Home > Football > The great Spurs debate: Who's in, who's out and the Berbatov-Eto'o swap deal
The great Spurs debate: Who's in, who's out and the Berbatov-Eto'o swap deal
With Juande Ramos set to overhaul his squad in the summer, there could be some surprise departures and arrivals at White Hart Lane.
by Jonathan Naylor on 02 May 2008
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As Spurs’ season draws to an unspectacular close, it's no secret that new boss Juande Ramos is looking to undertake a major squad overhaul. He has reportedly named his ‘untouchables’, but of the remaining players, which ones are not up to the task of challenging for the Champions League? And who should be brought in over the summer months?
Goalkeepers: It's apparent that Ramos has little faith in either of his two current first-team keepers, with Radek Cerny reportedly off to QPR on a free at the season’s close and Paul Robinson’s indifferent form costing him a place in the Spaniard’s affections. So, with both set to depart, Ramos should cast an eye over Espanyol’s Carlos Kameni or perhaps Heurelho Gomes. Both have impressed over the last year, with Gomes catching the eye during Tottenham’s UEFA cup defeat to PSV earlier in the year. Either would provide a good replacement for Robinson and, with both players well under 30, could play at the top level for many years to come.
Defenders: Should they remain fit, Tottenham’s back four are comparable to many of the top English teams. A defensive line of Pascal Chimbonda, Ledley King, Jonathan Woodgate and Gareth Bale would provide a solid foundation for the rest of the team to build on. However, with long term fitness doubts surrounding both centre backs, more cover is needed as Michael Dawson and Younes Kaboul have committed costly errors over the course of the season. The young Frenchman is almost definitely out, having publicly lambasted Ramos in an interview this week. His replacement could well be 25-year-old Wolfsburg man Alexander Madlung, with reported interest and a £2m buy-out clause.
Midfielders: With Luka Modric’s signing already in the bag, the centre of midfield appears to be settled. Aaron Lennon’s position is under threat, however, with Ramos reportedly unimpressed with his performances of late and he is willing to cash in. However, with top wingers regularly carrying big price-tags, finding an adequate replacement could prove costly.
Comments (25)
by Joel Cairo on May 02, 2008
We'e asked to comment on Ramos' targets. Somehow I doubt that you have even skimmed the surface. One change in midfield is hardly enough and no one should expect Ledley King to be part of a stable backfield ever again. He's proved too brittle. And since the Carling Cup, the defense has shown itself to be classically Jolian -- mediocre at best.
on May 02, 2008 on May 02, 2008
Chimbonda? I think Hutton is more likely to be starting in the back four next season! Not too sure about Kameni he looks great in patches then Robinson esq in others. Madlung wouldn’t be bad for 2 mil but I would rather see Jarque in our back four. In : Amelia, Jarque, Makoun / M’bia, Capel, David Silva and David Villa (optimistic) if Berba does go. Out: Cerny, Robbo, Chimbonda, Rocha, Lee, Stalteri, Kaboul, Gardner, Zokora, Tainio (Possibly Jenas),
by Sean Y-Sean on May 02, 2008
Strange that you haven't noticed that Alan Hutton came in in January, and Pascal Chimbonda is likely to depart. I hope Joel Cairo (who didn't seem to understand the article at all) is wrong, and that Ledley will return fit at last, but adequater cover in case this doesn't happen is a must. Bale coming back (and Ekotto) should ease the left wing situation. A dominating defensive midfielder is a must (keeping Hudd for back-up and the future). My choice would be Poulsen, at Sevilla.
by John Houghton on May 02, 2008
What about Hutton? have you forgot he plays better than Chimbo! As regards the midfield....Zokora/Malbranque/Taino...should all be sold and players such as Joe Cole and or Gareth Barry should join in! The left has been a problem since Ginola left! Lennon should be given more time to mature perhaps bringing in a similar player to compete with him! As regards the attack..Bent is just not good enough! A classy player [David Villa/Eto] should be signed if Berba is gone. as replacement for Bent, I would bring in Fernando Cavenaghi from Bordeaux and Leroy Lita as 4th choice! Keepers robert Green or maybe the McGregor of Rangers. Defence...I'll keep Dawson..he played magnificently in 2006-2007, and Kaboul needs time to settle in. Boateng/Lee and Acotto should be sold!
by Nik H on May 02, 2008
Listen, thanks for taking the time to write that, but really, if this is indicative of the kind of stuff we will have to endure until August, constant speculation and 'the great debate' then I think I will stab myself in the eye. Ramos has his targets, he will snare some and miss out on others. Talk of Eto'o / Villa and other 'super star' names is just silly at this stage and just encourages mockery from fans of other clubs when they dont happen. No one saw the Modric deal coming and we will probably be as close to knowing the next deal as we were to that. Sorry to be on a downer, but Spurs have a history of being linked with every man and his dog, lets not perpetuate that and trust in Senor Ramos to make the right moves. COYS
oh my god. Worst article i have read in a long time. Chimbonda considered a part of a solid defence. Right oh! Shall we get Walker back to sturdy up the GK osition then?! Centre of Midfield sorted? Huh? Firstly there is a good chance Luca will be desposed as a left sided player, meaning no new recruitments for centre mid. Besides, even if he does play centre he'll have no one with him! Tom - class act for a few minutes then a an overweight cone the rest-Huddlestone. Didier- I can only run at players in the 90th minute as they have tired out and i've remembered i'm playing- Zokora! And Jearmain- i can only pass sideways or back, but hey at least my percentages are up at the end of the game. That will keep everyone fooled!- Jenas. Take your pick!
by SPURS4EVER on May 02, 2008
Out: Cerny, Robbo, Chimbonda, Rocha, Lee, Stalteri, Gardner, Zokora, Tainio, Jenas, Lennon, Berbs (if he has to), Malbranque. I would prefer Berbs to go abroad and not come back next season to haunt us like Kanoute did and Defoe probably will. Malbranque cannot hit a barn door from 6 yards most of the time. Lennon has speed but got found out that he cannot deliver a decent cross 99% of the time. Jenas goes missing in some matches and can be brilliant or absolute rubbish in others. Kaboul and Dawson should be kept as both have great potential and this was shown last season. Kaboul would make a great Midfielder IMO as he appears to love a charge forward and can link up with the front two. Bent should stay to prove himself next season, if not bye bye. Robbo should be kept as No 2 but probably wont want this so bye bye then. God cannot wait till next season.
by David Kirby on May 02, 2008
To get rid of Lennon is plain stupid. He has speed and can beat a man --very few players in England have those strengths and the rest of his game can be worked on. I guarantee there will be lots of takers if they let him go.
by david smith on May 02, 2008
TO GET IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAUGE THE ONE THING WE NEED IS STABILITY THAT MEANS PLAYING THE SAME TEAM TWICE THIS YEAR WE HAVE NOT HAD THAT ALL SEASON WEN WE CHANGE THE GOALY WE CAN THEN SAY WHO IS NOT UP TO THE JOB ANY TEAM WOULD HAVE SUFFERED WITH ROBINSON IN GOAL HE IS NOW A CHAMPIONSHIP GOALY AT BEST
by DAVSPURS smith on May 02, 2008
SPURS FOREVER LEAVE OUR KIDS ALONE YOU PLONKER LENNON IS TWENTY THERE IS PLAYER A LOT OLDER CANT GET THE BALL IN THE MIDDLE FOR A LAZY SWINE LIKE BERBY WHEN AND ITS A BIG WEN HE GETS IN THE BOX THERE IS NO ONE THERE HE DONE IT LATLY AND SCORED ONLY TO REMIND UTD HE CAN SCORE LENNON IS BLESSED WITH WAT MANAGERS CRAVE SPEED AND DONT FORGET HE IS A WAY OUT OF DEFENCE WEN WE ARE UNDER PRESSURE TELL ME ONE DEFENDER THA HAS BEAT HIM THE ANSWER NONE SO THE CROSSING WILL COME WITH AGE AND IF SANTA CRUSE OR ETO OR FABIANO KANOUTE GOT ON THE END OF LENNONS SPEEDY RUNS THEY WOULD GET A HANDFULL
by Colin Horack on May 02, 2008
Our defence leaks more goals from set pieces than a sieve because they are simply not good enough. Opposing teams all know this,and laugh at our efforts when we try to defend these free kicks.Replace the following players soonest for us to compete with the top 4 :<sell or give away> Robbo,Cerny, Chimbonda,King< too inj.prone >, Kaboul,Jenas,Boateng,Acotto,Lee,Stalteri,Rocha Ga rdner,Tainio,Bent. No team can ever achieve success by conceding goals as simply as we do.One can't blame Berbatov for wanting to leave when you see your efforts waisted away by your weak defence.Nobody has to be a Rocket Scientist to rectify this poor situation.Please SOMEONE listen to our plea.
Why would all these top players want to join Spurs? It's a bit like Gerrard and Rooney saying they want to go to Athletico Bilbao who are 11th in the Spanish league..
by Dazza THFC on May 02, 2008
I want to see us sign Tiago, Downing, and a decent CB + GK thats ALL. Ant to the comment just above mine, Its neither the clubs or the fans fault that Spurs get linked with these players, So button it!
by Sam Gilmore on May 02, 2008
Firstly the keepers i think Kameni or Gomes as 1st choice and sign Canizares on a free as backup/2nd choice and loan alnwick out again.... Alright defence is a problem as we need a 2nd centre back for woodgate as king will still have injury problems next season. Dawson not quite up to the task atm we should get madlung for 2 mill and i think Serdar Tasci from Stuttgart would be an awesome signing for CB would compete with Dawson and Madlung and a fit King for the 2nd starting spot. Jarque, Garay, Bruno Alves or Caneira would also be good buys... Right Back: I guess Hutton and Gunter are solid enough on the right back flank... also Miguel from valencia would be a good pickup if he become available... Right wing: Lennon not good enough, loan him out if possible or sell him if we get a big offer... buy Quaresma, Silva, Joaquin or Bentley whichever one will come and we can afford. Left Wing: If we buy another CM then Modric can play here but if not then Capel, Juan Mata, Silva, Ronnie lol.... Centre Mid: Modric, Deco(newcastle lining up an 8 mill deal great value at that price), Makoun, Albelda(free), Granero, Ruben De La Red would all be good buys and keep jenas and huddlestone... Fw: well berbatov is going and bent is terrible so we need replacements... Eto'o if we can get him but would probably prefer Villa, need a 3rd striker so Guiza from mallorca, trejo(mallorca), Quagliarella, Di Natali, Huntelaar are all good signings... if we can get them to go with Keane... Summing up... Sell: Robinson, Cerny, Stalteri, Rocha, Chimbonda, Lee Young Pyo, Ekotto, Zokora, Malbranque, Tainio, Ghaly, Berbatov, Bent. KPB, Lennon, O'Hara, Taarabt can go on loans if we cant get big fees for them....
by sir billy nick on May 02, 2008
sam, have you seen these keepers in action on a regular occasion?? these two player's are not any better than robbo! both prone to futile mistakes especialy gomes, im a goalkeeper coach and like to study the keepers 1, judgement, 2. hand position when a shot goes across the body, 3. descion making ie coming for corner's, 4. penalties my under 13 keeper goes the right way 8 times out of 10 when facing a pen this by teaching him to read the penalty takers movement and stance the only keeper who would get a tick by most of these is mcgregor
How much money do you think we got??? Why we're at it we might as well sign Drogba, KaKa and C.Ronaldo, Do not believe any reports its just lazy jurno
by spursfanireland on May 02, 2008
lets focus on defense for a second IMO Rocha, Lee, Gardner can go, they are not up to the standard of premiership football, Rocha for me has to be the worst purchase for spuyrs over the last few years, i would like to keep Kaboul for one more season, he has talent, but his attitude needs to be sorted, and i believe that ramos can do this, if not then bye. King is one of the best center backs when he is fit, and a centre pairing of him and woodgate would leave us with one of the best CB line ups in the league, Dawson and Kaboul would provide decent cover, but i would like Ramos to sign one more decent defender for cover, IMO some one like Ben Haim would be a good aquisiton, however it would be unlikely that he will settle for a rotation policy especially after chelsea, Lerft back is obviously bale and for the righ hand side Hutton. The weak area of the team for me has to be Midfield, Modric has the potentila to be a great player, however he does not have an overabundance of physical strenght, for this reason i think he will play out on the left wing, we need a big improvement in the middle of the field, Zokora, Tainio and Jenas do not cut it for me. None are great passers of the ball, and none tend to do the hard work of closing down opponents, i would like to see the club sing a decent holding midfielder with a high work rate, one who is not afraid to put in a crunching tackle when needed and to hold up the ball and allow the wingers to move forward to attacking positions, for me this would be Jean Makoun, IMO i would like him to have a partnership with a fully fit an slimline huddlestone. if not Huddlestone then some one like alonso, who is a great passer of the ball and has that attacking mind frame that would be needed with the other Cm playing the holding man. Lennon for me can be a great player, he has pace, the skill needed to get around players, but he lacks the ability to cross the ball decently time and time again, again i think this is something that can be worked on. Up front for me Berba can go, he is not comitted to the club, and his performances this year, while some have been good are inconsistent, he sulks to much and if he is not fully comitted to the club then he should go, we can use the money to buy a more comitted player, i would like to see ramos use the big man/little man aproach to the game, for me the big man would have to be Zigic at valencia, for me he is one of the best target men in Europe, he can hold up the ball, create chances and socre with both head and feet reguarly. Keano to partner him as i thnk he would feed off the chances Zigic would create. The other thing i would like to see next year is consistncy with the back four, i think this has been our biggest undoing over this season, we have played 18 players in our back four this yeah, Lee, Kaboul, Bale, KIng, Dawson, Rocha, Woodgate, Chimbonda, Hutton, O hara, Zokora, etc. To be consitent at the back we need to be consistant with the team selection, Ramos has got to know this and i expect it will be something he will try to change for next year, Also i dont think we will be in the top four this time next year, soem of you will disagree with this but i would just like to have the opurtunity to play in europe and a top six finish in my view would be good progress on this season.
Allan McGregor is not a good enough keeper for the epl or spurs.. i am a keeper myself and how can you rate penalties and corners as two of the 4 most important skills??? Both these keepers have good movement and athleticism and a clean pair of hands which they have the majority of the time... the other guys i think who would be worth a look at are canizares despite his age would still be solid and for free... Samir Handanovič from udinese, Yohann Pele & Hugo Lloris(french league) Ricardo (betis) Frey (fiorentina) would also be good prospects in my opinion how do you rate them??? also Bresciano looking for move into the prem again this season from Palermo he would be good for spurs can play anywhere across midfield...
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