Dier out, Dragusin in, a move that embodies the changes at Spurs since Postecoglou’s appointment, not so much his will imposed on the club as his spirit and ethos coursing through its veins and nervous system. These are Ange’s decision, this is Ange time.
Dier is stolid, Dragusin looks exciting. Dier is the past, the present and future is about speed, athleticism and vibrancy, and already Ange has a squad that gives him what he wants. There’s a plan here, moving decisively in the market to buy players who are young (ish) and who already have a foundation of experience on which to build, with Ange the architect.
Dragusin represents the change in another way – players want to come to Spurs. He believed in us, in his manager, in the face of a bid from Bayern Munich because his prospects are better here. The same goes for an older player, Timo Werner, who in different circumstances sees his career can be bolstered as Ange’s Spurs suits him.
I (and others) have described Ange’s approach as transformative, and it’s worth pausing momentarily to reflect on where we are. The club have an organised approach to buying new players, with Levy and the revamped recruitment operation working together to target players the manager wants. Given our past, that is a seismic shift in approach that is frankly astounding.
We look forward, not back. We have faith in what is to come. If it doesn’t work out, at least we had a go, doing it the right way, playing the right way. That’s all I ask. Be on the front foot. Take them on. Play with style and chutzpah. Beat your man. That’s what I want from being a Spurs fan.
The team looks entirely different. Different faces, very different approach. Every player believes in him and his way of playing. It’s breathtaking and full of tension at the same time, and that’s just fine by me, because every match, my senses are overwhelmed, joy and pain, romance and heartache, redemption and frustration. I feel it all. It’s what I want from being a Spurs fan.
I wish Dier the very best in the future. He was one of those players that I felt good about when he played, wanted him to do well. Even most recently, when exposed by his static footwork and lack of real pace, to me he was a muscular, reassuring presence, dashing onto to the field as a substitute with all the determination and fresh enthusiasm of a youngster called upon for the first time. He wanted to play for Spurs and gave of his best when he did so. He was never the same after being laid low by that mystery virus.
That commitment is a precious commodity, one that I value highly, to the point where I’ll forgive the sins of any Spurs player who displays that quality. Maybe I forgave too much. Errors crept into his game over the years, horrid lapses magnified by deficiencies around him as Spurs struggled to build a coherent defence. That sideways lunge shape he adopted, arms behind his back, instead of going to his man, I shudder at the memory, but the rubbish from social media boo-boys was not merely undeserved, it was downright cruel and heartless. We profited from a balance sheet of Eric’s pros and cons over ten years substantially in the black. As he metronomically hurdled the West Stand seats after the Norwich cup-tie, row by row in relentless pursuit of those who abused his family, that’s the kind of man I want on my side.
Dier was the future once. He was a young player with, for a footballer, an unusually cosmopolitan background who was sufficiently intelligent, mobile and flexible to play first as a defensive midfielder, then adapt to roles in a back three and four. We’ve moved on. That’s what this transfer represents.
Perhaps it also represents another change. Gone is the era of the club stalwart, where players and managers stay with us for a decade or more, let alone a career. See also: Kane, H. We’ll have to get used to players moving, if we haven’t already done so. It’s not a sign of any absence of dedication necessarily, it’s just the way it is. Hopefully, our young stars will remain as we achieve success, and I’ll still cheer Sarr and Udogie when Real Madrid buy them for £100m each.
One exception is Ben Davies, and this is my opportunity to praise him for his current excellent form and for taking on extra responsibility without batting an eyelid even when partnered with Emerson. Hats off to him.
‘The first team’ may soon be an outmoded concept too. The current crop of injuries, not unique to Spurs, reflect physical demands on players that will only increase. Playing a first choice XI is likely to be the exception rather than the rule. More than ever, it’s a squad game now, so as we build, we need not so much cover as options in key positions. Ange is keen to buy players who can double up, Dargusin has apparently done well as a right back in the past, although the way he’s going, Porro will keep running until this time next year without a break.
Happy New Year by the way. Life gets in the way so there will be breaks between pieces sometimes but I’m still here. Still on Twitter too but posting less, partly because it can be a cesspit, partly because the owner is a raving anti-Semite, but there are lots of folk on there I choose not to lose touch with.
TOTTENHAM ON MY MIND 
Happy New Year Alan.
We wish Dier well in his next adventure. Portugal- London- Bayern should shape one into a well rounded individual (and soon to be a Dad…I hear).
A new era indeed..Winks gone, Herr Kane.
(I hope Skipp will step up to the challenge of re-inventing himself…he needs to study and then study some more this new brand of football….in his spare time….how to anticipate a pass to an opponent that he can swop on andvsteal, how to participate in defending one moment, transition in the next moment and supporting the attack the moment after- it’s about reading the game not about having 3 lungs in one’s chest.
His runs into the box, though not frequent enough, cause mayhem)
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Take a bow, Sir, for capturing many fans’ feelings at this moment in time. I use the words “moment in time” very deliberately because that’s how it feels, like this is a moment in time, a right now, a very real sense that something is happening in the present.
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Thx Alan. Glad you’re still writing. Exciting times indeed, COYS!! Best, Michael
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This is far too sensible / balanced / optimistic! ……can`t wait till we lose a couple on the bounce so we can blame DL for rushing into the January window too quickly and we`re able to find a replacement hate figure / scapegoat to to take over from Dier
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Hi Alan, Great post as usual. I’m so glad we see eye to eye on Dier and Davies. Excellent pros both. I wish Eric well and hope he can get a few more years in a different style of football. I hope Ben stays. While he may not be first choice at CB or LB or LWB he can do a job in all those positions, as a sub or starter when called on. He can also provide some historical perspective now that Harry and Eric have gone. Shout out too for Emerson. I don’t think he was a good buy at the price and he has limitations, but what a willing soul. With Porro he was MoM v Burnley from where I sat. And as for Ange. You’re right. Transformative. Obviously almost every manager/coach gets sacked in the end, whenever that is, but it’s hard to imagine that being any time soon. It really does feel as if THFC is getting its act together. Charlie A ________________________________
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All the very best to Mr Dier. Comes across as a great Human Being too and someone who would be a great friend. Loved Spurs and I am sure would have stayed to the end of his career if that was possible.
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Wasn’t it Dier and Hoijberg that were the two that did not agree with Sonny being made captain? will be sorry to see Hoijberg leave…Dier, not so much, allthough he has been a good servant to the club.
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Nice to see you as always. I have always loved Eric and I’m sad to see him go just because of everything he’s done for us (like Hugo). I despair of the short termists who just consider the last few games or season and think that’s who the player. For example someone in comments compared him to Pierre Emile unfavorable. That’s pretty silly, I doubt Pierre will ever match what Eric has given the club. I don’t agree with you that this marks the end of the long serving player. It’s a great thing that players love being at Spurs and want to stay and if they are good enough everyone’s a winner. There’s no reason at all why that should change. The key thing is allowing reinvention alongside that. I hope Eric gets to walk on the pitch like Hugo did and I wonder if he might move into management one day. He has the brains and tactical awareness for it.
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Thanks for a great article Alan.
I can’t agree more. I am by nature a pessimist. Possibly after almost 60 years as a Spurs fan it’s become a defence mechanism! But this in recent times has felt like a real progression. A transfer window with a plan well executed. An assignment, inspired by Ange’s presence, that has developed a team at top level who actually work in unison. And the fact that a player has chosen us over Bayern, against the wishes of his agent, is a nice feeling.
I know it’s still early days and we have not yet reached the business end of the season, but it’s great to see a ‘style’ about our football again. We definitely need more development of the squad in producing another couple of consistent defence splitters from midfield and another striker who actually understands when to start his run without going offside. But in the main there is a lot more to like about the squad than there was at the start of the summer.
That said, Eric Dier has nothing but my utmost respect for his service and I’m so pleased for him that he’s secured a move to a top club. He was a loyal and gracious servant to Spurs. All players make mistakes. But not all of them carry themselves well throughout despite the occasional hole in the road. COYS!
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I think what’s happened at Spurs is Levy has now set up a scouting structure that requires very little input from him apart from controlling the money and now taken a step back. Over the past two or three seasons the quality of Spurs recruiting has gone through the roof (admittedly from a very low base). Its now data analysis, advanced planning and being crystal clear on the precise requirements in each position. Its an approach Liverpool first pioneered when Fenway took over, back when the moneyball concept was generally ignored in Europe. From recruiting Kulusevski and Bentancur onward we seem to have hardly got a transfer wrong. A lot of fans seem to just assume a club has an unlimited amount of money, but of course they haven’t. If we consistently get better value than the competition over time we will reap the rewards.
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You put it so beautifully Alan. It’s what I want as a Spurs fan too.
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Happy New Year, and nice column, thanks, Monsieur Fisher—that’s a nod to me recently interviewing Clive Owen in Monsieur Spade (Sam Spade is called out of retirement in France). Ange-ball makes waking up for 4.30am games here, much more enjoyable. COYS!
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Let’s give some credit to the continuing influence of Paratici. He may not (currently) enjoy his former office and car park space but his fingerprints are all over the contracts for Kulusevski, Romero, Bentancur, Udogie, and now Dragusin. I think he also brokered the deal for Sarr. That’s almost half a team. It’s often been a crapshoot when buying talent from Serie A (remember Berti?!) but Signor P. has brought in some serious talent who will all be worth double what we paid for them. Buon lavoro, Fabio!
The old guard are falling away, Harry (Winks and Kane), Dier, Hugo, etc. Thanks for everything Eric…from your debut goal to win at Wham I always appreciated your undiluted effort and abilities. You were a great Spur.
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I don’t know how I managed to miss out Vicario from the ‘Paratici list’ but that makes more than half a team and underlines the point I was struggling to make. David.
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Thanks Alan, well put as usual. Happy new Year to you. And here’s to the happy new Spurs!
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Happy New year and lovely piece Alan. Very interesting, exciting and pride-giving times ahead I feel. Spurs fans didn’t sing “I love Eric Dier, Eric Dier Loves me” (nice I Know Alan Gilzean, Alan Gilzean knows me vibe!) for so long for no reason. Always gave of his best, was v good many times and always stood up for Spurs (TV interview after 4-1 win vs Pellegrini’s Man City when he said he and the lads didn’t like some of the things being said about Spurs and many other examples). In a time when as you say long club servants on the way out of football, we need to cherish those who wear the badge with pride.
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MANU
A rusty start but in the end we achieved 64% possession, 16 shots, 12 of which were inside the MANU box and I believe Vicario did not make a save.
A look at the MANU heat map (WhoScored) shows only one hotspot, smack bang in front of their goal!
Was I disappointed with the draw? Maybe, but I temper that with my expectations at the beginning of the season.
The next step for us is to use our possession and control to crush the opposition into accepting defeat.
Bonne année à tous.
Hibberni
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Eric Dier served us well and deserved better than the rubbish which was dished up by the social media boo-boys, who just love having someone to hate.
Most current squad members have been with the club for three years or less and that is quite a turnover. Only Davies, Sonny and perhaps to a lesser extent Lo Celso are longer term members.
I think your anonymous commenter is right to say that Levy has now set up a recruiting department that has seen a huge improvement in the quality of player recruitment.
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Manchester Cheaty
Well, as far as cheap goals go that has to be one of the cheapest.
Let us give thanks to Howie ‘search me’ Webb & his team for, once again, confirming that blocking the defending GK by any means possible at dead-ball situations is now part of the English referees’ rule book.
One can only hope that football’s governing bodies are watching closely & preparing to take action; like stripping all English referees of their UEFA & FIFA badges for instance!
Hibberni
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Brentford
Well, we made heavy weather of that one…apart from those 15 minutes of Angeball. Not sure why Maddison chose to play so deeply; it seemed to me he was duplicating Bentancur’s efforts. I’d much rather see him playing between the lines up front.
Hibberni
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Everton
Enough is enough!
IFAB Law 12
Direct free kick
Awarded if a player impedes an opponent with contact.
Indirect free kick
Awarded if a player impedes the progress of an opponent without contact
Impeding the progress of an opponent means moving into the opponent’s path to obstruct, block, slow down or force a change of direction when the ball is not within playing distance of either player.
Vicario was subjected constantly to both offences during the first half.
So what happened at half-time?
Did Howie ‘search me ‘ Webb finally read the rules & phoned Mickey ‘no see’ Oliver who clearly does not know the rules?
Whatever happened Everton got the message in the second half & Vicario was able to make several catches from deadball kicks.
English refereeing has sunk so far into the pit of subjectivity that only drastic surgery will rectify what has become a farce.
Anyway on to us…
We are not imposing ourselves on the opponent.
Bentancur is still not match fit.
Everton chased & harried, forced individual errors & corners.
We’re lacking presence in & around the centre circle. When we managed a pass out of defense (that wasn’t intercepted) it inevitably arrived at Richarlison who was unable to recycle the ball.
Ange might have to sacrifice one or both wingers in order to shore up the MF.
I would like to see 3-3-3-1 but I doubt Dragusin is ready yet.
Hibberni
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https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/tottenham-pgmol-ange-postecoglou-goalkeeper-fouls-b1138280.html
Hibberni
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BHA
The same issue as in the last week’s game; swarming MF opponents (Gegenpress) causing us difficulty in making the transition from our defensive third (see Bentancur surrounded by 4 players leading up to the penalty) and, forcing Maddison to drop deep again to receive the ball (see his heat map on WhoScored).
The upshot of the above is that we are unable to impose ourselves on the opposition and, logically therefore, we cannot progress using the key components of Angeball.
Should our wingers need to be more proactive in providing passing lanes which may mean them dropping deeper also and in-field?
Are we slowing our game down trying to find a key pass out of defense?
Do I detect a lack of confidence in our build-up play?
Hibberni
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