Former player and current BBC pundit Chris Sutton has stated that he doesn’t believe Tottenham Hotspur can keep the likes of Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and even manager Mauricio Pochettino unless we lift some silverware in the season of 2018/19.
Speaking to BBC 5 Live Sport on Monday evening, he claimed that unless we started picking up our fair share of trophies, players will ambition would soon up sticks and move on and he categorically stated that the idea that it was fine for Spurs to not lift a trophy owing to comparative spending was wrong, and we needed to be more than just challengers for the honours in the game.
He also didn’t see that happening this year.
"If you're Kane, Alli or Eriksen, eventually you want to go somewhere to win trophies." @chris_sutton73 says it's crucial #THFC win something this season.
📱📻 – https://t.co/IpV191b6xz pic.twitter.com/98KxQeqaLT
— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) January 14, 2019
“Lot of Spurs fans will say we don’t spend the money which the really big boys do but I think they’re doing another trophyless season, if I was a Spurs fan I’d be sick of it’s alright as it’s not alright, they’re a good side. But I do wonder if you’re a Harry Kane, a Dele Alli, an Eriksen you want to go somewhere and win trophies, you can say Spurs are challenging but y’know I would think this season is crucial, even if it’s a League Cup, I think that Pochettino didn’t say he didn’t want to win it but said he wanted to win big trophies. I think it’s so important going into the new ground this that and the other, Spurs have been that good in recent seasons but they do need to win trophies. I wonder where it leaves Pochettino as if we’re absolutely honest at the end of the season, all things considered and being equal, if Spurs don’t win a trophy, what is he really thinking? Y’know where is he going to stand a better chance of winning a trophy? At which club?”
Now, whilst there’s some sense to what Sutton says about rising opinions he seems completely oblivious to steady improvements and we’ve undoubtedly been improving during Poch’s tenure as gaffer.
All players want to win silverware but it’s not guaranteed and 99% of the time players move for financial reasons anyway more than anything else. His claims also aren’t exactly new when it comes to Spurs as we’ve heard them all before, and yes people move on but there’s not suddenly going to be a mass exodus unless it’s by the clubs’ design.
Maybe it was true of Sutton’s playing career, chasing Blackburn’s money initially and then Celtic’s dominance after his failed Chelsea spell, but some players like a real challenge and don’t jump ship quickly unless a real CV club comes calling.
If we’re improving and challenging, most players – until the financial or CV club element comes in, will be content enough with that as long as they are happy and well rewarded themselves.
It might not be loyalty in a true sense, but sometimes it has to be better than nothing.