Harry Redknapp - best Spurs League manager since 19th Century!
By beating Bolton on Saturday, Spurs achieved 6 consecutive league wins for the first time in the Premier League, and for the first time since the end of the 1989-90 season. You have to go back all the way to the end of the 1966-67 season to find the last time we managed 7 successive league wins. I know we face a tough trip to The Britannia Stadium next Sunday, but if we did manage to win that game and the next one at home to Sunderland, then you really would be going back to the Double Season for a better record!
I am enjoying watching this team so much, that I am consistently re-playing either the full recording or extended highlights of the game, and salivating over the complimentary remarks of various pundits. Can this be OUR Spurs?
Well, it most certainly is. Manager Harry Redknapp has now led us through 119 Premier League games and has a win percentage of 51%, which is higher than ANY previous Spurs manager except Frank Brettell, who led us for 43 Southern League games in the late 19th Century. So long ago. I know statistics only tell part of the story, because our two greatest trophy-winning managers, Bill Nicholson and Keith Burkinshaw can only claim a 46% and 39% league win rate. Those immediately behind Harry on league form alone, on 50% are John Cameron (431 games, 1899-1907), Peter Shreeve (84 games, 1984-86), and David Pleat (54 games, 1986-87). Pleat's overall percentage is lower, because of his additional spells as caretaker manager.
Harry falls below the line in his win rate for Cup matches, but his overall win rate in competitive games for Spurs is still 50%, beaten only by Brettell, and Cameron. It is quite a record for a man who, even at the start of this season was still on the wrong end of critical remarks and comments from some Spurs fans. Harry certainly has been the right appointment at the right time for Spurs.
Spurs are top of the current form guide for the last 6 games in the Premier League, above even Man City and Arsenal, both of whom have won 5 and drawn 1 of their last 6 games. I don't know which end of my line of 6 Ws on the Spurs Odyssey Statistics page is the most recent game! As someone mentioned, as long as we win the next game, I don't need to worry!
Whilst all of the top five won this week, that Liverpool defeat at Fulham was a good result for us, leaving Dalglish's team 8 points behind us, having played one game more. Next Monday night, Chelsea play Man City. If we can only keep this marvellous run going, things can get better still, because the other top teams have to play each other, don't they!
Over 230 votes were received in this week's performance survey, and some of the individual marks were sensational. All four of our midfield were graded 8 out of 10 or better, and Parker, Modric and Bale were so close for your man of the match award. Gareth Bale edged it with a mark of 8.4, beating Scott and Luka by 0.1.
Referee Stuart Attwell was widely criticised for his harsh sending off of Gary Cahill, and you gave him only 5 out of 10, despite a winning result for Spurs. The voters were not happy about that Cahill decision, but also the failure to award Benoit Assou-Ekotto a penalty. Mr Attwell averages just 5.9 in his last 4 games in charge of Spurs.
Some of Spurs greatest attributes at the moment are pace on the wings; fitness, speed and stamina; skilful and penetrative passing; and the creation of enough chances for us to score sufficient goals, despite a relatively low scoring ratio, because of the number of chances where we have failed. That is one area where we could still improve!
Oh, and for the record, just in case some people might think I am suggesting otherwise - No-one will ever top Bill Nicholson as a Spurs manager.
Results 03-05.12.11
A. Villa 0-1 Man Utd
Blackburn 4-2 Swansea
Man City 5-1 Norwich
Newcastle 0-3 Chelsea
QPR 1-1 West Brom
Spurs 3-0 Bolton
Wigan 0-4 Arsenal
Everton 0-1 Stoke
Wolves 2-1 S'derland
Fulham 1-0 Liverpool
Barclays Premier League
Pos Team P W D L F A GD Pts
1 Man City 14 12 2 0 48 13 35 38
2 Man Utd 14 10 3 1 31 13 18 33
3 Spurs 13 10 1 2 29 16 13 31
4 Chelsea 14 9 1 4 31 17 14 28
5 Arsenal 14 8 2 4 30 23 7 26
6 Newcastle 14 7 5 2 19 15 4 26
7 Liverpool 14 6 5 3 17 13 4 23
8 Stoke 14 5 3 6 14 23 -9 18
9 A. Villa 14 3 7 4 16 18 -2 16
10 Everton 13 5 1 7 15 17 -2 16
11 Norwich 14 4 4 6 20 26 -6 16
12 QPR 14 4 4 6 15 25 -10 16
13 Fulham 14 3 6 5 16 16 0 15
14 West Brom 14 4 3 7 13 21 -8 15
15 Swansea 14 3 5 6 14 20 -6 14
16 Wolves 14 4 2 8 15 24 -9 14
17 S'derland 14 2 5 7 16 17 -1 11
18 Blackburn 14 2 4 8 21 32 -11 10
19 Bolton 14 3 0 11 19 34 -15 9
20 Wigan 14 2 3 9 12 28 -16 9
Next week's fixtures:-
Arsenal v Everton
Bolton v A. Villa
Liverpool v QPR
Man Utd v Wolves
Norwich v Newcastle
Swansea v Fulham
West Brom v Wigan
S'derland v Blackburn
Stoke v Spurs
Chelsea v Man City
