Lilywhites Wilting

Last Wednesday saw the culmination of Harry Redknapp's four year tenure as Tottenham Hotspur manager, the 65 year old being handed his P45 despite guiding the club to fourth place, a position which would usually result in qualification for the Champions League. Chelsea's unlikely triumph in that competition deprived Spurs of a second crack at Europe's premier competition, their last foray resulting in a quarter-final defeat at the hands of Real Madrid. Whether this unfortunate twist of fate was what deprived Redknapp of the opportunity to continue in charge at White Hart Lane is still uncertain, but in my opinion it is the least of the club's worries.

The 2011/12 season is likely to be looked upon by Spurs supporters as a missed opportunity; after scaling the table to the heady heights of third place, a dramatic loss of form saw them scrape to fourth place on the final day of the season. In many ways, last term's events at White Hart Lane was characteristic of the season as a whole...the early season proliferation of the traditional 'big four', only for (Liverpool aside) normal order to be resumed in the final throes of the season. Many critics and fans alike were captivated by the Lilywhite's start to the season, with Redknapp's team showing an impressive commitment to attacking football. Luka Modric and Gareth Bale were once again the key performers, but the summer acquisitions of Emmanuel Adebayor and Scott Parker also proved to be crucial in providing an extra axis to Spurs' play. Praise was also bestowed upon Redknapp for the form of ex fringe players such as Younes Kaboul and Kyle Walker, the manager being credited for revitalising a club that has so often threatened to join the elite without ever making good on their promise. But, as is the way with the Premier League, a crisis was never far around the corner...

Redknapp's tax trials threw immediate uncertainty on the issue of his future at the club and even when he emerged from court victorious, you sensed that things were not going to be quite the same when he resumed work. The bizarre coincidence of Fabio Capello's resignation from the England job provided further fuel for the flames that were beginning to embellish 'Arry's stewardship at the Lane. For months, questions were fielded regarding the seeming inevitability of his appointment as Capello's replacement, with Redknapp doing very little to quash suggestions that he was prepared to take the job. All the while, Spurs league season began to unravel in truly horrific style, the lowest ebb being their 5-2 capitulation at the Emirates Stadium in a fixture which handed the initiative to their North London rivals in the race for European qualification. A quiet January transfer window (only Ryan Nelson and Louis Saha arrived) also provided further inclination that all was no longer well in the corridors of White Hart Lane.

Nonetheless, the dismissal of Redknapp still came as a major shock to followers of the game, especially seeing as there was only 12 months remaining on his existing contract at the club. Many would have expected to see him see out a final term in charge before stepping down for a younger model, with his coach Tim Sherwood seeming an ideal candidate to continue the impressive work of the last four years. Football is, however, the most ruthless of all sports and we should perhaps not have been totally overawed by chairman Daniel Levy's course of action...after all, he's not been afraid of sacking managers in the past. Just ask Martin Jol. Ultimately, what will concern Spurs devotees is the answer to one question...where do we go now?

Reports in the press appear to suggest that Levy will ignore clamours for David Moyes to be approached and instead attempt to convince axed Chelsea chief Andre Villas Boas to return to English football. This should not surprise anybody. Despite his problems at Stamford Bridge, Villas Boas remains a very promising coach and, given his age, one of the most impressive possibilities available to Tottenham. But it is unlikely that any move for AVB will coincide with a continuation of Redknapp's sterling work at the club, at least not when we consider that the Portugese is likely to want to bring his own staff (both on and off the field) along with him. Can Spurs afford a summer of turnover? When you consider the inroads that their rivals are likely to, and in some cases already have, taken then the answer is surely no.

Questions also remain about whether the key performers of the last two to three years can be convinced to endure another campaign in the undesired Europa League at the expense of Champions League football elsewhere. It is no secret that both Luka Modric and Gareth Bale have admirers at some of Europe's premier clubs, and it is hard to see why they should resist the advances of such clubs to stay at Spurs, other than a moral commitment to honour their long term contracts. The likely retirement of Ledley King will also leave a gaping hole in a defence that struggled in the latter part of the season. Indeed, the absence of a player like King is not one that can be remedied merely by a bit of savy in the transfer market, not when you consider how vital a role King has played at the club over the past fourteen years. These are the sort of conundrums the new managerial incumbent is going to have to face, and the answers do not appear to be as clear cut as they would hope.

All this seems to bode for a difficult 2012/13 for the Lilywhites and raises questions about Levy's judgement in deciding to rid himself of one of the most experienced coaches in the history of top-flight football in this country. However, the Premier League is an unusual arena and Spurs would not be the first club to find triumph in the face of uncertainty, which suggests that they could perhaps find more solace in Chelsea's underdog story than they first envisaged. Then again, maybe not...