Spurs Football Quotes

I last visited White Hart Lane in early February 2016, and as I took my seat, after a few pints in the (TV-less) concourse, in the upper tier of the South-West corner I couldn’t help but notice the tumbleweed rolling around the ground. The stony silence from areas of the ground where I would normally expect the home fans to be sitting was deafening, and the whole ground was reminiscent of a ghost town. Whenever the magnificent Watford support ceased singing for a brief second or two I could hear the hollow, dry wind, and I found the desolate, dry and humourless atmosphere all rather eerie. But here’s the weird thing. If I squinted my eyes it almost appeared as if 36,000 people were sitting in seats around the ground, and the only conclusion I could draw was that it just one guy and that it was all done with mirrors.

It is, as calls to arms go, straightforward. Crystal clear. And if you aren’t looking forward to Spurs and Kazan, to Southampton and Bournemouth, if that just doesn’t get you going, wanting to be emotional, unashamedly emotional, optimistic, passionate in a way that outsiders love to mock and our own meek minded souls call 'embarrassing' then you know what? There’s the door. There is the door, and you can walk through it, and both you and us will be happier for that. Because, for ninety minutes every few days, this fella represents Liverpool, eleven lads wearing Red represent Liverpool and we represent Liverpool. Wherever we are on globe, with an even greater responsibility if we are in the stadium.

Spurs became the first football club to have a listing on the Stock Exchange. The flotation, which raised £3.8 million, was over-subscribed by three-and-a-half times.

The Tottenham directors soon discovered that Blanchflower was no ordinary footballer. He’d written a weekly column in the Birmingham Argus and had agreed to write a similar column for a Fleet Street paper. He had a feel for words and was a good writer.

He liked Tottenham’s traditions and style of football and there was a strange appeal in their name. (The Hotspur part came from a Shakespeare character called Harry Hotspur.) He was convinced their style of play was more in keeping with the future than Arsenal’s.

Spurs were well supported and it was claimed they were the wealthiest club in the country. Blanchflower thought that perhaps their past thriftiness had set them solid foundations to face the future. And perhaps the mood of the club was changing to face the new demands of a changing football world. Tottenham had never been known for spending big on players, but here they were in a bidding war for Blanchflower.

In fact, Mackay had mixed feelings about the whole trip. ‘As a tour it was neither an education nor an adventure, but as a special occasion it was a tremendous success and in Kiev, Moscow and other parts behind the Iron Curtain, I shall always believe we laid the foundation of the team spirit and genuine friendship which has since played a notable part in the success of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.

But it was Blanchflower who really shone. He covered every inch of the pitch; probed repeatedly for vital openings; and helped his defence with a series of interceptions. He looked precisely what he was: a cultured, classy, stylish footballer.