Jinx

Following on from my post about superstition below, I feel that I have really jinxed things. I applied for UEFA cup final tickets this week and encouraged Spurs mate and my girl to do same. I think Spurs mate was a bit miffed when he found out that the final is on a Wednesday after he applied for his as he works in London on Wednesday evenings. The whole thing is a Euro wide ballot so we probably won't get them anyway. If I do I will take the boy but it's very unlikely that Spurs will be there after last night's performance.

Spurs have played 59 European games at WHL. They had lost only 2 of these prior to last night. I had seen them both. Once it was Barca who played like animals and got a flukey goal that was down to a mistake by Ray Clemence. The other was Getafe this season which was also Martin Jol's last game (where he cried when all the fans sang 'Stand up for Martin Jol.' That still brings a tear to my eye though not as bad as Noel's Christmas presents!)

I really felt that we could do it but PSV were just too good and we were poor. Gilberto's debut was a disaster. He fits perfectly the old joke about being Spurs' perfect left back: He should always be left back in the changing room. The return leg could be great but I think not.

On a brighter note I enjoyed reading Megson's comments about the officials during Bolton's game last night. His vitriol knew no bounds as he tongue lashed the 4th official by calling him a ... doughnut.

"The rules are if you handle outside the box you get sent off. Patricio got both hands on the ball," said Megson. "As for the fourth official, he is a doughnut. He did not know the rules."
"You are allowed to stand up and try to work on behalf of your football club," explained Megson. "You don't have to sit down like a dummy all the time.
"He didn't know the rules, so we got him a copy, but it still didn't seem to matter."

I think we should encourage more of this. Send players off for swearing but encourage them to vent their spleens with playground or Edwardian chastisements:
" Rooney you smell and you look like my bum you big melon head."
"I say steady on, that was a tad caddish what?"

Not only would it make them better role models but you simultaneously stop offending lip reading Match of the Day viewers.

2-0 and they... err...messed it up

Half time and Spurs are 2-0 down to the rank outsiders in their UEFA cup group. Their whole team was free apart from one bloke who cost £100k! Me and the boy watched mouths open as the defence was pulled apart with Dawson playing like he was a Danish 5th columnist. He has had a few bad games of late but after his goal against the irons (rhyming slang permitted here) on Sunday I thought his confidence might have had a bit of a boost. Granted, there was no Rocha or Kaboul to fill King's long empty boots nor even towering Gardner's giant shiny head to lumber about alongside Dawson. Chimbonda stepped in somewhat reluctantly and Lee played out right. He was particularly poor and Ramos was right to take him off at half time. I hope that his post match debrief included something on the lines of 'Ole, Juande say you play malo. Donde the hell were you? Vamos a showers si?' Failing that I hope Poyet was allowed to boot his arse. The switch around and substitutions had an immediate impact. I still maintained my usual pessimism even when we went 3-2 up but the difference was very clear. Huddelstone had an immediate impact and the shift of Zakora to a sweeping role just in front of the 3 man defensive wholly pregnable Maginot line stopped the Danes from having any real solid chances. Spurs mucked about at the end, giving the ball away and flailing at the ball so that shots hit the corner flag and the opponents regained possession. However, I think this was a deliberate tactic to remind us of from whence we have come. A two goal margin would have meant I could have gone to the toilet or forced the boy to make me some tea. As it was we sat there til the final whistle cursing the time slowing device their manager had brought along with him.