Jamie Carragher has made a claim about Tottenham Hotspur that’s somewhat reminiscent of what Antonio Conte infamously said about the club.
Carragher, speaking on Sky Sports show The Overlap, claimed that Spurs are “never in a position where you have to win”.
The pundit was facing a panel of Premier League supporters – from some of the biggest fan channels in the country – as part of the latest Fan Debate show.
The conversation moved onto Tottenham and whether – and how long before – they can get to the level where they can routinely challenge for silverware.
There were obviously comparisons with bitter rivals Arsenal, who themselves have risen over the past few years from ‘banter club’ level to challenging for the title.
Arsenal Vision Podcast’s Clive spoke of how “people try to put you into a box where success criteria is you have to win of course you have to win”.
Flav of Spurs channel TFC replied by saying: “Of course you have to win”
Carragher then said: “Isn’t that the problem with Tottenham? You’re never in a position where you have to win.
“It’s always ‘oh we’re Tottenham, we haven’t spent this, we have got Daniel Levy, or we haven’t got this’. There is never that pressure on Tottenham to win.”
One year on since Antonio Conte’s ‘Tottenham’s story’ comments
Carragher’s comments echo what Conte said following Tottenham’s 3-3 draw with Southampton around a year ago.
“They don’t play for something important,” The Guardian quoted him as saying. “They don’t want to play under pressure, they don’t want to play under stress.
“It is easy in this way. Tottenham’s story is this, 20 years there is the owner and they never won something but why?
“The fault is only for the club, or for every manager that stay here. I have seen the managers that Tottenham had on the bench.
“You risk to disrupt the figure of the manager and to protect the other situation in every moment.
“Until now I try to hide the situation but now, no, because I repeat I don’t want to see what I have seen today.”
Tottenham now on the right track to dispel ‘Spursy’ notions
Although Conte ended up leaving Tottenham not long after, it looks as though the Spurs board took heed of his comments.
Ange Postecoglou seems like the perfect person to not only manage Tottenham, but overhaul the club culture completely.
Let’s face it. It’s not just Carragher saying this, it wasn’t just Conte saying what he said a year ago. There’s a reason why ‘Spursy‘ has become a word popular in football circles. And let’s not forget Giorgio Chiellini’s infamous “it’s the history of the Tottenham” comments.
However, and this is the key thing, Tottenham seem to be on the right track to put an end to ‘Spursy’ Spurs once and for all. It’s just the start of the journey but if everything goes according to plan, the future looks bright at N17.
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