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THE much-maligned Wembley pitch was the perfect metaphor for Tottenham as they lost further ground in the title race to Manchester City on Monday night — solid foundations, surface tension, out of place.
Before that 1-0 defeat, Spurs had made their best start to a Premier League season but Mauricio Pochettino was not happy, the manager admitting he is enduring his ‘worst feeling’ since arriving at White Hart Lane from Southampton in 2014.
Like everyone at the club, the Argentine is being consumed by the ongoing off-field issues relating to the delayed stadium project back at White Hart Lane.
No summer signings, no home, living in rented accommodation. Could the grbad be greener elsewhere, maybe at managerless Real Madrid? All grbad is greener than Wembley at the moment, but are rival clubs promising a brighter future than Tottenham’s?
Their new stadium, when finally ready, is likely to be magnificent. Pochettino has built a young yet experienced, high-quality squad, with England midfielder Dele Alli this week becoming the latest of many to be locked up on a lengthy contract.
On Wednesday, the squad showed it has depth too, with ten changes made to the team that faced City and Spurs still winning at West Ham in the Carabao Cup.
Pochettino is also tied in contractually and seemingly wants to stay long-term — if anything his unhappiness may stem from fact he wants to be here, just not like this.
Tottenham’s present is uncertain, their future theoretically bright, but for Pochettino, the stadium issue is possibly muddying the long-term picture as well.
Delays mean rising costs, falling profits, reduced budgets. Staying at Wembley indefinitely is likely to mean falling crowds and a fight to return to the financial riches of the Champions League.
Just a few miles down the Seven Sisters Road, Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium offers worrying evidence of the initial, debilitating effect a sparkling new home can have on a club’s resources and hopes of success. And football, like life, isn’t all about the future. It’s also about the here and now. For all the foundations being laid and long-term planning, maybe Pochettino fears Tottenham have peaked now, in the wrong place, at the wrong time.
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