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Daniel Levy: I blame Berbatov

Tottenham made their worst ever Premier League start this season and find themselves in 18th place having taken just 9 points from 11 games. Had it not been for a recent Harry Redknapp revival who knows how bad the rot may have set in? Just three games ago, Spurs were rock bottom of the table with a pathetic 2 points from their opening 8 games and were drifting further and further from safety.

Since Daniel Levy dispensed of manager Juande Ramos, we could easily assume he lays the blame squarely at the Spaniards door right? Wrong. Levy blames the recently departed Dimitar Berbatov for unsettling the dressing room and undermining Ramos, which effectively lost him his job. Levy said:

‘I don’t think Berbatov treated this club with the respect that we honestly deserved. We put him on the map. I think he’s an outstanding player, but he signed a long-term contract with this club and I think he should have stayed. I had so many conversations with him. He kept saying it was about his ambition to play for Manchester United. It wasn’t a money issue. We offered him a new contract and he wasn’t even interested in discussing it.

‘The reality is, in modern football, the players have all the power. It’s not just relevant to Tottenham: if players anywhere decide as a group they are not going to play well and they want to get someone sacked then, that’s what can happen. But I don’t believe our squad made a concerted effort [to remove Ramos].’

You have to question the stability of Spurs when a single disgruntled player can bring a club to its knees. One player wants to leave and the club collapses from top to bottom. Spurs had a similarly bad start to last campaign and Levy’s response then was to dispose of his manager; last time it was Martin Jol getting the axe. Let’s blame Berba for that too; it’s obviously not Levy’s fault.

And therein lays the problem. Levy cannot accept responsibility for his actions. In his seven years at the helm of Tottenham, the club have seen no less than seven managers (including caretakers); none of which have performed to the impossibly high standards imposed by Levy. Jol even guided the club to consecutive 5th place finishes before he was sacked; a position Levy and Tottenham can only dream about this term.

To blame Berbatov for Spur’s appalling start is bordering on ridiculous. Don’t get me wrong, the way he went about pushing through his transfer wasn’t perfect, but any club (especially a Premier League club) is bigger than it’s staff and the success or lack of it cannot ever lie on the shoulders of one player.

Loan Watch 01/08/2008 - 18/09/2008

Tom Heaton has been busy on his loan spell at Cardiff City having made 6 appearances for the Championship outfit. Heaton made his debut playing the full 90 minutes in a 2 – 1 victory over Southampton (09/08/2008). Heaton again played the full 90 minutes in a 1 – 1 draw with Doncaster (16/08/2008) and again in a 2 – 2 draw with Norwich (23/08/2008). Heaton kept his first clean sheet in a goalless draw with Norwich (30/08/08) before going on to keep clean sheets in Cardiff’s following games; a 0 – 0 draw with Bristol City (13/09/08) and a 1 – 0 victory over Barnsley (16/09/08).

Frazier Campbell has made just one appearance thus far following his deadline day loan deal to Tottenham was agreed. Campbell came off the bench to set up the winner for Tottenham as they beat Wisla Krakow 2 – 1 in the UEFA Cup (18/09/2008).

Lee Martin’s debut came the day he signed for Nottingham Forest and he went on to have a fantastic game as he helped Forest to a 4 – 0 win over Morecambe (13/08/08). He went on to play the full 90 minutes in a 3 – 1 defeat to Swansea (16/08/2008) and scored the opener in a 3 – 2 victory over Watford (23/08/2008). Martin played the full 90 in a heavy defeat as Nottingham Forest went down 5 – 1 to Wolves (30/08/2008), and 80 minutes in Nottingham Forest’s 2 – 1 defeat to Preston (16/09/08).

Danny Simpson made just one appearance for Blackburn Rovers as he played 73 minutes as Blackburn were hammered 4 - 0 by Arsenal (13/09/08).

Craig Cathcart has made two appearances for Plymouth Argyle so far this season. He played the full ninety minutes on his debut in a 2 – 0 defeat to Luton(12/08/2008). He made his league debut in a 2 – 1 victory over Watford (16/09/08), again playing the full match.

Febian Brandy made his debut in Swansea’s 2 – 0 victory over Brentford (12/08/2008) as he played for 70 minutes and picked up a booking. He has since made 3 brief substitute appearances coming on for 5 minutes as Swansea drew 1 – 1 with Sheffield Wednesday 30/08/2008), for 7 minutes in a 2 – 0 defeat to Crystal Palace (13/09/2008) and coming on in the 89th minute in a 1 – 1 draw with Derby (16/09/2008).

£30 million or Berbatov rots in the reserves. In that case, let him rot!

Reports today claim that if United fail to meet Tottenham’s £30 million valuation of Dimitar Berbatov, Spurs are prepared to let the sulking striker rot in the reserves. Berbatov missed Tottenham’s recent home defeat to Sunderland with manager Juande Ramos claiming the striker’s “head is not right” leaving Spurs with just one recognised striker in the team.

Berbatov has made no secret of his desire to join United and United have made no secret of their desire to bring the Bulgarian on board but as of yet, the clubs have been unable to agree upon a fee. United have already had a £20 million bid rejected and it is reported that United are prepared to up that to £25 million but not a penny more. On top of that, United want Spurs to withdraw their complaint over the saga in which the North London club claimed United had tapped up Berbatov.

Spurs have lost both of their Premiership games so far this season with the home defeat to Sunderland piling the pressure on the club. Whether Berbatov is sold or is indeed left to rot in the reserves it is clear that Spurs will need to sign another striker, possibly two, if they are to have any hope of a top 6 finish let alone finishing in a Champions League spot.

£25 million from the sale of Berbatov would represent almost £15 million profit for a player they bought for little over £10 million just two seasons ago and with the striker so desperate to leave it looks to be a sweet deal for Spurs. It would also give Ramos the funds to delve into the market and sign another top class striker which the club so desperately need.

It is no secret that United have paid over the odds for players in the past and I have no doubt that it was it in the back of Levy’s mind when he slapped the price tag on Berbatov. He needs to be careful though; the last thing Spurs want is a sulky striker with huge wages in the reserves whilst the rest of the team struggle to break into the top half. But if he is not careful, that is exactly what will happen as all the signs coming from Old Trafford suggest United will not be held to ransom.

As it stands, it is simply a waiting game to see which side will give in; if any. If united cave in now, it will send yet another signal to every other club that United are there to be fleeced. If someone is going to give in, let’s hope that it isn’t us.

Premiership round-up 23rd & 24th August

Saturday 23rd August

Michael Owen came off the bench against Bolton in his first appearance of the season having missed the entire pre-season. The England striker still looked sharp as he scored the only goal to give Newcastle the win at St James’s Park. Newcastle 1 – 0 Bolton.

Hull City remain unbeaten in their debut season in the Premiership after a hard fought draw against Blackburn at Ewood Park. Hull went behind in the 38th minute when Jason Roberts coolly slotted home but within 2 minutes, Hull had equalised when Richard Garcia headed home when what looked like a far post cross dipped into the back of the net. There were very few chances after that and the game ended Blackburn 1 – 1 Hull.

Liverpool took on Middlesbrough at Anfield and when Mido opened the scoring in the 70th minute, it looked like it wasn’t going to be Liverpool’s day. But in the 86th minute, a thunderbolt from Jamie Carragher took a wicked deflection off Pogatetz and ended up in the back of the net. Liverpool would have been fortunate to escape with a draw but in the fourth minute of injury time, skipper Steven Gerrard does what he has done so many times and scored a screamer from just outside the box. Liverpool 2 – 1 Middlesbrough.

Stoke City lead three times at the Britannia Stadium against Aston Villa and after levelling the match twice, Aston Villa fell to an injury time winner from Sidibe giving the newly promoted side their first 3 points of the campaign. Stoke City 3 – 2 Aston Villa.

There was no space in the squad let alone the starting eleven for United target Dimitar Berbatov as Spurs succumbed to their second league defeat in as many games. Kieran Richardson scored a belter from outside the area in the 55th minute before Jenas tapped in the equaliser 18 minutes later. Spurs pushed for the winner but Sunderland new boy Cisse found himself unmarked to head home on 82 minutes giving the Black Cats all three points. Tottenham 1 – 2 Sunderland.

West Brom had the better of a slow first half as they took on Everton at The Hawthorns but were unable to capitalise on any of their chances. In Contrast, Everton made the most of their chances scoring 2 of their 3 shots on target through Osman (65th minute) and Yakubu (76th minute). The Baggies did mange to score from the spot late on but the game ended West Brom 1 – 2 Everton.

Fulham hosted Arsenal in the late kick off of the day and after an opening day defeat to Hull City, Arsenal were by far the bookies favourite. Hangeland put Fulham ahead after 20 minutes and a disappointing (depending on your perspective) Arsenal were unable to recover and the match ended Fulham 1 – 0 Arsenal.

Sunday 24th August

Chelsea travelled to Wigan and when Deco put the visitors ahead with a sublime free kick from the edge of the area, you would be forgiven for thinking this was going to be another rout. But Wigan regrouped and made it difficult for Chelsea and even probably had the better of the chances after that. Unfortunately, they couldn’t break through and the game ended Wigan 0 – 1 Chelsea.

Manchester City coasted to a 3 – 0 victory over West Ham as the Hammers effectively gifted the match to the home team. Noble was sent off in the 38th minute for a handball followed by a stupid sliding tackle and the ten men of West Ham never looked like they were going to compete. It took until the 65th minute for Sturridge to make the breakthrough and when they did, the flood gates almost opened. Elano scored a brace in 6 minutes to compound the misery for the Hammers as they went down without a single shot on target. Manchester City 3 - 0 West Ham.

The opening day of the Premiership

The Premiership kicked off for fourteen teams today as each one hoped to start the new campaign with a win. 12 teams shared 20 goals in what looks to be one of the best Premiership seasons ever..

Arsenal and West Brom was the first kick off of the day and when new signing Samir Nasri slotted home in the 4th minute you would be forgiven for thinking West Brom’s welcome to the Premiership wasn’t going to be pleasant. But West Brom refused to roll over and the match ended Arsenal 1 – 0 West Brom.

Newly promoted Stoke were up against Bolton and were 3 – 0 down by the interval. It took until injury time in the second half for Stoke to score a consolation goal, final score: Bolton 3 – 1 Stoke.

The final promoted team of the season Hull, met Fulham and were quickly one down to a glancing header by Seol Ki-Hyeon. Geovanni levelled the score in the 22nd minute before Folan grabbed the winner in the 81st minute to give Hull a win in their first ever Premier League match: Hull 2 – 1 Fulham.

Paul Ince started his Blackburn reign with a win as his team beat Everton 3 - 2 at Goodison Park. David Dunn put Blackburn in front in the 22nd minute before strikes from Mikel Arteta just before half time and Yakubu in the 64th minute left Rovers 2 – 1 down. Two minutes later, Santa Cruz levelled the game for Blackburn before an injury time winner from Ooijer gave Rovers the win they deserved. Everton 2 – 3 Blackburn.

Dimitar Berbatoz started on the bench for Tottenham when they took on an impressive Middlesbrough at the Riverside. It looked like it was heading for a goalless draw until the 71st minute when Weater put the home team in front. Mido scored a goal against his former club in the 86th to make it two and a late own goal from Robert Huth made the score line a little flattering for Spurs as it ended Middlesbrough 2 – 1 Tottenham.

The final 3pm kick off of the day saw Wigan make the trip to London in a match against West Ham. Dean Ashton struck twice in the opening 10 minutes in front of England boss Fabio Capello. The first half ended 2 – 0 and Wigan came out fighting after the break with an early strike from Amir Zaki giving Wigan a great chance. Ashton was taken off due to a claf problem and has subsequently been removed from the England squad. Despite their efforts, the Lactics couldn’t convert and the match ended West Ham 2 – 1 Wigan.

The final game of the day kicked off at 5:30pm where Liverpool struggled to break Sunderland down for 82 minutes in their match at the Stadium of Light. That was until a superb 20 yard strike from Fernando Torres beat Craig Gordon and it was enough to secure the three points as it ended Sunderland 0 – 1 Liverpool.

Levy at it again: more money for Berbatov please

Yesterday, various news sources claimed Dimitar Berbatov was on the verge of signing for Manchester United in a £25 million deal which would bring an end to an 18 month pursuit of the Bulgarian hit man. In yet another twist to this prolonged transfer saga, the Telegraph is today reporting that Spurs Chairman, Daniel Levy, is still refusing to sell until United meet his ludicrous £32 million valuation of the player.

Levy’s latest stance comes shortly after Premier League officials told the Spurs chairman that no action will be taken against Manchester United following their recent “tapping up” allegation unless Spurs could provide irrefutable evidence. Indeed Ferguson believes the Spurs hierarchy have based the entire complaint on an article published in the Sun. A very reliable source indeed!

Levy has also lodged a complaint with the Premier League against Liverpool in their pursuit of Robbie Keane which resulted in the Sale of their Irish front man and it is reported today that he is considering bringing legal action against Manchester City in a bid to receive “substantial compensation” for the Vedran Corluka transfer. Is Levy on a crusade to rid the world of football of dodgy dealings? If he is, he must be thankful the Sevilla board are not on the same crusade considering Tottenhams blatant tapping up of their manager Juande Ramos last season. Pot, Kettele, Black?

Whatever he is doing, it is working with United looking set to up their £25 million bid with reports suggesting United WILL still get their man, but for something in the region of £28 million. Some extra cash now perhaps, but the long term affects of Levy’s actions will be felt for a while. How many clubs does he think he can piss off before he realises that the tables will turn? Just imagine if Spurs were after a Liverpool, City or United player? Do you think he’d ever get a bargain?

Transfer roundup (07/07/08)

Liverpool have snapped up Danish Striker Nikola Saric from Herfolge on a free. Rafa Benitez won the 17 year old forward’s signature after beating off strong interest from both Barcelona and Tottenham.

Southampton have signed 21 year old goalkeeper Tommy Forecast from Tottenham for an undisclosed fee.

Tottenham 1 - 1 Manchester United

Tottenham	Team Statistics	Manchester United
1	Goals	1
3	Shots On Target	5
2	Shots Off Target	8
5	Shots Blocked	6
8	Corners	9
1	Offsides	1
17	Fouls	12
3	Yellow Cards	7
0	Red Cards	0
38.8	Possession	61.2
72.5	Passing	81.4
38	Tackles	26
55.3	Tackling	76.9

Manchester United 3 - 1 Tottenham

Manchester United	Team Statistics	Tottenham
3	Goals	1
8	Shots On Target	3
10	Shots Off Target	4
9	Shots Blocked	5
10	Corners	4
1	Offsides	3
8	Fouls	8
1	Yellow Cards	0
0	Red Cards	1
58.6	Possession	41.4
81.6	Passing	73
31	Tackles	24
80.6	Tackling	70.8

Manchester United 1 - 0 Tottenham

Manchester United	Team Statistics	Tottenham
1	Goals	0
3	Shots On Target	2
8	Shots Off Target	7
4	Shots Blocked	2
4	Corners	4
3	Offsides	5
18	Fouls	9
2	Yellow Cards	3
0	Red Cards	0
57.9	Possession	42.2
81.6	Passing	76.1
30	Tackles	26
76.7	Tackling	61.5

                        

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