Backed or sacked? The Spurs players Juande Ramos should keep… and the ones he should ditch…

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31st, October 2007

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Juande Ramos started work as Spurs manager on Monday by holding a double training session. He’ll already have a decent idea of which players he wants to keep and the deadwood he wants to offload. We asked you yesterday which players he should ditch; now I’ve taken a close look at Tottenham’s first team squad to see which players may end up losing their parking space at White Hart Lane…
GOALKEEPER
Paul Robinson Ramos is probably already looking at several keepers to bring in as new first-choice: it’s clear that Robinson’s confidence is shot to pieces and he inspires no security in his back four. If Robinson is willing to warm the bench as second-choice ‘keeper – doubtful if he wants to keep his England jersey – then he could stay. Otherwise, he’ll be off to another Premier League club in a bid to save his ailing career.
Backed or sacked? Sacked


DEFENCE
Pascal Chimbonda Ramos likes his players to be natural athletes as well as footballers and I see no reason why Chimbonda, one of Spurs’ most athletic defenders, would be offloaded, even if someone like Daniel Alves was to come in.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Ledley King When fit, King is a definite asset and one of England’s finest natural central defenders. Problem is, he’s never fit and Ramos surely won’t tolerate that for too long, least of all in a player who is captain of his club.
Backed or sacked? Backed at first but has to prove his fitness or he’ll be out
Michael Dawson I have never rated Dawson. He works hard, yes, but he’s clumsy and not much of an athlete or footballer. I think of him as the poor man’s John Terry and would not be surprised to see him moved on fairly quickly. He’s just not quite good enough for Spurs.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
Younes Kaboul The young Frenchman has shown immense promise in his short time at the Lane and is exactly the sort of hard-working, physically blessed player who should thrive under the new manager. I don’t expect he will always be first choice if Ramos gets the personnel he wants, but he is one for the near future.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Gareth Bale Versatile, young, talented, committed, great from set pieces… Bale’s place in Ramos’s new Spurs is assured, I have no doubt.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Ricardo Rocha Couldn’t always get in the Benfica team, and not a first choice for Spurs. Rochas is a decent footballer but he’s slow and approaching 30 fast. His time at Tottenham is probably up already.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
Lee-Young Pyo There are many worse full-backs than Lee in the division and I could see Ramos keeping him at the club as a useful bench warmer. Ramos’s teams like to play with pace, and the underrated Korean certainly offers that.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Paul Stalteri Slow, the wrong side of 30 and, well, just a bit shit. Won’t last long under the new regime.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
Benoît Assou-Ekotto Started well but has faded badly and suffered a dramatic loss of form last season. Could thrive under Ramos, but somehow I doubt it.
Backed or sacked Sacked
Anthony Gardner Not talented enough to be at Spurs. End of. He’s like a poor man’s Zat Knight – god help him.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
MIDFIELD
Jermaine Jenas Has the box-to-box game and athleticism that Ramos likes, so I predict JJ will stay, although he won’t be guaranteed a starting place. Who knows, maybe Ramos could turn him into a genuinely good player?
Backed or sacked? Backed

Didier Zokora
Sevilla had been linked in the past with Zokora, who has not been a massive success at the Lane. If that’s true, perhaps Ramos is a fan? I’m not a big Zokora fan though. He’s OK at what he does, I guess, but I’d ditch him if it was up to me.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
Tom Huddlestone I’m not sure about the Bunker – loads of natural talent but he’s a bit slow/cumbersome for the hustle and bustle of the Prem. I think he’d be more suited to the leagues of Italy or Spain, where he’d have more time to spray the ball around, a la Jan Molby. My hunch is that Hudd may not fit with Ramos’s idea of how the game should be played.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
Steed Malbranque Steeeeeeeeeed is still only 27 and still has much to offer. Martin Jol never seemed to get the very best out of Malbranque but I have a feeling that Ramos may do better with the mercurial Frenchman.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Aaron Lennon No question that Lennon will stay – as I said before, Ramos loves players with pace – but the new coach will want to work on Lennon’s woefully inconsistent ‘end product’ (ie. his crossing and shooting).
Backed or sacked? Backed
Teemu Tainio Workmanlike and probably commands relatively low wages, so may hang around. He’s also popular with fans, who admire his team ethic – and the fact he supported the club as a boy growing up in Finland.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Hossam Ghaly The worst player in Spurs’ squad? Paul Stalteri runs him close, but Ghaly surely has no future at the Lane.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
Kevin-Prince Boateng Has had discipline problems in the past and likes to showboat, which Ramos won’t tolerate. However, his combination of technique, power and pace will stand in his favour.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Adel Taarabt Perhaps the most naturally gifted footballer on the club’s books. Spurs fans have yet to see the best of Taarabt but there’s no reason why Ramos wouldn’t want to keep a player hailed as the ‘new Zidane’.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Wayne Routledge Little Wayne is not quite good enough to be a Premier League player. Simple as that. The only reason why Ramos might choose to keep him around is because he’s fast. But that’s about it.
Backed or sacked? Sacked
FORWARDS
Robbie Keane The Irishman is in the form of his life and has thrived as captain in the absence of Ledley King. His future at Spurs looks bright.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Dimitar Berbatov Has had a poor start to the season and seems to be sulking at the minute. If the silky Bulgarian continues to sulk, Ramos will get rid of him, no matter how good he is. I think Berbatov will knuckle down though – although he is an outstanding individual, he also appreciates that football is ultimately a team game.
Backed or sacked? Backed
Darren Bent I suspect that Ramos would like to ditch Bent and replace him with Fredi Kanoute. If he can’t do that, perhaps the new gaffer will set about doing with Bent what he did with Fredi – in other words, polishing a rough diamond.
Backed or sacked? If Sevilla will sell Kanoute, then Bent may well be moved on. Otherwise, he’ll stay

Jermain Defoe
Another pacy young forward who could easily be reinvented by Ramos. Defoe’s career stalled under Jol but there’s no doubt that a new coach could give the Englishman a new lease of life
Backed or sacked? Backed

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3 Comments

  1. Peter says:

    I think he’s called Michael Dawson isn’t he? Although having Matt Dawson in Tottenham’s defense would actually help!

  2. Ollie, Pies Ed. says:

    Oops, good spot Peter

  3. vdv says:

    Hossam Ghaly The worst player in Spurs’ squad? Paul Stalteri runs him close, but Ghaly surely has no future at the Lane.
    Backed or sacked? Sacked
    I think u don’t know any thing about football you will see ghali after leave the worst club in england you will cry hahahahahahaha

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