Tottenham, Pochettino, and inescapable emotion

An FA Cup “would not change the lives” of Tottenham. That’s the message that’s come from Mauricio Pochettino since he joined Spurs in 2014, repeatedly quizzed on the matter whenever cup weekend rolled around. The Argentine did not disrespect it as such, but he continually made it clear that his priorities lied elsewhere, namely in the Premier League and Champions League.

Pochettino’s demeanour during Tottenham’s 2-1 semi-final defeat to Manchester United was not that of a man who felt blasé about domestic silverware. When Dele Alli poked his side in front early on, Pochettino was ecstatic, beaming, sincere – you couldn’t fabricate the feeling, eyes deep and smile ferociously taking over.

As time was running out for his lilywhites to find an equaliser, Pochettino was restless and anxious, strutting to-and-from his seat as he realised there was little more he could do to turn the tide. Tottenham were dumped out of their eighth consecutive FA Cup semi-final, but you wouldn’t have known this was a competition that their manager had been belittling for nearly half a decade.

Pochettino looks on (source: Daily Express)

Sure, no one likes losing, and when pressed for future answers about opinions on the cups Pochettino will probably point to that for his reactions on Saturday. His post-match quotes were more candid than the usual PR copy-and-paste job about learning and experiencing, though. Talk of his future was put forward, not by journalists, but of his own accord.

“We are building a very good team, about trying to create the winning mentality, but it is still at the moment not enough.

“But I think Tottenham need to keep going in this direction. To create that winning mentality is not about a few years. Tottenham need more time, of course with me or another.”

The words Spurs fans dreaded ever passing Pochettino’s lips. ‘Or another’. He stopped using the pronoun ‘we’ and referred to the club by name. It simply doesn’t compute. The modern Tottenham Hotspur doesn’t exist without Pochettino at the helm.

It is likely that this quote was one of the throw-away variety than of the definitive one. Everyone associated with the club was reeling by half-seven that day. It would have been concerning if Pochettino genuinely didn’t care about the outcome as much as he made out he would pre-game.

But this isn’t just about one man.

Source: Reuters

Players and managers come and go but the fan is the constant; those paid to represent Spurs are merely curators until the next employee comes along. They can move on, they can achieve their goals elsewhere, but the supporter has to live with every action and reaction of these custodians, and sometimes you wonder whether they realise that they have such power. These scars don’t heal, these colours don’t run.

At 2-1 down, only a handful, if even that, of players showed that they really wanted to win the cup. Some flaked, others backed away, few wanted to take the game on themselves. Success for themselves should have been enough motivation to do a little more, but you can understand why they wouldn’t think it matters that much when their manager constantly reaffirms these beliefs.

Any sign of a plan petered away as soon as Ander Herrera put United ahead, and it quickly became the same-old-story for Tottenham when having to face adversity. They didn’t ‘bottle it’ as such, but they couldn’t find an answer, and the momentum that was with them an hour earlier was working against them. In the context of the match, tactical failures and mental blocks were why Spurs didn’t win, but you can’t ignore the bigger picture, too.

As admirable as it is that the Premier League and Champions League are where his heart lies, Pochettino can’t go on ignoring the history of the club and the feelings of his fans. This isn’t a Real Madrid or a Bayern Munich; Tottenham are not in a position to dismiss the domestic cups as a footnote in history, having won just two in the last twenty years themselves. His lust-less enthusiasm in the run-ins to these late-round fixtures does not ease the suffering, but only enhances it. Pochettino did not lose all eight of those FA Cup semi-finals, he was not around when Chelsea snatched the fourth Champions League off Spurs in 2012, he was still a player when ‘Lasagne-gate’ occurred. That doesn’t mean that they didn’t happen. Memories of those days remain painful and don’t just fade away, and while many are immensely grateful for the work Pochettino has put into making Spurs more of a force in the league and on the continent, physical success wouldn’t go amiss.

Pochettino has changed the culture at Tottenham like no other manager since the great Bill Nicholson. Regardless of the trophy haul come the end of his reign, he is the man you will tell your children and grandchildren about. The connection between the players, coaching staff and fans has never been so tangible. Spurs were not long ago laughing stocks for being a million miles off the pace, the not-even-nearly men, but there’s very little left to those sentiments. Spurs haven’t quite shaken off the shackles of shame yet, and this semi-final defeat was perhaps the first time in the Pochettino era that they’d taken a step backwards. It is sometimes said that you don’t win or lose but instead you win or learn – Tottenham definitively lost on Saturday.

At this stage, Pochettino’s attitude towards trophies has almost reached a Schrödinger’s cat– he is both overjoyed and unmoved by a cup win until he wins a cup.

Maybe Saturday was a turning point. Maybe a man as emotive as Pochettino now can empathise with the people who worship the ground he peers over, let alone walks on. Their desires may now be his desires, and the bond could be reaching its strongest point yet.

All we can do as fans is reach a new day, live in hope, gather ourselves and hope we can go again. We are essentially, however, helpless in what happens on the pitch. Our hearts are in their hands, and we have to trust them because we have no other choice.

Source: Squawka

Are Tottenham selling ‘White Hart Lane’ back to the people who made it?

For a little over half a century, when ticker tape and terraces were a common theme at football stadia, Archibald Leitch’s blueprints for an iconic structure on the east side of Tottenham Hotspur’s White Hart Lane, his 1899 creation, stood tall. In the late 1980s, it was replaced by a more modest establishment, but one recognisable by the two pillars blighting the sightlines. Leitch’s idiosyncratic design earned the East Stand an apt nickname – ‘The Shelf’.

Adjacent to the South Stand, the Shelf was considered one of the most atmospheric parts of the stadium. Even when seating was installed, the lower tier would still stand, ignoring the club’s meek threats.

The Shelf’s most iconic form (Credit: The Telegraph)

THE NEW SHELF

The East Stand was an invention by Leitch, but the Shelf was an invention by the fans. Now though, the Club is trying to pry the Shelf back from grasp of its supporters.

Spurs recently unveiled plans for a bar in the East Stand of the club’s under-construction 62,000-seater stadium, and christened it ‘The Shelf’. It will be built using bricks plucked from the old East Stand, and the aesthetic will be reminiscent of the Shelf’s architecture.

It may seem like the club are engaging with the fans in recognising the old jargon but the club is merely selling a fan-made concept back to the fans.

Ticket prices in the new East Stand will match those of the West Stand, which was the most corporate section of White Hart Lane, and the atmosphere could suffer if the Shelf’s former regulars are priced out of a return.

It may be unfair to bracket richer match-goers as less likely to contribute to the atmosphere, but there is enough evidence to back this point up, with the Emirates Stadium the best example. By replicating the aspects of the West Stand, the East loses what made it special, and could damage the atmosphere on match-day.

The Shelf Bar (Credit: Tottenham Hotspur)

THE 1882 PROBLEM

This possible loss could be offset by the single-tier stand replacing the Park Lane; 17,500 seats – ready to be converted to safe-standing upon Premier League approval – will make up the new structure, allowing those most loud and proud about Tottenham to sing and dance about them to their hearts content.

If they can afford it.

Slap bang in the centre of this “wall of noise”, designed to replicate Borussia Dortmund’s “Yellow Wall” is where you’ll find the most expensive season ticket in the stadium, priced at a whopping £2,200. The only benefit of pricing your core demographic out of a seat is a financial one, and this is an unnecessary high.

What does £2,200 get you? An experience branded by the club as ‘1882’, named after the year the club was founded. In modern times, it’s come to mean something else for the fans.

In the early 2010s, The Fighting Cock – the Spurs fanzine, website and podcast – started the ‘1882’ movement. It was aimed at bringing all corners of the club together to support the team no matter who was wearing the shirt.

The 1882 movement was tribal, it was enthralling and immersive, but that’s exactly what supporting a football club is about – having fun and showing love.

From next season, Spurs want ‘1882’ to be connoted with a premium match-day experience: A first-class option, promising complimentary refreshments, accessories and exclusive access to in-ground bars, slap bang in the middle of its antithesis.

If there was ever a perfect metaphor for fans’ disillusionment with modern football, Spurs have provided it.

GOT NO HISTORY

The problems don’t start or end with the fiscal elements, however. Since leaving the old White Hart Lane in 2017, the club have actively but quietly tried to distance themselves from the name.

White Hart Lane was intimate despite its flaws, and was atmospheric to the point of un-comfortability for the visitors. If it weren’t for Tottenham being ruddy good at football, there’d be no commercial or premium interest.

A naming rights partner for the new ground has not been announced, so one would think that the club could give it a tentative name of ‘New White Hart Lane’.

Instead, it will be called ‘Tottenham Hotspur Stadium’ if a partner isn’t found in time for kick-off. And Daniel Levy, known for being a shrewd businessman, is willing to part with a reported £11million to rename White Hart Lane Station to Tottenham Hotspur Station.

A point which has perhaps gone under the radar is that amongst the promotional images of the new stadium interiors, many of the fans are carrying shopping bags or other pieces of official merchandise and refreshments.

Credit: Tottenham Hotspur

Football is one of the last major sports with a love for tradition. Part of that tradition comes with your match-day experience – it will probably never be solely at the stadium. Other major sports, such as American football, see matters differently.

Mark Waller, the NFL’s international executive vice president, alluded to how the new stadium would be used in an interview with NBC in February 2017.

“American sports stadiums, particularly football stadiums, are built for a day out. The mentality of the English sporting fan is ‘go, watch, leave’.

“Our experience is very different. It’s ‘come for the day, a day out, and watch a fantastic sporting event.”

The NFL are, of course, planning to play two games a season at Tottenham’s new ground. Their insignia will even be carved into the outer shell of the metal structure.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME?

Wembley’s match-day experience is one of the major reasons why Spurs fans are excited to leave come May. The desolate landscape surrounding the arch isn’t fit for a club fan-base, bereft of character and warmth that charms the everyday fan. Are the club milking the rhetoric that Tottenham are going home for their own good?

The Lane – gone. The Shelf – repurposed. The good feeling about the new ground – fading away. What else could be lost by the time the big bow is cut with a giant novelty pair of scissors along Tottenham High Road?

It doesn’t stop with the new stadium.

The club have major gentrification plans for the area, and Daniel Levy was always keen on emphasising that their intentions are as much about helping Tottenham, Haringey, as about Tottenham Hotspur.

“This is a very poor area of London and we need to see regeneration here and we need to have activity,” Levy said, in the same interview with NBC.

Spurs have promised the regeneration will create more than 3,500 jobs and £166million for the local economy. But if the aim is to get the masses into the stadium for a whole day, how are local businesses benefitting?

At this point, there seems to be an unrealistic expectation from Tottenham that fans will want to spend their entire match-day at the stadium. While Spurs could be future-proofing the ground for potential routines and rituals, it’s worth noting that West Ham have been using a similar initiative since moving into the London Stadium.

So, what happens to these pubs if the club monopolises alcohol in the area on match-day? What happens to other eateries in the area that may rely on match-day income when their customers are offered a more fashionable meal? The true match-day experience comes not just from within the stadium, but it’s surrounding areas too.

You get off the tube at Seven Sisters. You head upstairs to have a look at what time the next train for White Hart Lane arrives. If it’s more than 15 minutes away, you suck it up and walk the length of Tottenham High Road. You text your mates asking which pub they’re in – The Antwerp, The Bricklayers and the Bill Nich are all strong favourites. You stay there for a couple of hours. You amble your way back towards the stadium. You might stop off at Chick King for some glorious fried poultry, and have a chat with the twins that run it. This is what Spurs fans miss, but the club are trying to ensure such routines never happen again.

The last physical remnants of White Hart Lane

FANS OR CUSTOMERS?

Loyalty is not a tangible attribute. It cannot be measured, quantified or put a price on. We can only assess it through action, through description, sometimes through pictures. Even then, there will always be difference of opinion. In football, and certainly modern football, loyalty has become a forgotten trait, gone with high shorts and black boots.

It’s widely accepted, though not always appreciated, that players head down their career paths searching for something other than to be adored by one sole set of fans. That’s fine. Players will come and go but the club will always remain, the fans will always remain. But what if the fans say ‘no more’?

When Spurs left the old White Hart Lane for the last time, fans of other clubs were wondering what the hurrah was about – Tottenham would effectively be returning to White Hart Lane. To many Spurs fans, that is the case. All that will have changed are the main facilities. The community built at that boxy little ground will still be there. Well, maybe it will.