that do break the stranglehold should first of all savour their participation, but second not bemoan having to play subsequently in the Europa League because they haven't qualified for the Champions League. And that is why I was so angry when I read the following headline on the BBC:
"Harry Redknapp says Tottenham's Europa League trip is a 'nuisance'"
Harry Redknapp thinks the competition is so pointless that he is going to make wholesale changes to his team, leaving out many first-team players. Would he be taking this line if this was a Champions League game rather than a Europa League one? I think not. I would like to think that the Tottenham fans that I know (and I do know a few) would be thankful that they are participating in European competition at all. Yes, they had an almighty adventure last season, when they reached the quarter-final of the Champions League, beating both Inter (who were the defending champions) and Milan along the way, but they should also have known how difficult it would be to qualify again. So I have a question for Tottenham fans. Do you agree with your manager's assessment that your game this week against PAOK Salonika is a nuisance? Do you think that making headway in a European competition, especially one in which (and it goes against my better judgement to say) you would be classed among the favourites to win, is a waste of time? Ask fans of Middlesbrough or Fulham
whether they'd give up their appearances in the UEFA Cup Final simply because they had to play their European ties on a Thursday night. Ask Liverpool fans, who for the first time in practically a generation do not have European football this season, whether they'd think playing in the Europa League was a "nuisance". European football is a privilege, one to be savoured. Harry Redknapp should consider that before he opens his stupid mouth.
It is a goal for football clubs to be successful, and the most tangible way of measuring success is through winning trophies. However, owing to the way football is in the modern age, winning trophies is exceptionally rare for all but a handful of clubs. So, for the rest, the next measure of success is qualification for European competition (i.e. the Champions League or the Europa League). Most clubs strive to earn qualification and savour participation if and when they achieve it. Of course, the Champions League is the pinnacle but, because it is so difficult for most clubs to qualify for it, owing to the stranglehold that the richest clubs have over the qualification places. Because of this, clubs that do break the stranglehold should first of all savour their participation, but second not bemoan having to play subsequently in the Europa League because they haven't qualified for the Champions League. And that is why I was so angry when I read the following headline on the BBC:
"Harry Redknapp says Tottenham's Europa League trip is a 'nuisance'"
Harry Redknapp thinks the competition is so pointless that he is going to make wholesale changes to his team, leaving out many first-team players. Would he be taking this line if this was a Champions League game rather than a Europa League one? I think not. I would like to think that the Tottenham fans that I know (and I do know a few) would be thankful that they are participating in European competition at all. Yes, they had an almighty adventure last season, when they reached the quarter-final of the Champions League, beating both Inter (who were the defending champions) and Milan along the way, but they should also have known how difficult it would be to qualify again. So I have a question for Tottenham fans. Do you agree with your manager's assessment that your game this week against PAOK Salonika is a nuisance? Do you think that making headway in a European competition, especially one in which (and it goes against my better judgement to say) you would be classed among the favourites to win, is a waste of time? Ask fans of Middlesbrough or Fulham
whether they'd give up their appearances in the UEFA Cup Final simply because they had to play their European ties on a Thursday night. Ask Liverpool fans, who for the first time in practically a generation do not have European football this season, whether they'd think playing in the Europa League was a "nuisance". European football is a privilege, one to be savoured. Harry Redknapp should consider that before he opens his stupid mouth.