Tottenham Hotspur have missed out on a number of signings under Daniel Levy.
All clubs have missed out on top players at some point, and Tottenham Hotspur are no different – especially in the Daniel Levy era.
From Willian to Sadio Mane and all manner of other players, Tottenham have failed to get deals over the line for some talented players in recent years, and so many under Harry Redknapp.
Don’t call him a wheeler-dealer, but Redknapp has always been very active in the transfer market. Redknapp claimed to talkSPORT in 2016 that then-Chelsea duo Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois almost joined the club before heading to Stamford Bridge.
Clive Allen has now decided to she light on a couple of other deals Redknapp wanted, taking fans back to the January transfer window of 2012; Redknapp’s final window in charge of Spurs.
Spurs were going well under Redknapp, and he decided to push for two major signings; Bolton Wanderers defender Gary Cahill and Manchester City attacker Carlos Tevez, two players who went on to become Premier League title winners.
With Bolton struggling, Cahill was looking to move on, whilst Tevez had been involved in a spat with City boss Roberto Mancini, meaning the pair were feasibly available.
However, Cahill joined Chelsea and Tevez stayed put with City, with Allen now claiming that Levy just couldn’t get either deal done, deciding against a permanent deal for Tevez as a move for Cahill collapsed.
Allen, as quoted by Football.London, tells of how Levy instead signed two bargain veterans in Ryan Nelsen and Louis Saha, believing that the decision was ‘crazy’ from a footballing perspective and ultimately took the club in the wrong direction, questioning Levy’s understanding of football in those situations.
“Harry told us during a meeting that there were ongoing discussions with the chairman to sign Carlos Tevez from City,” said Allen. “Tevez was a hugely talented player but also tainted goods at that time, having gone on strike after falling out with City boss Roberto Mancini following his refusal to come on as a substitute in a Champions League game. City were demanding £25million for him, a valuation which had scared off AC Milan. Harry wanted Daniel to get Tevez either permanently or explore the possibility of a loan deal. The other signing he wanted was Gary Cahill. Bolton Wanderers were willing to sell and Gary was talking to Chelsea and Arsenal at the time. He was the centre-back Harry had identified to stop us having those meltdowns where we’d lose 4-0 at Fulham or wherever.”
“Now it was down to Daniel. Cahill had conversations with Tottenham but a deal failed to materialise. Instead, he went to Chelsea for about £7m. Talks with Tevez continued but City were apparently adamant a permanent deal was the only option and Daniel decided against it. So, instead of landing Tevez and Cahill, Daniel brought in two free transfers in Ryan Nelsen and Louis Saha from Blackburn Rovers and Everton respectively. Steven Pienaar went in the opposite direction as part of the Saha deal,” he added.
“Both Ryan and Louis had their merits but this is where Daniel’s understanding of football took us in the wrong direction. I have no doubt Daniel wants the best for Tottenham but he operates with a cold business mentality. Yet football is a unique business. Some transfers ask clubs to take an economic leap of faith. The financial logic may be questionable but the football reasoning is sound. If you can afford Tevez, you sign him. Almost any manager in the world would tell you that. Opting against signing Tevez and Cahill was a sensible, prudent business decision but a crazy one from a football perspective,” he added.
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