Cock on Ball

Time for reflection

by Scott

After the shock and the recriminations, time for reflection.

I will not cry for Robbie Keane.

I am not going to talk about loyalty. Keane has given six years’ sterling service to the club, scored over 100 goals and been an inspirational player. There was only one Keano. He spoke of finding a home at the club after years of nomadic existence, criss-crossing from Coventry to Inter, Wolves to Leeds. I remember the day we signed him (in classic Spurs style) on deadline day, completely out of the blue. David Pleat still bangs on about it on ITV4.

Robbie Keane is a Spurs legend. And he deserves a standing ovation on 1 November when Liverpool visit the Lane. I don’t begrudge him his move to his boyhood team (no matter how many he appears to have).

But let’s not get all misty eyed about his contribution or think that Spurs are going down the pan. Let’s not get all “baffled”, like Jermain Defoe, or fear who’s going to poach the goals, like Sir Les.

At the start of last season, the club was being touted for the big time. Thousands of words were being written about our own version of the Fab Four who would push us into the Big Four. It was a mouth watering prospect, a sumptuous recipe – take the class of a fully matured Berbatov, add a sprinkling of Keane’s inventiveness, fold in some of Bent’s ability to lead the line and top off with some vintage Defoe.

After six Premier League games, the combined might of the front line had managed two goals. And we had four points.

Now, I know that a lot of the problems related to the behind-the-scenes shenanigans which eventually led to the dismissal of Martin Jol and the arrival of the present manager. But…

…the pressure is now off. And, in my eyes, the departure of Robbie Keane is good for three reasons:

1) It ushers in a new era under Ramos. The rest was just the prelude. If he is in it for the long term, the team will adapt to the style the jefe wants. Keane represents the old Spurs, the player we always relied on when things were difficult, the one piece of magic in an otherwise workmanlike side. He pulled us out of holes, almost single-handedly. That said, it was obvious that Ramos found the question of where to fit him into the side troublesome: think of the number of times he was substituted. This was often infuriating, not least for Robbie (just look at the reaction at Man City). Ramos has a plan, symbolised by the skilful, precise passing of Modric and Dos Santos. And Robbie wasn’t in it.
2) The “enforced sale” was a magnificent piece of business for Spurs. Near on Ł20m for a 28-year-old is a fabulous price, enabling the manager to fund further purchases for the greater good. Players come and go – this is part of the game – and the era of the one-club footballer is very much dead. The exceptions prove the rule: Carragher, Terry, King and the like are few and far between. The team comes first and it is pointless keeping players whose hearts are no longer in it.
3) The sale of Keane will allow the blinkers to come off. A lot of unnecessarily maudlin words have been written since he went to Merseyside. But cast your mind back to the times when Keane was not partnered by Berbatov, who must take some credit for his renaissance. He struggled to displace Mido from the starting line-up. He was unbelievably selfish. He tried to score the best goals ever. His celebration was piss-poor. He flapped. He disrupted the flow of the game, slowing it down in a way Ramos must have hated. He was, in short, an incredibly frustrating player, albeit one who had me eating my words as he banged in goal after goal. But frustrating none the less.

As I see it, heroes in football are expendable. New heroes emerge from the shadows while former fan favourites get dumped on the scrapheap. If we have a winning start the departure of Keane will be a bittersweet memory.

I think these are exciting times for Spurs. This is a time of optimism.

The Keane is dead. Long live the team!

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