After six games and 22 players involved, Spurs have two points and find themselves at the foot of the Premier League table. And boss Juande Ramos, after less than a year in charge at White Hart Lane, is under heavy pressure.
Things seem to be going from bad to worse at the Lane, although it could be worse just look a few hundred miles north at Newcastle. But Tottenham are moving in the wrong direction and Ramos needs to halt that decline and fast.
Make no mistake, mug punters who have got carried away and backed Spurs to be relegated at current soccer odds of 13.5 will be disappointed come May. Spurs won’t go down, you just have to look at the well-deserved 1-1 draw away at title favourites Chelsea to see that and with the players at Ramos’ disposal they will have enough quality to escape the mire.
However the 54-year-old Spaniard needs to find his best XI and start playing them. The club have not fielded the same line-up in the Premier League this season and constant reshuffling does not have a positive effect on a struggling side.
Terry Venables has blamed Tottenham’s poor start on the exit of ‘poisonous’ Dimitar Berbatov and while that certainly didn’t help, it’s wide of the mark to lay the blame soley at the Bulgarian’s door.
Frontmen Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe have all left recently and left a huge void for Ramos to fill.
Assistant boss Gus Poyet has admitted he feels new striker Roman Pavlyuchenko and Darren Bent are unable to play together and it seems that neither Ramos or Poyet know the best XI to put out on the field.
It’s a massive problem for the Tottenham management and one they need to resolve quickly with Thursday’s vital clash in the UEFA Cup with Wisla Krakow looming.
By Phil Tomlinson
