AVB's Post Match Comments Compared To Redknapp

What I really like about AVB's mentality is that he is a believer and far more positive in his remarks about our ambitions. We just beat West Ham and he is talking about building gaps against our nearest rivals. Ensuring we leave our opponents like Arsenal and Everton behind. The way he speaks tells you he fully believes we deserve to be in the top four and are good enough. He has conviction.

Go back twelve months and the remarks from Harry were more take it or leave it. "We'll give it a go...". "It's going to be tough...". "There's so many top teams around us..."

The reaction of the players going to AVB after "that goal" tonight proves unquestionably that we have a very happy dressing room. Great to see and silence the Spurs haters... you know who you are in the press! Bring on Arsenal. COYS!!!

 

Redknapp's comment weren't necessarily more negative, in my opinion, just more erratic.
One minute he'd be taking a realistic view and pointing out our lack of finances compared to those around us, then the next he'd be talking about winning the league.
What he was saying in the dressing room was anyone's guess, of course, but I think he was trying to manage expectations while still sounding ambitious.
Fair enough, really.

Tonight's result might've seen him take a step back towards Upton Park. A few more of those losses and we might not see Hoofball at the Boleyn next season.

 

AVB is excellent with the media - happy to engage but never puts his foot in his mouth. And he clearly is very popular with the entire squad - something that Harry never achieved with his favourites.

But the true test will come when things maybe aren't going so well. I actually think he will do fine, but that will be the time to judge him.

 

AVB is in a position of strength at present on the back of an 11 game unbeaten run with the form player in the PL able to get him out of jail if needed. So the mood is bound to be upbeat. City, in second place, are only 5 points ahead with a visit to WHL to come, so he knows he has a chance to return Spurs best league season since the 1960s.

But managers of top 4 sides are always just one game from a crisis (ridiculously, of course) i.e a defeat. Losing to Arsenal this weekend would change the mood entirely, but whilst Spurs are getting results consistently, even when performances are up and down, he's entitled to be confident.

'Arry was always more cautious. Win or lose, Spurs were doing well to be in the top 4 was his mantra. He never talked up Spurs chances on the back of a good run. He might have done had the team of the first two thirds of last season had the benefit of Bale at this level of performance when things got tricky.

 

Completely agree Luke excellent comments.

 

If AVB is the coach I hope he is he'll tell the team to go hard against Arsenal and we'll win it. I think he was told by Levy to keep his mouth shut and concentrate on the football. At Chelsea he was I have to say a bit gobby but for us he's quietened down somewhat. He's much younger than Arry and therefore more confident.

 

You make it sound as though he had no influence over our unbeaten run or Bale's fine form. It's AVB who decided to give Bale a free role that has unleashed his potential. Give the guy some credit!

 

Redknapp did it last year, but it didn't work.

 

Different team, shape and tactics. This season, we don't know when to quit. A very good quality to have in the team. We have one fit recognised striker who unfortunately couldn't score in a knocking shop right now yet we are still scoring goals and winning games. Tells it's own story.

 

I don't understand how you've come to that conclusion from my comment. Of course he deserves credit. Playing Bale in a Ronaldoesque role is a masterstroke. Why play him wide when he can cause havoc in the middle?

But football, its observers and fans are very fickle. A bad result or two and he'll be crucified.

 

I like AVB but he was definitely bending the truth with his comments after the Arsenal game. Something like "we outplayed them all game", you just had to laugh.

I always liked 'Arry too and whilst his comments to the media weren't my favourite thing about him, as Spurcat said, he did a lot of excellent work for us when our relations with the media were very low. I don't think there's a manager that would've done better than 'Arry in the years that took us from a total mess to the Champions League.

 

Bale would have flourished this season, regardless of who was manager (AVB or Arry) as Arry knew Bales future was to play centrally, although last year he moved him into the role at the wrong time, not to mention we had Modric & VDV already operating through the middle so the natural role was to play Bale from the left (where he was superb).

This year we have no one else to play through the middle, no midfielder is chipping in with goals, theres no VDV to pull off magic so with Bale being the main man, Villas Boas tried him there and it took a while, but Bale is now a central attacking player who can roam left, middle & right, but Redknapp was aware of this (as much as AVB), yet timing is everything and Villas Boas has benefited from our failure to replace VDV and Bale has taken up the role of our main central attacking midfielder.

Superb to watch Bale in this form.

As for Arrys press comments, not sure we have to make digs, as Redknapp was superb for us and if it wasn't for him taking us to 4th, the champions league run, then we certainty wouldn't be in our current position.

 

I distinctly recall Redknapp saying he felt Bale would eventually go back to left back to free him up more as teams have worked out how to negate his game as a winger. Also, 'Arry's favourite trick was to constantly swap Bale and Lennon on the wings (when things weren't going so great) which constantly infuriated us fans.

At least AVB keeps Lennon predominantly on the right and uses Bale to move in a free role whilst Hotlby or Sig does the job on the left. Yes "Arry tried this as well but left gaps many times in pursuit of this tactic. AVB tends to ensure the team remains balanced giving Bale even more freedom IMO.

 

He would have switched Bale back to the left as we had VDV & Modric, but he made it clear he viewed Bale as a central attacking player, in terms of his future.

As for switching wings, many managers switch wingers, Fergie done it with Beckham and Giggs in big games and it was only towards the end of the season that Redknapp started to tinker with the formation, but essentially he knew how to get the best out what he had and last season Bales best position in the team was left wing.

Also, with our current set up, theres an in-balance, Its all bale, the rest of our attack lacks any fluency, its not perfect, but when you have Bale to score wonder goals, the jobs done? we're all happy.

The main reason AVB has switched Bale, is because we failed to replace VDV, Dempsey never worked there,SIggy struggled, he tried Adebayor there with Defoe, and its only recently Bale has come into his own, but in many ways he had no real choice, and lucky for him (and us) the timing was perfect.

 

Hold on fla, I just realised you said LEFT BACK!

Don't think so mate, the only time Arry believed Bale was a left back, was when he first broke into the team.

If he said he would go back to Left back, it would have been tongue in cheek, as if he said that, then maybe thats why Levy sacked him!

 

heres a quote from redknapp

So its clear Redknapp was aware he would end up playing centrally.

 

Totally disagree. That quote just relates to that game, not his longer term view of Bale's best position (in Harry's view):

Redknapp in 2010:

"I think in years to come, he'll be the best left-back anywhere. But he's also a great left-sided player and it suits me to play him wide left most of the time because [Benoit] Assou-Ekotto is also a top, top-class left-back.''

Straight from Harry's column in The Sun:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepag...h-Bale-on-course-for-world-super-stardom.html

More where that came from...

http://www.tribalfootball.com/artic...app-bale-will-be-best-left-back-world-1474751
http://beta.espnstar.com/football/p.../item588609/Redknapp-tips-Bale-for-greatness/
http://www.garethfrankbale.com/1/po...ees-gareth-bale-becoming-great-left-back.html
http://www.thenational.ae/sport/football/harry-redknapp-sees-gareth-bale-becoming-great-left-back
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Harry: Bale can be world's best left back.-a0238233107
http://www.fansfc.com/story/25041.html

End of.

 

The trouble is, that Redknapp would say one thing one day, and then something completely the opposite the next.

 

Agreed. However this was on his own column in The Sun so it was in print... loosely speaking.

 

Theres no "end of" . Redknapp played Bale on the left wing and centrally last season and not Left back and essentially actions speak louder then words, and towards the end of last season he talkied about Bale coming a central attacking player)..and played him there.

You don't go from being a central attacking midfielder, to left wing and then back to Left back, so if you honestly believe Redknapp viewed Bale as a left back (after last season), then thats naive thinking.

Also them links are mainly from 2010, and the sun link was "25th February 2011 ", nearing the end of the 2010/11 season.

The quote I posted was from last season.

Is that "end of".