Read sadness into what follows. Every word, comma and inflection. I take no pleasure in Ange’s dismissal. But there is reason.
In all honesty, since Bilbao I’ve been this way and that about his future. I readily concede that replacing him after that triumph will never sit completely comfortably with me, but Ange being a hero and Ange needing to go are two ideas that I can hold in my head at the same time. Both can be true. To me, I’ll always be grateful, delighted and moved by what he and his team ultimately achieved, a trophy after all these years and victory against all the odds. The outpouring of emotion from supporters around this win is deeply touching. These are lifelong memories and stories will be told down the generations about one night in Bilbao.
But in the past year, some of our football has been appalling. So: If nothing else, I try to be consistent, and if I change my mind on anything it is because there is evidence for change. That’s me and Ange. Delighted with his opening games, he deserved two years to see what he could make of the job. This is what I wrote in early April:
_I can’t envisage any scenario where Ange holds his job into next season. ‘When not if’ seems inescapably to be the only question. I take no pleasure in saying this. I wanted this proud, motivated man to succeed. He was right for my club, so I hoped. I applauded his brave, attacking football and his value-base of teamwork and support for his players, plus his passion for the game, a beacon of authenticity in an increasingly dreary, cynical football world driven by greed. Except it hasn’t worked._
Of course injuries within a shallow squad have been a major factor in contributing to this unenviable record, but I suspect that if we had finished, say, 10th, I would be saying something similar, that while it is false to suggest his tactics have remained static, he failed to handle key problems such as constantly being caught on the ball, giving the all away (both caused by opposition pressing and high marking), poor penalty box defending and presenting opponents with far too much space, especially in front of our back four. You simply can’t play this way in the Prem. Latterly, the counter to this, that ‘we’ll score one more than you’, hasn’t been effective either in the league.
One unforgettable night in Bilbao triggered a cathartic reaction that was part celebration, part vindication, of the manager and especially of the loyalty of a fanbase starved of success. Nothing whatsoever that happens in the future can diminish that. I don’t agree with those who say this achievement has been diminished because of his sacking.
It was of the moment, and none the less magnificent for that. Ange set aside his principles for the sake of our club. Not only that, he convinced the players to buy into that too, ample evidence of his ability as coach and motivator. He believed, and made sure the players believed in themselves. Yet for much of the season, we played like a group of individuals with little connection or cohesion, and certainly the players’ confidence and ebullience of the early months had become a distant memory.
Ange belatedly but sublimely sorted that out, and there is undeniable risk in leaving that behind. Add this to the injury list as another what-might-have-been – we’ll never know, I don’t know, and it’s a question that will be debated whenever the history of Spurs during this period is discussed. I would add, though, that other managers can motivate players too.
Football is about those moments, and that’s what it was, a glorious moment, and that is its place in our heritage. Sometimes winning a trophy is culmination of a journey, building a resilient team over time who eventually become winners. Often, that proves to be a springboard for sustained success. This is different. Ange created a team for a specific time and place, essentially for three games, with little apparent connection to what had gone before. And what he created for our particular journey, building an attacking, front-foot team, did not work well enough in its particular context, namely the Premier League, where teams quickly learned how to exploit our weaknesses, where the strengths too infrequently failed to outweigh the positives and where the changes in tactics and personnel did not consistently make up for the deficiencies.
I understand fans’ disgust as expressed on social media that, for them, this indicates the board’s priority as league position, not winning trophies. However, this is nothing new. It’s not about Ange, it has been clear for many years, explicitly so in Pochettino’s era when he was told by Levy that the overriding target was a top four finish, and it is fallacious to assume this is the reason for his dismissal. I want Spurs to be contenders. I can deal with not winning stuff, goodness knows I’m used to that by now. But there’s a proviso, that we give it a right proper good go in every tournament. It’s not about either top four or a cup, it’s about building a team with squad depth to have a tilt at both. Until the board realise this and give the manager, any manager, the tools to achieve this, then we’re on the familiar journey towards disappointment.
We were talking about consistency. Here we are, back with the board again. Everything begins and ends with Levy. I have no faith in the board’s ability to make sound footballing decisions. Levy has created a culture devoid of sustained ambition to be consistently successful on the field. There’s no drive or purpose.
In another world, his decision to sack Ange despite winning a prized trophy could be interpreted as the act of a man ruthless in his dogged pursuit of success at the highest level. Applied to Levy, this has a hollow ring to it. Any manager needs full support in terms of a playing staff fit for purpose, good enough and deep enough. History suggests Levy won’t provide this and until this changes, the club is doomed to repeat the managerial churn that drastically inhibits progress in the long-term. The anointed successor, Thomas Frank, has spoken of how he works closely with his board at Brentford and the whole backroom staff. Get ready for a shock, mate.
However, and this comes back to evidence for change, Spurs are shaking up the hierarchy. The highly influential Donna Cullen has departed with the new chairman coming in with a record of being forward thinking, fan friendly and above all, understanding the modern game and what a club needs to complete at the top. We have a highly promising group of young players coming back to the club from various loans with invaluable league experience to add to the excellence of Gray and Bergvall. Plus, we have money to spend on a few good quality experienced players to make a big impact on the team.
Somewhere in another dimension, there is a cosy alternative reality where Ange carries on triumphantly buoyed by success and leading his highly motivated team to further glory. I wish that were real but reluctantly and with sadness conclude that its not part of our universe.
So let’s luxuriate in the glory of what Ange gave us. He can leave on a high, with a reputation that will open doors to many jobs in Europe and around the world. He will always be a legend in N17 and like us, he will have those precious, unforgettable moments of joy. Unlike us, he’ll have a £4 million pay-off to go with it.
The Europa League triumph brought home the personal dimension in a money obsessed, commodified game. Johnson’s smile, VDVs stunning individual moment, players united. And Ange hugging his kids. Thank you and all the best. We’ll always be mates.