AVB’s grand project gets lift off.

I headed for White hart lane on Saturday excited but nervous.  It really did feel like the season was just started.  The early skirmishes had seen Tottenham pick up two scrappy wins and lose the north London derby. Norwich had become the type of team spurs had struggled to beat, even with Gareth Bale as their champions’ league ambitions had faltered on the back of dropped points to the likes of Norwich, Stoke and Fulham.  Ah Gareth Bale. In the last 20 years of following Spurs, many really good players have left against the fans wishes. However, only three players have been so truly great for spurs that the phrase, “build a team around him” could be applied. Sol Campbell, Jürgen Klinsmann and Gareth Bale.  Players so consistently brilliant, that they gave the crowd a lift just by being in the starting line-up.

 

It is undeniable that the loss of Campbell set back the development of Tottenham, he was replaced by Goran Bunjevcevic.  A talented player who struggled with injuries while Campbell went on win trophies.  Likewise, Klinsmann’s departure when he left to win the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich while we were left with Chris Armstrong, an honest willing professional who did a decent job in the circumstances, but you get the picture. In the seasons following the loss of both Klinsmann and Campbell, expectations were significantly lower and the extent of Spurs ambition was a decent cup run and giving the other lot down Seven Sisters road a bloody nose.  However, in the last three seasons, Tottenham had become serious challengers for the champions’ league places, losing out during the last two seasons by a single point. This is why the loss of Bale was so significant. With the potential to mortally undermine any champions league ambitions for the foreseeable future.

And yet, expectations were not only of a champion’s league push, but a title challenge. Yes unlike 1995 and 2001 when massive players left for next to nothing, a world record 86 million pounds was delivered to the lane and promptly spent, with some change on 7 really good players. Still, without Bale, was this optimism wildly misplaced? Would the taunts of the N5 lot ring loud again? Who will drive this team forward? Step forward Andre Villas Boas. The project manager has a plan.

It is fair to say that the arrival of AVB had a mixed reaction at best. A bit like Roberto Martinez at Everton. Trophy winning pedigree tainted by a whiff of failure. However, in getting the best out of Bale and marshalling Spurs to a record points tally, often showing astute tactical acumen along the way, he endeared himself to the Spurs faithful and crucially the trust of Daniel Levy. So much so that when AVB requested a technical director, something Levy had previously dispensed with, Levy granted him his wish and the well-connected Franco Baldini pitched up. In so doing, Spurs transfer policy went forward by several notches. Between Levy, Baldini and AVB, they managed the seemingly impossible feat of raising expectations and optimism despite selling their biggest star. Even the hijacking of the deal to sign Willian has become a mere footnote in a truly unforgettable transfer window.

So the ‘project’ started afresh on Saturday and the early signs are promising. Christian Eriksson looks a proper Spurs player with his close control and ability to see a pass. Big things are expected on Erik Lamela once he settles in and Roberto Soldado really does come alive in the penalty box (as befits a man who scored all 24 of his La Liga goals last season from inside the box). Tougher tests await and Cardiff on Saturday will tell us a bit more about spurs prospects this season. Still the project looks to coming along nicely and the project manager has every reason to be content.