I fully respect that football at the highest level is a cut-throat business. However, the recent condemnation of Martin Jol, the Tottenham Hotspur manager, has been bordering on the ridiculous. After two games and two defeats, Spurs fans were filling message boards and phone-ins with the notion that Jol should be replaced. The 4-0 win at home to Derby has appeased some - but this has not stopped the media whipping up a storm which Jol might feel difficult to deal with.

As with most managers, Jol has regular meetings with other senior members of the Tottenham hierarchy, including chairman Daniel Levy. To be honest, anything else would be neglect as they are both involved in running the club. However, this innocent meeting has now turned into the dreaded vote of confidence for Jol and generally, the vote of confidence is followed by the sack.

It might be worth remembering that Jol is, statistically, Tottenham Hotspur’s most successful manager in Premier League history. In 15 years, he is the only person to have guided us to fifth and he has not done it once, he has done it twice - in a row. He has turned Tottenham from a Jekyll and Hyde team into something that resembles consistency. It would be, and I do not use this term lightly, disgraceful if the Dutchman is sacked or forced out of the club.

'Jol is, statistically, Tottenham Hotspur’s most successful manager in Premier League history. In 15 years, he is the only person to have guided us to fifth and he has not done it once, he has done it twice - in a row'


Yes, Spurs should be, on paper, getting something out of the games at Sunderland and at home to Everton. Yes, Jol is, sometimes, tactically naïve (in my opinion) and perhaps this costs us points - but I think that more often than not, he is right. Certainly, our league position over the last two years would suggest this.

Equally, I think chopping and changing managers ultimately has a detrimental effect on the team over the long term and certainly Tottenham’s 15-year history in the Premier League would suggest this is true. If you look at Manchester United and Arsenal, their long-term success has been built on stable management. Liverpool have been strong over the history of the Premier League but have not won the league because of the number of managers they have gone through.

Equally, if you look at the examples of Charlton and Bolton, both have over-achieved consistently with a stable management team. Take this away and Charlton got relegated while Bolton look like they could be sinking.

A lot is being made of the £30million plus outlay on new talent and this had brought added pressure. However, this is not unlike the rest of the Premier League. The new television deal, with Sky and Setanta together paying a record amount for live Premier League football, has produced a windfall of about £30m for each club.

This was always going to lead to two things. Firstly, there would be spending sprees at most of the clubs and the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham have all spent heavily. However, clubs like Sunderland, Fulham and Manchester City have also been able to take part with the one-off injection of cash.

The second effect of the cash is player inflation. The whole world knows England is the richest league in the world and with £30m extra sloshing around in accounts, prices have shot through the roof. Of course, Darren Bent is not worth £16m. However, football, like any other market, works on demand and supply and with more than one club willing to pay £15m plus, the price reaches £16m. Is Nani worth £17m? Is Fernando Torres worth £20m? Is Michael Chopra worth £5m? The answer for all is “no” but in this one-off situation, that is how much had to be paid.

Sir Alex Ferguson has two points from three Premier League games after spending some £60-70m on new talent. Is The Sun reporting crisis talks at United? Are the fans calling for Ferguson’s head? Of course they aren't because ultimately, they know it is a long, hard season and the first few games are not indicative of a season. Tottenham fans would be much better off actually supporting the current regime than making their voices heard in the media.

If Jol was sacked by Tottenham I would lose all faith in the board and my fellow fans. I am of the belief that over the course of 38 games, he will prove the critics wrong and Spurs will once again do well. I have said in previous articles that a top-four finish would be extremely difficult and even a top-five placing is hard. However, Jol has the squad, the ability - and should have the support of the fans. If this is combined, Tottenham can be a force in the Premier League.

As Manchester United went down 1-0 to City yesterday, a lot of press coverage was to do with the loss of Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo. But no one seems to mention the fact that Ledley King, Michael Dawson, Younes Kaboul, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Gareth Bale, YP Lee, Aaron Lennon and Dimitar Berbatov are all injured. In King, Dawson, Bale, Lennon and Berbatov you have five starters - and it is a huge loss without these players.
I feel Jol will come good and I think we all have to believe in the Big Man. He has no hair and I don’t care because I love Martin Jol!