Former West Ham United defender Danny Gabbidon has stirred the rivalry between his old club and Tottenham Hotspur.
West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic
Fans of the Hammers and Spurs don’t need much of an excuse to have a pop at one another, although it’s clearly Spurs with more to shout about these days given they are in with a shout of the Premier League title.
Slaven Bilic’s Hammers meanwhile can finish midtable at best after a torrid second season for the Croatian which has seen his side embarrassingly dumped out of the Europa League, FA Cup and EFL Cup in humbling fashion while struggling for long periods in the league.
Woeful recruitment has been blamed for many of West Ham’s problems this season while some of Spurs’ transfer business has also come under the microscope with the likes of Vincent Janssen deemed not good enough as back-up for Harry Kane.
But now Danny Gabbidon, a former Hammer of the Year, has highlighted the crucial difference between Mauricio Pochettino and Bilic and the way they manage their teams.
“Pochettino is a great manager,” Gabbidon said on Twitter after their 4-0 win over Bournemouth.
“Showing the importance of the keeping the fringe players happy/focused/hungry… other managers TAKE NOTE!
“I wouldn’t say they (Spurs’ fringe players) were top players but they come in and work to the managers wishes no questions asked… that’s the difference for me.”
Bilic and Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino
When it was put to Gabbidon whether Pochettino would play his fringe players if they were Jonathan Calleri, Havard Nordveit, Gokhan Tore or Alvaro Arbeloa, the retired Welsh defender-turned-pundit delivered a damning response:
“He’d get them playing well probably,” he added.
One of the biggest frustrations for Hammers fans this season has been not knowing who is behind the club’s transfers.
A majority of supporters continue to back Bilic and many have turned on co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold.
Tottenham’s Harry Kane celebrates
But should it emerge Bilic has indeed been in charge of the majority of the recruitment then it would be very difficult to defend him.
Pochettino meanwhile can do no wrong in North London, turning Spurs into genuine title challengers and one of the most exciting sides in Europe.
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