Ghetto Kid signs for Spurs

Self proclaimed "Ghetto Kid" Kevin-Prince Boateng has today signed for Spurs.

At a supposed cost of around 5M Pounds, Jol rates him highly. "Kevin is a talented player who plays for the Under-21 side of his country," said the manager. "You could compare him with the likes of Aaron Lennon and Tom Huddlestone in that he is an exciting player for now and the future.

"He is an attacking midfield player, very strong and that is one of his main assets.

"In Germany he is regarded as one of the biggest talents, we recognised this and went in for him."

A central midfielder, the 20-year-old arrives at the Lane having already played 42 games in Germany’s Bundesliga, scoring four goals. He has also made six appearances in the UEFA Cup.

Boateng progressed through the ranks at Hertha Berlin having initially played for the reserve team in the Regionalliga Nord, where he scored three goals in 18 games in the 2004-05 season aged just 17.

Capped by Germany at youth and Under-21 level, Boateng was awarded the prestigious Fritz Walter Gold Medal Award after being voted Best Young Player in Germany in July, 2006 and went on to contribute 14 assists towards Hertha's goal tally last season.

Been a while...Bent & Defoe

First up...Darren Bent. There's been a lot of discussion about how good Bent really is, whether he was worth 16.5M quid and if we really needed to strengthen there.

Any player who has a record of 37 goals in two Premier league seasons for a club that was fighting to avoid relegation deserves respect. When one of those seasons was curtailed through injury, add more respect.

A typical comment, attached to the stat that our pre-Bent forward line scored 60 goals between them last season, is "why buy Bent for 16.5M when the forwards Spurs have are so strong?" The simple answer is - progression. I cannot believe that there are Spurs "fans" out there criticising the club for not standing still. Two successful seasons in a row, both blighted by an inability to finish off teams and costing us valuable points. How many of them are aware that Bent outscored Defoe, Keane and Berbatov in the league last season, despite missing a vast chunk of it?

Spurs are in four competitions next season, with a realistic chance of winning two of them (the domestic cups). The League (as Jol commented) is out of our reach this season, but the top 4 isn't. The UEFA Cup must go to Bayern Munich this season after their unprecedented investment - they can now field 2 "A" teams. In order to compete on four fronts, you need a strong squad. Bent is a great addition, no question.

There is definitely money left, people always forget how rich Spurs actually are. There will still be additions. A centre back will arrive, more than likely in the form of Kaboul. There is no doubt that the midfield needs a bit more attention, certainly on the left and a creator in the middle...but I am sure that is coming.

I had to laugh the other day when I was reading the Football365.com Mailbox and saw some Gooners commenting on how we over spent on Bent. Twats, honestly, if they really believe that then the will surely believe that Da Silva will be a huge success! Henry is a 30 year old striker who relied on pace (aligned to his skill) to score. Barcelona if anything over paid...he is only going to get slower and more likely to pick up niggling injuries., Bent is 23, already a proven Premiership goalscorer and has his best years in front of him.


At the start of this now long and quite possibly rambling post, I mentioned Defoe. I read a quote on SkySports.com that he wants to say, those exact words are:

"I'm really excited about the new season and prospect of another campaign in Europe.

"We have made some good signings and our squad is now stronger and even better equipped to compete in all competitions.

"We have competition for places in all positions and that can only be good for the team."

At the end of the season I said that I wouldn't mind if he left. He is quite often greedy and doesn't convert his chances as often as Keane or Berbatov. Somehow the media affected my opinion of him and I considered him to be a negative whinger who wasn't happy on the bench. I was wrong. This quote could of course just be one to placate the fans while he looks for a move, but I believe he wants to be a part of something special at Spurs and I think, like us, he expects it to happen now too.

My 1964 Schwalbe is for Sale in Berlin

Anyone out there looking for a Simpson Schwalbe, or know anyone who is?





I just put mine on Ebay (check my Schwalbe out here) and it is sitting in Berlin waiting for a good owner.

It's a bit of a rarity as it is one of the first models and has a hand gear change, as opposed to the more popular and frequently seen foot change. Being from 1964 it is looking its age, but thats all the better. Why buy a shiny moped when you can have a touch of East German magic?

Let anyone you know, know.

Thanks, ZAREN14

Title Tilt?

Jol has without doubt transformed us from a mid table, some-time cup side into a top six regular. Now it seems that Jol is intent on landing us the title...which I'm not going to argue with!

Jold told the Sunday Mirror, "My hopes for next season are to compete for Europe again. Liverpool, Chelsea, Man United and Arsenal have probably got more resources than us, but it's not only about money.

"We've got younger players, hopefully we've got the vision and we want to compete for prizes in the cups.

"We want to be in Europe and we want to do well there, but we have to be in the top six to be in Europe.

"And hopefully, if we can get players like Dimitar Berbatov, if we can have the likes of Tom Huddlestone, Aaron Lennon, Michael Dawson develop into star players, we can go even further. My dream is to compete for the title in the next two to three years."

This is certainly not completely unrealistic, but sadly unlikely unless ENIC start to spend funds like ManYoo and Chelski. We seem to be developing some great youngsters and have picked up a few in the past seasons who look really special, but Jol's point about it not being all about money is not strictly true.

It will be extremely difficult to break into the top two as their spending power means they can secure the best players when they need them, without the need to develop them. Sure we have shown intent, Berbatov was an inspired signing, but we also let Carrick go. That's not top 2 business. I hope we do push for the title. We are not a million miles away, a few good players added to the side will help, but I fear they will be on a season by season basis, not all at once as is required.

What concerns me most for next season is Newcastle. I'm not worried about Arsenal, they are in decline and the longer that moaning twat Henry stays there, affecting moral, the better. But now Newcastle have a boss with nouce, cash, a decent side and probably the best back room team in the country, I can see them upsetting the top 5.

Wesley Sneijder to Spurs?

Will Wesley Sneijder be sold by Ajax? Ajax said yesterday that they are confident of keeping him, just remains to be seen if he is confident to stay.


Two weeks ago he seemed determined to leave after Ajax rejected a bid from Valencia. Spurs have been interested in him before, but you can't be sure it is not just papertalk given that Jol and Sneijder are both Dutch.

I had no idea how prolific he was last season for Ajax, he scored 18 in 33 league games. He also picked up 7 yellows though, so doesn't seem to mind getting stuck in. Either that, or he tackles like Scholes.

Been a while, so a short summary.

Time to get off my arse and write again. Since my last post, not too much has happened. Been the usual newspaper guff linking Spurs to a few players, but nothing exceptional - Figo, Smith, Bent...do they have no imagination?

The best piece of news last week though was Sugar's decision to sell up to ENIC. Nothing against the man, he did what he could for us, but this deal secures the future of the cöub against some random American no one has heard of making a franchise out of Spurs. ENIC will now own 66% of the club, and their decision to offer, but not pursue, to buy the remain shares, means that further investment can be targeted through share holders.

I for one am glad, it means my recent share purchase was not in vain.

Chimbonda off to Chelski?

Tottenham boss Martin Jol is believed to have turned down a £10million bid from London rivals Chelsea for right-back Pascal Chimbonda.

Blues chief Jose Mourinho has already been busy in the market since the end of the season, snapping up Steve Sidwell and Claudio Pizarro on free transfers.

And he is now trying to bolster his right-back options, as neither Geremi not Paulo Ferreira impressed in the role last season.

Glen Johnson, who was lured to Stamford Bridge by former boss Claudio Ranieri, spent the season on loan at Portsmouth and does not feature in Mourinho's long-term plans.

So the Portuguese coach approached Spurs in a bid to sign Chimbonda, but was swiftly knocked back, according to the News of the World.

Dutchman Jol only recruited the flamboyant Frenchman from Wigan for £5million last summer, and having landed Gareth Bale from Southampton now has his first-choice full-backs in place.

Mourinho is also a big fan of Manchester City's Micah Richards but knows he would cost more than Chimbonda and is aware he no longer has a blank cheque-book due to a frosty relationship with Blues owner Roman Abramovich.

Three Spurs Lions in U21 squad.

Ben Alnwick, Tom Huddlestone and Wayne Routledge have been named in the England squad for the European Under-21 Championships.

The tournament is being staged in Holland and begins on Sunday 10 June with England's opening fixture against the Czech Republic being played in Arnhem on Monday 11 June.

Squad: Alnwick, Carson, Hart, Baines, Cahill, Ferdinand, Hoyte, Onuoha, Rosenior, Taylor, Whittingham, Bentley, Huddlestone, Milner, Noble, Reo-Coker, Richardson, Routledge, Derbyshire, Lita, Nugent, Vaughan, Young. Print This Article Email a Friend

Lennon Op.

Aaron Lennon has undergone surgery on his left knee after injuring it on England duty. Lennon was hurt during Friday's England 'B' international against Albania, suffering a small cartilage tear.

He was withdrawn from Steve McClaren's squad for the friendly against Brazil on Friday and the European Championship qualifier against Estonia next Wednesday.

There has been no word from the official Spurs site about the length of time he will be on the sidelines, but a small cartilage tear should not hamper his pre-season.

Nani move looks unlikely.

United chief executive David Gill and assistant manager Carlos Queiroz have apparently flown to Lisbon for talks over a possible move.

The pair were pictured leaving a Lisbon hotel after a meeting with senior Sporting officials and it seems a fee of around £14million would be enough to secure the highly-rated youngster.

Spurs have not commented as usual, so there is still hope that a deal could be on the cards, but having beaten ManYoo to Bale I am sure Ferguson will be less than impressed to miss out on another transfer target.

Nani move on the cards?

According to the (ever reliable) Daily Mirror yesterday Nani could be on his way to the Premier league.

Reports suggest Martin Jol and Sir Alex Ferguson are vying for Nani's signature and the 20-year-old would like to be given permission to speak with a suitor should the right offer come along.

"Sporting know my opinion about this subject. If an offer arrives which offers a good opportunity then I want to talk about it," Nani told the Daily Mirror.

"Going to England is one of my options because the Premier League is one of the best leagues in the world and it will be a big challenge. But I have not spoken or made up my mind about any one club.

"I am prepared to go to England because I believe I would progress there."

Arse fan Barnes not keen on Spurs

Gilles Barnes, another product of the Derby academy, today stated his desire to play for Derby in the Premier league.

Linked with Spurs since his old room-mate Huddlestone left the club, Barnes was quoted as saying "it was Arsenal, and not Tottenham, who were my favourite club when I was growing up and so I am looking forward to the chance of playing for Derby at Emirates Stadium."

I can't help but think it would have been different had Derby not won their play-off on Monday. At least, come 2008, he will have played a full season in the Premier league, should Spurs try for his services again.

Kader Keita to Spurs?

Rumours in France are linking Spurs with Lille's Ivory Coast midfielder Abdul Kader Keita.

According to reports €22m (£15m) would be enough to trigger a release clause in his contract.

Kader Keita, who scored 9 in 28 from midfield in Ligue 1 last season, would provide ideal cover and competition for Jenas. It would be interesting to see if he could adapt to Premiership life. He likes to collect cards, with 5 yellows in his 28 appearances, so coming to the more aggressive Premier league could see Jenas retain his place with ease.

French champions Lyon seem in pole position to secure his services, although it remains to be seen if Lille would be willing to sell him on in the same league.

Keano, there's only one Keano

Robbie Keane has committed himself to Spurs until 2012 by signing significantly improved terms as part of a new 5 year contract.

This clearly signals our intention to retain our best talent and hopefully this sends a clear signal to Berbatov that we look after our most valuable and loyal players.

Keane is quoted on the offical Spurs site as saying:

"I have felt really settled and happy at Spurs and that is probably one of the reasons I have played the best football of my career here.

"It is an exciting time to be at the Club and I am looking forward to even better seasons ahead."

Spurs chairman Daniel Levy added: "Robbie has been an influential part of our Club for five years and this further commitment, on the part of both him and the Club, is a recognition of that. He is an individual who is loyal and professional and we are delighted he will be with us long term.

"The key to retaining top players, who want to compete for the Club at the highest level, is to agree long term contracts.

"We have now done so with several of our existing squad players, extending the contracts of players such as Aaron Lennon, Michael Dawson and Tom Huddlestone, as well as having contracted newer players on long contracts, such as Dimitar Berbatov and Didier Zokora."

Rumours are abound that Berbatov will be offered a new deal and that Defoe is a target for Newcastle.

Mansion Web Guy

Looking at the picture of Bale just then, the Mansion logo reminded me of a chance meeting with one of the online marketing team from Mansion.

He did not have a huge volume of football knowledge, but we got to talking about their relatioship with Spurs, what with me being a Spurs fan an all. Turns out after our somewhat disapointing start to the season most of the guys who get access to free tickets were not bothering to go as they didn't expect too much from us!

Just goes to show that free tickets do not a fan make.

Oh yeah, he also said our deal with Mansion would get ripped up if we were to get relegated.

My Transfer Predictions for 2007/08

I hope we see more signings of the calibre of Bale in the closed season. We don't need to0 many additions, another centre back and an attacking (creative) midfielder would suffice. Whoever joins though needs to be real quality. We have shown, with two 5th place finishes in succession that we are aiming high, but that has to be proved by more signings of Berbatovs quality.

Centre Back Younes Kaboul has already been linked with the club, but I would rather see us continue the British theme by signing Curtis Davies from West Brom, although surely that would rest on the result of the playoff on Monday. With transfer fees of similar values, Davies would be the safer signing with regards to adapting to the Premiership.

The midfield area is tricky to predict. Spurs are thankfully always quiet about their targets, but it makes it hard to know where they want to strengthen. Jenas, when fit, is undoubtedly a goal scoring midfielder, but too often we were found wanting in that department when he was missing. The link to Nani from sporting would be great should it turn out to be true. He would provide competition for Jenas and offer options when the game needs some extra magic.

Probably unlikely to happen, I would love to see us move for Diego from Werder Bremen. He has been a revelation this season and has provided the creative edge to the side and weighed in with some vital goals. Bremen just missed out on the league title, and with Klose possibly leaving, some players might think twice about their chances for success next year.

Darren Bent is obviously on most of the newspaper gossip lists when they want to write a Spurs rumour story. I have to admit to being torn over his possible signing. To score 13 league goals in a relegation season beset with injuries is an impressive achievement, not forgetting the previous season's achievements to. I just wonder if it will hurt our attack. Defoe and Keane already rotate as Berbatovs strike partner and the addition of another stiker of their quality might make it a tricky situation to handle for all involved. Someone needs to replace Mido though. I would rather Lee Barnard got his chance to shine. He frequently tops the Reserve league scoring charts and has looked sharp when given Premier League chances.

It will be interesting to see who leaves the club this year. Murphy will almost certainly leave for one of the promoted clubs, Routledge will either go out on loan again or end up at a Championship club. Ghaly will stay, despite his shirt throwing antics. I expect Philip Ifil to finally leave after years of waiting for a chance, and now Young Pyo could play on the right Stalteri will also move clubs, probably back to Germany with a side like Nurnberg.

Bale Signs!

Finally, after months of speculation Gareth Bale has signed for Spurs!

Continuing our recent tradition of signing the best of young British talent, Bale adds to an impressive group of players including Lennon, Dawson and Huddlestone.

Comfortable on the left side of midfield as well as his regular left back slot, Bale should add some much needed bite to our attack, removing the need to play Lennon out of position. His crossing ability is apparently exceptional (not hard by Premiership standards) and he has a good range of passing, so will fit well into the current setup.

Whether or not the reported interest of Arsenal was 'paper talk' or not, it was great to see Spurs win a battle for a player against a team of the calibre of ManYoo.

I am sure that this will signal the end of Young Pyo playing at left back, hopefully ending our somewhat unusual tradition of buying right-footed left backs. I always wondered why we played him there as he plays right-back for South Korea.

Stormy night sky

Taken post storm from our balcony in Prenzlauerberg, Berlin

Posh snaps up Charlie Lee

Peterborough have completed the signing of young defender Charlie Lee from Tottenham.

The 20-year-old centre-half has signed a three-year deal.

"I'm pleased Charlie has agreed to sign for us, he's a winner and that is the sort of player we want at this club," said Ferguson.

"I've seen him play on a number of occasions, he can play at the back or in midfield and I'm delighted he is on board."

Lee did not manage a first-team appearance at White Hart Lane, but he spent a month on loan at League One Millwall earlier this season.

Nani on his way to WHL?

The Times reports that Spurs are in negotiations over £13.5m-rated Nani.

Two potential stumbling blocks to this move:

1) He was recently quoted as saying he will only leave Portugal for a club like United (if he meant Newcastle we could be in with a shout).

2) He apparently just signed a new 6-year with a €30Million release clause, although this has not been confirmed by Sporting Lisbons website.

Given our record with Portuguesers I only hope it would be different under Jol.

48 hours and counting

'Wales left-back Bale, 17, will sign at White Hart Lane within 48 hours'

Source - The Sun (and just about everyone else).

Berbatov to ManYoo?

Apparently ManYoo will offer Spurs £27.5m in cash - nearly three times what we paid for Berbatov last summer - as well as throwing in Louis Saha.

To be fair, this came from The Sun, so who knows if it's not just a slow day in the office. Worryingly though they report that 'Yesterday, Berbatov's agent Emil Dantchev refused to confirm the player would be at White Hart Lane next season,' reports the rag.

'Dantchev said: "In football you do not know what will happen tomorrow."

'Spurs are trying to get Berbatov to sign a new six-year contract, doubling his £22,000-a-week deal. United could more than treble it to £70,000 a week.'

That'll teach him...

'A man trying to kill his girlfriend by stopping a car in front of an approaching train was himself killed Monday when the train hit the vehicle and launched it into him as he tried to flee, police said.

'The girlfriend survived.'

Source - Press Association

Is Bale close to agreement?

Latest rumours have Bale at White Hart Lane for contract discussions.

Could this be our answer to the Left Back problems that dogged us all season?

8 New design hotels Members!

design hotels AG -authors of the design hotels YEARBOOK- today announced the signing of eight new hotels to the group. Independent hotels that are "united by progressive design" can join the group, which has its headquarters in Berlin.

In the first quarter of this year, eight hotels signed up to become official Design Hotels, including four newly opened hotels. The Chedi Milan (Indonesia meets Italy) and the Santa Teresa Resort (pictured) in Sicily joined up in March, and London's new Haymarket Hotel opened up last April.

You can check out all eight new editions here

Interesting "opening soon" hotels in the design hotels group include the Avalon Hotel in Gothenburg, Sweden, with its "rough-hewn lodge-like feel", and the Lanchid Hotel in Budapest. The Lanchid is named after the city's famous chain bridge over the Danube and includes an ultra-modern lighting design combined with stunning views.

Oh Teddy, Teddy...

Where was Teddy Sheringham during West Ham's do-or-die fight to avoid relegation?

A West Ham insider claims he knows (c/o PopBitch). The story goes that on Alan Curbishley's first away game as manager Sheringham sat on the team bus playing cards for money with some of the younger members of the team. He cleaned most of them out, one for at least 20 grand. Curbishley is said to have told Teddy to cancel all the bets, or he'd never play for the Hammers again. Looking at the young, lippy, Bentley-owning, non-entities...Sheringham refused.

Saints deny agreeing fee with Spurs

So that can only mean one thing...Bale is on his way to Spurs. As normally happens, a club in denial are either trying to pursuade the player to stay or holding out for another offer, in this case from ManYoo.

Never has a Supermarket looked so interesting

Source - unaesthetic.net

Burley: Resist ManU & Spurs

George Burley has urged Gareth Bale to resist the lure of Tottenham and Manchester United and stay at Southampton for one more season. He may have a point after being proved correct over Walcotts transfer to Arsenal didn't quite go as the youngster planned.

I am sure that if Bale decided to move to Old Trafford he will face competition from Patrice Evra and Mikael Silvestre for a first-team place, with Heinze more than likely being dumped in June after his poor FA Cup Final.

I am sure he would get a regular spot at White Hart Lane, where Martin Jol has an as yet unproven Frenchman or our right footed Korean to choose from. Just not sure he is worth the reported 10M GBP that was being touted around. Maybe now that Southampton are consigned to the Championship for another season he might not command such a large fee.

Surprise, surprise, Mido wants a move

Not entirely surprising though, given his frequent changes of clubs over the years. Despite being saved from reserve football at Roma (where most fans hated him and didn't want to see the lazy Egyptian play for them again) and saved from joining Man City Nil by Jol in January, he still has the balls to critise the club.

As quoted of Football365.com:

"I would be lying if I said that I am happy at Spurs. Any player who doesn't play will not feel happy. The hard times started with me making the wrong decision. I made a big mistake when I signed permanently for Spurs. I know that this could result in problems but it is the truth."

Obviously he also suffered some form of brain injury in addition to the countless calf and back problems that kept him out of the side this season. When Jol did play him he failed to look like he wanted to play for the club. I say good riddance to him and I hope that he enjoys his relegation scrap at Wigan next season.

Note to Martin Jol - please don't waste any cash generated by his sale on Darren Bent.

Lee and Burch Released

Spurs confirmed today that two members of the reserve team that took us to the 2005/06 Reserve League Championship, Charlie Lee and Robert Burch, have been released by the club.

The official story can be found here:
Spurs Official Site

Mattsadler.co.uk

If you like images of motorsport, muscians or fashion, check out my mate Matt's website.

Mattsadler.co.uk

LOOP @ ACUD in Mitte, Saturday 26 May 22:00

Check out LOOP on Saturday - aka Leigh Evans and Band - at ACUD Kunstverein in Mitte.

Here is a link to Leigh's myspace page so you can preview their music:
LOOP - Leigh Evans

Here is a link to the ACUD site:
ACUD Kunstverein

Arndstrasse in Berlin

As seen at 8am while trying to get my daughter to sleep.