Cartilage Free Captain

Yesterday, Tottenham Hotspur released a lengthy statement from CEO Vinai Venkatesham on its website, and that was subsequently printed in the matchday programme for today’s Premier League match. It ends what had been a protracted silence by the Spurs CEO; while the club has struggled on the pitch, the decision-makers have been almost completely silent, choosing to brief things anonymously through trusted English media sources rather than make an outright statement, or better yet, a public forum where questions can be asked and answered.

It’s actually a pretty good statement. Venkatesham is a gifted communicator who has a way with words, and he hits the right notes here. Obviously when the vibes at the club are this toxic it won’t take much for Spurs fans to find things in there to get mad about, but as far as statements go it’s fine — it acknowledges the elephant in the room that things are not going especially well, but tries to find the balance between acknowledging the clear failures of the men’s team on the pitch with a message of optimism towards the future. It’s a lot, it says, We’re working on it, and we all want the same thing: sustained success for Tottenham Hotspur.

You can and should read the whole thing, but here’s the main passage I wanted to highlight.

Our focus is sporting success, and in that we share the same ambition as our supporters. We know that words carry little weight without action, which is why recent months have been spent undertaking a thorough review of our operations.

Opportunities for a genuine reset are rare in Clubs of our size, and we have been determined not to waste this moment as we make the changes needed behind the scenes to compete consistently at the highest level.

Football has changed significantly in recent years, and while the club has evolved and achieved incredible things, we recognise that in some key areas we have not always kept pace. We all feel the gap between where we are and where we want to be, and while we know progress takes time, we share your impatience to close it. Our supporters want wins and performances to be proud of, and we know the men’s first team has fallen short of where we want to be so far this season. Significant work is underway.

Venkatesham goes on to highlight the need to strengthen the men’s first team squad, improve relations with supporters, continue to improve the pipeline between the academy and the first team, robustly support and improve Tottenham Women, and improve player development which includes the appointment of John Heitinga as assistant coach and the strengthening of the medical and sports science departments, among others.

Vinai’s message was notably silent about the overall job performance of Thomas Frank. But after watching Tottenham Hotspur lose to a terrible West Ham team that entered today seven points from relegation safety, and after weeks of fence sitting and milquetoast patience about Spurs’ performance under Frank, I’ve reached the point where it’s time for me to make a stand:

Thomas Frank is not the right person to lead Tottenham Hotspur and it’s time for him to go.

Like most of you, I watched Tottenham’s first team put in an absolute stinker of a first half today against West Ham. I cheered with most of you when Spurs played better in the second half and leveled the score, only to concede the match winner in injury time. There are usually positives you can take from a match, even bad ones and losses, and this was no exception — Spurs looked significantly better in the second half and had a pretty clear penalty shout waved off after a lengthy VAR review. But there’s no sugar-coating this loss. While there’s no such thing as an easy Premier League match and this is a London derby, this is a historically bad West Ham team. Spurs conceded 2.96 xG against a team that hadn’t won a league match since November 8, and that lost 3-0 to bottom-of-the-table Wolves.

I’ve been a Tottenham fan a long time — nearly 20 years. In that time I’ve seen a lot of football, both terrible and exceptional, and a lot of managers come and go. The one thing you can say about football club managers is that in the end it is inevitable that they leave, one way or another. That said, the churn of football managers at Tottenham Hotspur has been noted by many as unacceptable, and after the club sacked the manager who won them their first trophy in 18 years, I found myself desperately hoping that they would, finally, give the new guy a chance.

There is virtue in patience, especially for a club and fan base that is notoriously fickle. I hate the manager churn and how historically how quickly Spurs have been to fire managers instead of giving them time. But this is a season that has tested the resolve of even the most saint-like Spurs fan. It would be one thing to give time and grace to a new manager implementing a new style of football, if there were signals of direction he wanted to take the club. This season, I am not seeing any of those signs. The football is turgid, directionless, and unsuccessful. While the squad is injured and missing key personnel and relying on young developing talent that may not be up to the task, I have consistently failed to identify any sort of vision for how Thomas Frank wants his teams to play. There’s nothing aspirational in the way Frankball is implemented at Spurs right now. There’s just bad football, few chances, fewer wins, and toxic vibes among supporters, match-going and not.

To be fair, this is not entirely Thomas Frank’s fault. Tottenham’s squad is appallingly constructed, even acknowledging the long term injuries to players like Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison, and Dominic Solanke. Spurs said goodbye to their captain and best player Son Heung-Min this summer, shortly after saying goodbye to club all-time scoring leader Harry Kane, but despite spending an incredible amount of money over the past few seasons, have not managed to build a squad that can cope with those losses. The players currently at the club are well-meaning and many of them could very well develop into top footballers, but are currently not at the level required to compete even for mid-table honors, much less Champions League qualification.

The Lewis family also took the extraordinary step of firing long time club chairman Daniel Levy as a means of converting Spurs into a modern, more nimble football operation. In the process, there has been significant confusion over who does what at the club, especially around football talent identification and recruitment. The embarrassing resignation of co-Sporting Director Fabio Paratici to a similar role in Fiorentina, four months after he was appointed — not to mention the weirdness of a co-Sporting Director to begin with — is one example of this confusion. There’s no publicly available organziational chart to know who does what at the club. With Paratici soon departing, is Johan Lange in charge? Is a new Director of Football coming? We don’t know. It’s maddening!

However, Thomas Frank is in charge of training the players and coaching in matches, and the football has been awful. Up until now, I have resisted the calls for Frank’s sacking from the fan base because I maintained hope that, somehow, things will click and the team will start showing at least some signs of life, something for us to point to and say see that? there’s a plan here, we just need time and players to implement it. But there’s nothing there for us to hang our hats on — just more turgid football with increasingly frustrated players in a home stadium that is the pride of England but a nightmare for supporters watching their team play.

Frank is a nice man. Sacking him would not be the end of his story, nor does it mean that he would not be successful elsewhere — he’s proven he can be a successful manager. But it’s been clear from the beginning that he was an awkward fit for this football club. His tactics, while effective at Brentford with an entire club structure aligned behind him, do not align with the ethos of Tottenham Hotspur. It has reached the point where continuing to back him despite plenty of evidence that things are not working would be worse than letting him go for an interim replacement. The supporters are mutinous, Frank continues to give statements to the media that are, to put it mildly, tone-deaf and at times enraging.

The players are frustrated too, though as of yet they have not leaked their dissatisfaction towards the manager via anonymous briefs to reporters. That’s to their credit, but the signs are there. This is not a happy football team, and I can no longer say with any justification that there are compelling reasons not to fire Thomas Frank for a caretaker manager until after this summer’s World Cup.

I consider myself one of the more level-headed, look-to-the-horizon, patient Spurs fans. Hell, I gave Jose Mourinho a fighting chance for my support, something I was incredibly hesitant to do. Thomas Frank has now lost me, much like Nuno Espirito Santo lost me, and he needs to go.

But it’s more than just the manager. Tottenham Hotspur needs a hard reset at all levels of the organization. If I could wave a magic wand to fix things, it would involve wholesale changes to the way Spurs are run, from the executive level down, including replacing Sporting Director Johan Lange with a competent Director of Football who can implement a clear vision of attacking, dynamic football, regardless of who is managing the team. In that sense, I do not put the bulk of the blame on Thomas Frank for the failures of Tottenham Hotspur this season. But he is in charge of the first team, and in football the manager is always the first to go.

Vinai Venkatesham alludes to significant change in his statement to supporters. True change takes time to implement and patience from all involved. I acknowledge what Venkatesham is saying, that the club needs everyone pulling in the same direction in order to move the boat down the canal and into open water. But it’s also important to acknowledge when you get things wrong, and take concrete steps to make sure you don’t repeat the same mistakes. While I appreciate Venkatesham finally making a statement, he also needs to take responsibility, and decisive action to start the process for change. Even better would be to be upfront and honest with supporters about how long it might take to retune the club and get it to where it needs to go to compete with the top of the table. I suspect fans would be significantly more patient with whoever is in charge of the club if club leadership was honest and forthright about the need for significant change and development, and that the process will take time.

That starts with acknowledging that Thomas Frank is no longer suitable to lead this football team. I’m not sure it matters who takes charge — Ryan Mason? John Heitinga? Justin Cochrane? Give it to someone who understands the club ethos, is willing to implement a style of football that gets the most of the players currently at their disposal, and work towards a permanent replacement this summer who can continue to play football the Tottenham way.

I love this club. It’s been central to my life for nearly two decades now. Winning the Europa League, even in the context of everything else that happened that season, was one of the best moments of my sports fandom — in any sport. It’s sad to see that energy, joy, and optimism squandered in such a short period of time. Thomas Frank doesn’t and shouldn’t carry the whole of the burden of Tottenham Hotspur’s failures, but it’s also equally clear that he is no longer the person who can lead us out of the wilderness. It’s time to let Frank go and start the process of finding someone who can.

Tottenham Hotspur yet again showcased itself as a side that has lost its identity. This time, it’s a defeat to London rivals West Ham United by way of a 93rd-minute winner by substitute Callum Wilson.

It is obvious that this year’s Spurs side has been disappointing under Thomas Frank. With major injuries all over the pitch and dropping points countlessly at home, Spurs yet again failed to pick up A point. This time, they gave hope to a West Ham United side that is fighting to stay in the Premier League.

Entering the match with only winning two out of their last 12 Premier League matches, Spurs fell behind early by way of a Crysencio Summerville finish. The Dutch winger took his dribble inside the box and left Pedro Porro and Connor Gallagher trailing as a third touch and shot towards the back post was deflected off Micky van de Ven and past the diving Guglielmo Vicario.

As we have all noticed throughout the season, Spurs really do struggle to put together an attacking display in the first half of matches. But today, the likes of Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel tried to take on the weak back four of West Ham, with the two almost connecting on a wonderful cross and header. Tel took his cross on the outside of his boot for a chip towards the middle of the six for Odobert to power home a header, but hit it right on the chest of Alphonse Areola. Djed Spence (who came on for the injured Ben Davies, who was aircasted off the pitch) had a follow-up shot that looked poor, but a replay showed Areola got his leg out to stop Spence from a far corner finish.

West Ham almost had a 2-0 lead going into the half as Jarod Bowen believed he had a follow-up tap-in off a save from Vicario on a Tomas Soucek shot, but the flag quickly went up as Bowen stood offside on Soucek’s shot on goal.

Lucky to be down 1-0 going into the break, Spurs came out in the second half and looked more lively in the first five minutes after the break as players actually made runs and tried to be on the front foot.

Yves Bissouma — who came on for Archie Gray at the break — had two great outside-the-box attempts as his first was straight at the keeper, but the second one forced a parry and corner for the Lilywhites. Bissouma actually showed urgency to put the ball on goal throughout the half instead of having the ball go around and around like Spurs have done much of the year.

Passing the hour mark of the match, Spurs got the tying goal thanks to a powerful header at the back post from captain Cristian Romero, as the delivery from the league’s crossing leader in Porro had a perfect placement for the Argentine to get the leveler.

As the match opened up and Spurs looked to get that leading goal, as West Ham looked tired and forced to foul more and more to stop breaks, Spurs had chances as corners were put into the box again and again. VAR had a look at a possible handball by Oliver Scarles as the left back got beaten on a turn from Spurs debutant Connor Gallagher, but it wasn’t the VAR check Spurs fans or players wanted to be checked. After Gallagher had a cross off the touch squared in the box, Xavi Simons had the ball controlled and ready to do something with it when he was shoved off the ball by Konstantinos Mavropanos.

After the VAR check and the refs indicating six minutes of added time, both sides made one final sub as Lucas Bergvall came on for Odobert and Wilson came on for Valetine Castellanos. Bergvall’s long throw attribute was used instantly as Spurs crowded the box, but as West Ham broke free and down the pitch for their own throw-in, Wilson had a clear shot at goal.

Chesting the ball down and onto his feet with no defender insight, the striker thought he had the winner, but Porro’s recovery and block kept the game leveled at 1 with three minutes to go.

But, we all know how this ends as Vicario was marked by Wilson, and failing to get past the striker to punch the ball away, the ball sat near the striker for him to get a touch before Spence and into the back of the net for the 2-1 winner.

With the frustration boiling over from the fanbase and the players showing signs of yet again this happening to them, the camera panned to Thomas Frank at the touchline, and the Danish manager had the look of maybe this is it. The Spurs board has defended him in the media that he deserves time, but with another loss to a London rival and sitting a mere 10 points from safety, it seems to be time to make the change.

A week off? In this economy? Tottenham Hotspur will be well-rested heading into their latest London Derby, this one against struggling West Ham United. It remains to be seen, though, whether that rest will make a difference to a Spurs side that are trying to work through troubles of their own.

Some have therefore dubbed this match “El Sackico”, with both Thomas Frank and West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo at risk of losing their jobs with another poor performance. It’s the second edition of such a match in which Spurs have been involved, the last one interestingly enough also involving Nuno as his Spurs side suffered a 3-0 drubbing against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United.

There’s added intrigue as well with the January transfer window looming large. New signing Conor Gallagher could be involved for the Lilywhites, while West Ham have attempted to bolster their attacking options with the signings of Taty Castellanos and Pablo.

It’s probably not going to be high-quality football; but the potential ramifications are significant.

COYS!

Lineups

Lineups will be posted closer to kick-off.

Live Blog

How to Watch

Tottenham Hotspur vs. West Ham United

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK

Saturday, January 17, 2026

Time: 10:00 a.m. ET, 3:00 p.m. UK

TV: Not televised in USA or UK. Check international listings at livesoccertv.com

Streaming: Peacock

Match thread rules

The match thread rules are the same as always. To any visitors coming here for the first time, welcome! We’re glad you’re here! Wipe your feet, mind the gap, and be sure to check out the other pages at this outstanding site. While you’re here, though, we have a few rules and regulations:

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Along those lines, outright abuse of players or match officials is also not allowed. It’s fine to say “wow, that was a really bad call,” but it’s NOT okay to direct copious amounts of abuse in the direction of said official over a call you did not like.

Treat other people in the match thread the way you would want someone else to treat your grandmother. Be nice. This is a community of fans, not an un-moderated message board.

NO SPIDERS!

Finally, while we don’t have a rule against profanity, please try and keep the naughty words in check. Also, language that is sexist, racist, transphobic, or homophobic in nature will be swiftly deleted and you will be immediately banned. This is an open, supportive community.

Have fun, and COYS!

Everyone’s least favorite derby approaches with a stormcloud of negativity. In one corner sits Tottenham Hotspur, winless in four straight and six of the last seven, recently knocked out of the FA Cup and with a manager seemingly fighting for his job. In the other sits West Ham United, a side in serious threat of relegation despite the attempts of Nuno Espirito Santo.

For Spurs, this match probably offers way more negatives than upside. Dropped points continues a worrying trend that will at some point be too much to overcome, especially if this form carries into the Champions League. Meanwhile, a win over 18th place really does not mean much, regardless of how pesky West Ham may be. However, we still hold out hope for some sort of turnaround, which feels pretty impossible if this one ends up short of a victory.

Match Details

Date: Saturday, January 17

Time: 10:00 am ET, 3:00 pm UK

Location: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London

TV: Peacock (US)

Table: Spurs (14th, 27 pts), West Ham (18th, 14 pts)

The first meeting between these sides was scoreless at halftime, but the following 20 minutes were quite eventful. First, Pape Sarr opened the scoring off a corner, then Tomas Soucek got himself sent off with a studs-up tackle on Joao Palhinha. The visitors cruised from there, with Lucas Bergvall adding the second on a nice header and prolific scorer Micky van de Ven making it 3-0 for Tottenham at the London Stadium.

Two Things to Watch

Low-hanging fruit

Nothing has come easily for Thomas Frank, especially at the bottom of the table. In four matches against the bottom four, Spurs have taken just seven points, with the aforementioned win over West Ham and the opening day victory at Burnley being the two successes. What stands out more are the failures: a terrible draw at home against Wolves and the embarrassment at Forest last month.

Stylistically, it is valid to worry about a match against this sort of club in North London. Tottenham’s dreadful home form has been well documented, and though the Hammers are pretty awful everywhere, they are versed in conceding possession and buckling down defensively while on the road. Nuno has also opted for a 4-3-2-1 formation against bigger sides (which Spurs may or not be?), which is something to look for on Saturday.

Speaking of Nuno, while Spurs avoided him — and Ange Postecoglou — at the City Ground last month, this will be the second consecutive league fixture for the manager against a previous employer. There is not a ton of emotion positively or negatively towards him at this point given his comically brief stint at Tottenham, though any result he can earn will surely drum up the narratives.

Availability roulette

Richarlison, Mohammad Kudus, and Rodrigo Bentancur (and Brennan Johnson - technically, Dejan Kulusevski, and James Maddison) will not be available for Saturday, but Dominic Solanke and Conor Gallagher will. This theoretically gives Frank enough options to populate the six spots ahead of the back four, though the decisions are reaching the point where they nearly make themselves.

Though goals never seem to come easily, this really has to be a match where Tottenham scores. West Ham has allowed the most goals in the league and has the second-worst xGA, surrendering 14 goals in the past six league contests and averaging 2.1 xGA in the past three. The Spurs’ attack is never a given, but there is not much more that could be asked for in an opposing defense.

I am really curious to see what Gallagher could potentially bring to the side. He may not be a creative talent, but he should show more willingness and ability to drive forward than the alternatives in central midfield and at the very least offers a fresh face. The Hammers’ average the fifth-lowest possession in the league so Tottenham will enjoy plenty of time on the ball. Someone will have to show an interest in doing something with it, and the new signing seems as likely as anyone to do so.

Good morning, dear hoddlers. Today is the last day of the Weir-a-thon, a weeklong celebration of Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir, who passed away last weekend.

This whole week we’ve been celebrating the music of Weir throughout the decades, and I’d like to thank you all for being patient with me as I clog the Track of the Day with Weir songs. Today will be the final Grateful Dead song for a while (so we can throw some others into the rotation). I have a few more things to say about Weir.

But first, I’d like to share a bonus track of the day. This one is in honour of the last song I heard Bob Weir play live. It was at The Sphere on May 9, 2025. I’m very grateful to have seen him the few times I did, and never took it for granted. I left that night at The Sphere wholly satisfied, if a little bemused I heard Scarlet->Fire for the third time (what, no The Other One?). But he, John Mayer and the rest of the group finished the night with a roaring version of Casey Jones. They brought the house down.

And I think it’s pertinent to include a song that’s heavily featured by Jerry Garcia. Because where would Weir be without Jerry? And where would Jerry be without Bobby?

Fitzie’s bonus track of the day: Casey Jones, by the Grateful Dead

It took me a long time to understand why people mourn musicians when they die. I had a hard time understanding why people cried when John Lennon died. It isn’t as if they knew him.

It wasn’t until Tom Petty died nearly a decade ago when I understood. His music is the soundtrack to my life, and with him gone, the world feels a bit quieter.

With Bobby Weir, his presence felt like an anchor. Garcia died when I was extraordinarily young, and so I have no consciousness of him. But as I grew into adulthood I gravitated more and more towards the Grateful Dead. It was always Bob Weir’s songs I wanted to listen to though.

It’s quite possible no one in the western world played as many concerts as he did. A world without Weir on stage feels like a world that no longer knows how to spin. And yet, like those crazy spinners that lined the dance halls in the 70s, the world keeps a’spinning after Weir’s death.

Bob Weir - like the entirety of the Grateful Dead - was a man of the underdog. The music he played was unconventional, unfit for radio. The people he played music to were seen as oddballs and outcasts, driven underground. Some of the people who he played with were seen as marginalised at one point or another.

So it feels like a victory when we see Weir celebrated to such a degree, or see Dead iconography entrench mainstream Americana. After all, is it truly possible to understand Americana without the Dead’s place in it?

Their music came at a unique point in the country, where many people sought to retreat inward into their collective consciences. It was this blend of a return home through the prism of bluegrass, folk and jazz that helped propel the Dead to achieve such a cult following.

And then, of course, we have the quasi-mythological stories of Neal Cassady driving the bus, of Ken Kesey, Janis Joplin, Hamza Al Din and more pour colour onto the magical tapestry that the Dead created.

It’s quite difficult for me to dictate my appreciation for the Dead in a technical sense. Of course their songwriting is lush, their musicianship unquestionable, their vocals rough at times but quite unique. But their stretched-out instrumentation and improvisation, I feel, is the closest form to the human experience as music can get. We never know quite where it’s going to end up, and that makes it so exciting.

So as I type here tonight, I struggle to find a way to close out this hoddle. I don’t know how to lead it into the track of the day (I still don’t know what I’m going to choose as I’m writing this now - so it’ll be as much a surprise to you as it is to me).

Perhaps Bill Walton said it best: It’s all one song.

Fitzie’s track of the day: The Music Never Stopped, by the Grateful Dead

And now for your links:

The Athletic ($$): “Do Tottenham Hotspur have a discipline problem?”

Alasdair Gold: “Every word Thomas Frank said on signing a forward, Conor Gallagher transfer and mixed injury news”

NY Times: “Bob Weir Is Gone, but the Dead’s Music Plays On”

GQ: “A Look Back at the Laid-Back Style of Bob Weir”

Earlier this month Tottenham Hotspur academy grad Damola Ajayi was recalled from his loan at League One side Doncaster Rovers over a lack of playing time and production. The idea was that he would be sent out to another club on loan that would be able to utilize him better. It turns out that new club is down a division. Tottenham announced on socials that Ajayi will be heading to Bromley in League Two for the second half of the season.

Ajayi was not a regular starter for Doncaster, which is currently second from the bottom in League One and in a real relegation scrap. Ajayi scored a nice goal in preseason for Doncaster and another in August in an EFL Cup win over Middlesbrough and nothing since. Most of his minutes came from the bench with three starts from 15 appearances and less than 500 total minutes of playing time. Not great!

So on the one hand it is kind of disappointing to see Ajayi heading down a league on loan, but this could be viewed as either an opportunity to establish himself in a slightly lower level of competition before hopefully establishing himself up the table next season (laudatory), or it’s a sign that maybe his level is more League Two professional player (derogatory). I don’t know which one it is, but I think we’re about to find out. Bromley are flying in League Two and are top of the table; he’s heading to a good third division team and if he can get minutes there it speaks to his ability to compete at League One level, at least, with the right team.

We all want our youth players to succeed, and the flip side of that is that as fans of Tottenham Hotspur we all (myself included) tend to want to overrate our youth prospects. Ajayi is 20 years old — a young guy — and there’s still plenty of time to improve and become a cromulent professional. I’m not sure, however, that it will be at the Premier League level. Let’s hope I’m wrong and he crushes it this spring.

“I’m very aware of how this football world works, no doubt about that. I know that we haven’t got enough of the result we want. I know, I can just see the small step we’re constantly doing. I still refer to the last six games with more positive, consistent performances. Not perfect, but there’s some good signs of a team where we are talking about sometimes not being able to deal with enough setbacks and resilience.

“The two second halves against Bournemouth and Villa where it is so easy to fall apart. They actually step in together, they add more. I think that’s talking about a culture that’s getting a little bit stronger, a little bit more, come on, let’s do everything we can to turn this little momentum.

“In football, sometimes momentum changes like that. I can see the small signs of the culture, the training, how the boys have been training here, especially Tuesday, Thursday, very intense, focused, working very hard on the offensive part of the game, because we know the defensive in many ways looks quite good, not through the roof, but quite good. Big improvements, set pieces are there.

“It’s the offensive we need to do better. That’s what we’re working hard on. I think all the small steps we’re doing, with everything from signing Conor, signing John Heitinga as assistant coach, excellent signing, Rafi as football operation officer, I think it’s the correct title, but just a key member in the direction, how we want to do things. Everything is going forward. We just need to add a top performance and a win on Saturday.”

“I think it’s a top signing. Can’t praise Fabio, Johan and Vinai enough, the ownership, for doing it and get it done, get it over the line. We went quick.

“I think what he brings in terms of abilities, first and foremost, he’s a very good player, great experience in the Premier League, also in La Liga, captain of two teams. So that character, that leadership, that experience, and still young, 25, with plenty of development to reach, but coming in on a good level, bringing his pressing abilities, his directness, scoring goals, but also being able to find good positions on the pitch, is exactly what we need.

“I think it’s a great nickname. I think it shows Conor has a lot of good offensive abilities. His ability to arrive in the box scoring goals, his way of finishing. I think he’s a clever finisher as well. I think his skill set around the last third is good in terms of arriving in the right positions.

“I told him about the project and the plan with him, and the club and what we are aiming for and all that suited him very well. I think he suited us and I think we suited him.”

It’s not just New Executive Day at Tottenham Hotspur, it’s also New Assistant Coach Day as well. Today Spurs announced the appointment of former Everton central defender and Ajax head coach John Heitinga as Assistant Coach. He joins the club to fill the spot vacated by Matt Wells, who is now manager at Colorado Rapids.

If you watched Premier League footy in the 2010s you probably recognize Heitinga’s name. The Dutchman is primarily known as a central defender at Everton where he made 115 league appearances, scoring two goals. Since hanging up his boots in 2016 he turned to coaching and was most recently head coach at Ajax, his second appointment there after a caretaker stint in 2023. Unfortunately for Heitinga (and maybe for us?) he was sacked five months into his tenure this season. He was also an assistant coach for Liverpool under Arne Slot in 2024.

Now, all football managers get sacked and it’s not at all surprising for a former head coach to join another club as an assistant. The analogy here would be a NFL head coach getting fired and joining another team as defensive coordinator. The reporting is that Heitinga was interviewed by Thomas Frank personally and that his appointment was driven by the Dane. To be sure, Spurs needed another coach; according to Alasdair Gold, Heitinga’s responsibilities at Spurs will be to manage the defense, which, duh.

He had a good reputation going into the Ajax appointment. A piece on a Liverpool blog describes him as a “direct and honest coach” with whom players relate to well, and that he “puts a lot of time into making players better individually.” That same piece talked about how he tried to fix Ajax’s defense by improving defensive security with “more players behind the ball”.

That said, if you take a look at any Ajax message boards it won’t take much dead cat swinging to find some uh…. quite uncharitable takes about Heitinga’s coaching ability. I don’t know how much stock to put into that, but I do know going into the second half of the Premier League campaign short handed in the coaching department probably isn’t wise. So… OK?

Welcome to Tottenham, Johnny. Please make us better.

It’s a DONE DEAL — as reported by the Athletic a couple of weeks ago, Tottenham have formally appointed Rafi Moerson, late of City Football Group, to the newly-created executive position titled Director of Football Operations. There was no future start date listed on Tottenham’s release about the appointment, so presumably he has already started his duties, or is starting today.

So what will Moersen actually DO? [officespace.gif] Well, thoughtfully, Tottenham gave a little paragraph that outlines his basic responsibilities.

Well THAT’S interesting. So more of a middle manager role on the men’s side, but he’s overseeing the whole of Tottenham Women’s operations. As I understand it Spurs Women have been managed by Andy Rogers, but there has been reporting that there has been constant contact with Spurs CEO Vinai Venkatesham. Presumably Moersen takes that oversight role away from Vinai allowing him more time to… uh, communicate to supporters? The club did mention, in the wake of Fabio Paratici’s departure in February, that the football structure is “flexible and adaptable” so it’s also possible that Moersen will slot in with the ubiquitous “other duties as assigned.” Perhaps that also includes picking out a through ball? One can hope.

If you’re an optimist, this is evidence that Tottenham are continuing to evolve from the Levy Top method of club oversight to a more flexible, modern football club operation. If you’re a pessimist, you’ll see this as just one more executive to insulate the Tottenham owners from its mistakes and any accountability for their oversight. I kind of fall in the middle — Spurs have needed to modernize its operations for a long time and they finally seem to be doing that, though I still have deep reservations about specific people in specific roles and what they are and are not doing.

Still waiting for that Spurs org chart. Anyway — welcome to our new Director of Football Operations! I hope you don’t suck!

good morning everyone - we’ll get to your hoddle shortly but first a quick note on today’s Track of the Day: We’re on day four of honouring Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir. Today’s TOTD features one of my favourite songs to drive to. A couple years ago I read “On the Road” by Jack Kerouac because I wanted to understand what drew Weir and Jerry Garcia to him. I also wanted to understand Neal Cassady, a man to whom Weir dedicated two songs. So it was a bit of serendipity I had constructed when I rolled along Iceland listening to “The Other One”, “Estimated Prophet”, “Fire on the Mountain” and other Dead standards.

There was a huge upset in Spanish football on Wednesday when Real Madrid fell to Albacete in the Copa del Rey. Here are some of the scenes:

For those keeping track at home, this means Real Madrid are 0-1 since parting ways with Xabi Alonso.

For Real Madrid it was a disaster. But then you have Albacete, which is a remarkable story.

They’re currently 17th place in the Segunda Division. And there’s not a whole lot out there on this squad. Heck I’ve never heard of them before. But I love it when a minnow beats a giant (except when it happens to Spurs).

Even better, Albacete beat Real Madrid at home! What a showing for those home fans.