As Sunderland fans inside the Stadium of Light belted out a rendition of Elvis Presley’s ‘What the Wise Men Say’, the Tottenham manager called for ‘A Little Less Conversation’ and more action from his players. Despite a gap of three weeks since their last Premier League match, the performance from Spurs’ players was embarrassing.
It was just a conversation between Tottenham players. Talk about righting wrongs, playing to earn badges, and pulling the Spurs out of a position they were never supposed to be in in the first place. If Empty Promise is awarded a point, Tottenham’s players will be league champions.
Is it any surprise that Roberto de Zerbi rejected Spurs’ approach after the sacking of Thomas Frank and was reluctant to take the reins again after the failure of Igor Tudor’s experiment? Only those in the know know what promises were made by the top brass to convince De Zerbi to take over as manager, but just one game into his new role it appears the Italian’s worst fears have already come true.
If it’s not already clear, Tottenham are not too good to lose. In fact, quite the opposite.
There will probably be grassroots soccer teams across the country playing harder than the so-called professional teams wearing yellow at the Stadium of Light this weekend. The Europa League winners (though it’s hard to believe this is a real statement) approached the game as if they were already on the beach and competing for midfield positions.
The North Londoners began to gain momentum when the fourth official lifted the board to indicate a further 11 minutes would be added. Of course, the reality is that Tottenham are rubbish and rubbish teams get relegated, so that became meaningless.
Where will Spurs go next in their never-ending journey to hitherto undiscovered lows? To avoid a final stop in the Championship, the match begins at home to De Zerbi’s old club Brighton with a Saturday night kick-off. If they don’t win that game, or the next away game against Wolves, it could really be the end for Spurs.
Expect a horribly brutal result: Aston Villa (A), Leeds (H), Chelsea (A), Everton (H). Even the most optimistic Spurs fan will have doubts going into the final weeks of the season.
