Is Glenn Hoddle really to blame?

By Gary Beaumont
April 9 2003

I noticed this response and felt I should publish this to reflect an alternative view to that of the Hoddle out fans. Whilst I remain sceptical about his ability, I still see him as the man to lead us into Europe.

The following article is written by a fellow supporter (I wont put his name as I am not sure if he would appreciate that!)

It is worthwhile having a closer look at the mystery that surrounds Hoddle, as I myself, have been a critic of his performance on several occasions.

First and foremost, being an armchair critic, as each of us is, is a very comfortable position to assume. We have absolutely no inkling or hint to the real goings on within the club and nor do we have any right to expect it. However, it must be obvious to you all by now that our problems have not been caused by one particular individual - in this case, Glenn Hoddle.

My concern stems from the fact that there appears to be something seriously wrong with club philosophy as a whole and that, in turn, has caused some internal rivalry and dispute which Hoddle has unfortunately found himself involved in. Now, when I talk of club philosophy, I am not merely talking of club tradition on the pitch, and our reputation for playing attractive, attacking football. I am referring to what, to my mind, is an errant strategic plan for taking the club forward. Namely:

1. There has been a singular lack of ambition shown by Levy and the rest of the board. This, according to Levy, has been put down to our lack of economic resources. Nevertheless, I would like to take you all back to our last economic report in which Levy himself was quoted as saying that the club was in a healthy state financially and, after which, he went on to say that money would be made available to Hoddle. For once, I would like the truth. Levy cannot expect the fans to continually believe him, or to pay top dollar for tickets and season tickets if he continues to contradict himself on practically a monthly basis. I put it to you all, then, that it is time for Levy to put up or shut up. We already have the backbone of what could be a very good team in place. We require, in my opinion, a maximum of four or five new players in order to make us a European contender. A striker, a dominant central midfield player, a left and right wing back, and possibly a goalkeeper. To do this, we need not break the bank in the same way as Leeds or Chelsea. The market is currently down and these players, who would need to be aged between 23 and 28, could be got relatively cheaply, some even on a free transfer or in swap deals. I was aghast to learn that Levy considers new training facilities and a stadium change as more important than team improvement.

2. We have David Pleat, an accomplished manager, occupying a position with negligible influence in the greater scheme of things and one which has only served, if you believe most of what you read, to cause friction within the club. It has to be extremely frustrating for him to see what is going on on the pitch and to be able to do nothing at all about it. As frustrating as it must be, in fact, to break into the Hoddle inner circle. My own opinion is, and I've stated it many times, to eliminate the post of Director of football and move Pleat to the reserve and youth team general manager. It would improve his communication with Hoddle and allow the club to build from within, as well as saving us more than 150,000 a season. If Hoddle should decide to go, or be fired, Pleat would then be in the perfect position to step in and assume the managerial reins albeit as temporary caretaker.

3. As far as our medical staff are concerned, I am amazed that the situation hasn't been looked into. Our injury situation is nothing new. We've had to put up with it for several seasons. Since I do not believe our training methods are far removed from the rest of the clubs in the premiership, there has to be something very wrong going on in the recovery room. I know of no other club that has had injury problems on a scale such as ours and I most certainly have not heard of outfield players being out for more than four months with a broken toe. Clearly, something has to be done, yet we have not heard a word said about it. Hoddle, who in my opinion should be ranting and raving and demanding explanations, seems to accept the situation as part and parcel of the life at Tottenham Hotspur. If I were Levy, I would bring in outside experts and have our entire training and medical staff evaluated. If the results were favourable, fine. But if not, they should be summarily shown the door and new people brought in.

This is the way I see it. Our current position is not down to Hoddle alone. I have outlined as briefly as possible three of the major influences, but there are more. In the meantime, the Hoddle out brigade should think very carefully about making sweeping changes at managerial level just yet. That is as fraught with danger as allowing Hoddle to see out his term and complete his five-year plan.