Tottenham Hotspur FC - A Brief History |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
2000 onwards
Another disappointing league finish followed in 1999-00. In 2001, Sugar's patience broke. He sold his controlling interest to ENIC Sports PLC, run by Daniel Levy.
Team management passed to Tottenham legend Glenn Hoddle who took over in April 2001 with the team lying thirteenth in the table. His first game saw defeat to Arsenal in an FA Cup semi-final. The club captain, Sol Campbell, defected to Arsenal on a Bosman free transfer that summer.
Hoddle turned to more experienced players in the shape of Teddy Sheringham, Gus Poyet and Christian Ziege for inspiration, and Spurs played some good football in the opening months of his management. Season 2001-02 saw Spurs finish in ninth place, as well as reaching the League Cup final, where they lost to Blackburn Rovers, having been the favourites after their 5-1 demolition of Chelsea in the previous round.
The only significant outlay prior to the following campaign was £7 million for Robbie Keane, who joined from Leeds United. 2002-03 started well, with Tottenham in the top six as late as early February. But with just seven points in the final 10 games, the club finished in tenth place. Several players publicly criticised Hoddle's management and communication skills. Six games into the 2003-04 season, Hoddle was sacked and David Pleat took over on a caretaker basis until a full-time successor could be found.
In May 2004, Tottenham signed French team manager Jacques Santini as head coach, with Martin Jol as his assistant and Frank Arnesen as Sporting Director. Santini quit the club in bizarre circumstances after just 13 games. He was replaced by Jol. The big Dutchman became a favourite with the passionate Spurs crowd and in his first season he almost managed to secure a European place. In the event, Spurs missed out on the final day of the season, and finished in ninth place. It was clear progress was being made. When Arnesen defected to Chelsea, Spurs appointed Damien Comolli as Sporting Director.
During 2005-06 Spurs spent six months in fourth place but ended fifth. Going into the final game of the season, they led rivals Arsenal by a point, but were forced to play their match at West Ham with a team suffering from an illness picked up the evening before. Spurs lost and were pipped to a Champions League place, but it was success nevertheless in gaining a place in the UEFA Cup.
For the 2006-2007 season, Tottenham changed kit sponsors to Puma and shirt advertisers to Mansion. Spurs home shirt saw the removal of the blue shoulders, with the away kit changing from cyan shorts to navy shorts, and the alternate kit changing from yellow to chocolate brown. Spurs wore an 'all-white' kit where possible for European fixtures, continuing a long-standing tradition. A notable signing was Dimitar Berbatov from Bayer Leverkusen.
The season began with Jol losing holding midfielder Michael Carrick to Manchester United and club captain Ledley King to injury for the best part of the season. The acquisition of Pascal Chimbonda, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Didier Zokora, Berbatov and Steed Malbranque essentially meant a new side had to gel.
2006-07 was marred by injuries, particularly in defensive areas with Ledley King, Paul Stalteri, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Young-Pyo Lee, Anthony Gardner, Jermaine Jenas, Steed Malbranque and Teemu Tainio all suffering long-term injuries while Didier Zokora, Dimitar Berbatov, Robbie Keane and Aaron Lennon all suffered injuries causing Jol to rarely have a settled XI to pick for extended periods.
Premiership form in the first half of the season was erratic, although there was a rare home win over reigning-champions Chelsea in November. Away form was poor during the first half of the season but saw a vast improvement in the second half with just two away losses from January to the end of the season and just one defeat in their final six away games, against Chelsea just 36 hours after playing a UEFA Cup tie in Spain.
The improvement in Spurs' away form, good home performances and an excellent late season lifted Spurs into fifth position in the final table and therefore into the UEFA Cup for the second year running. Tottenham show definite signs of attractive and effective football as Martin Jol makes his mark on the squad. Spurs reached the FA Cup quarter-final round but lost to Chelsea 1-2 having drawn 3-3 away. The League Cup run took them to the semi-finals, where they faced Arsenal. The home leg ended 2-2, but hopes of glory ended in the away leg losing 3-1 in extra time. In the UEFA Cup, Tottenham progressed to the quarter-finals, where they faced the cup holders and eventual winners Sevilla in the quarter finals, and were eliminated from the competition 4-3 on aggregate (2-1 away and 2-2 at home).
The highly effective Berbatov-Keane strike partnership was rewarded when they were named joint Player of the Month for April, a rare occurrence in the history of the award.
COME ON YOU SPURS !