Levy admits transfer blunders were to blame for their dreadful start

13 April 2012

Daniel Levy today admitted blunders in the transfer market last summer contributed to Tottenham's worst start to a Premier League season.

The Spurs chairman believes the club's failure to secure an experienced striker to replace Dimitar Berbatov and Robbie Keane left the team lacking strength in attack.

Juande Ramos, his coaches Gus Poyet and Marcos Alvarez, were sacked along with sporting director Damien Comolli, who has taken most of the blame for the flawed transfer policy, last weekend as the quartet paid the price for Spurs' haul of just two points from their first eight League matches.

Levy said: "Whilst the transfer request from Dimitar Berbatov was expected, we could not have foreseen a similar request from Robbie Keane. Whereas we traded early in other key positions, we finished the transfer window disappointed not to have secured an additional experienced striker.

"Undoubtedly we have started the season without the benefit of settled striker options and it is here that we must now look to build confidence."

With the club failing to sign targets such as Andrei Arshavin from Zenit St Petersburg and Diego Milito from Real Zaragoza, Spurs were left with just three forwards: Darren Bent, £14million Roman Pavlyuchenko, who had played for Spartak Moscow and Russia in the summer, and Fraizer Campbell, who joined on a season-long loan from Manchester United despite not having started a Premier League match.

Spurs are now certain to move for at least one new striker in the January transfer window with the potential candidates to be identified by new manager Harry Redknapp rather than a director of football figure. Levy added: "With Harry's appointment we also recognised that the time was right for us to return to a more traditional style of football management and Damien will not be directly replaced."

Following last night's spectacular 4-4 draw at Arsenal, Spurs announced financial results which showed an increase in turnover to a record £114.8m for the year ending 30 June, 2008 up 11 per cent from £103.1m last year. But Spurs are still lagging behind their north London rivals off the pitch after the Gunners' turnover increased to £223m for the same period.

The club's overall pre-tax profits fell from £27m for the period ending 30 July 2007 to £3m due to increased investment in the playing squad and changes to the value of contracts. But excluding the club's football trading last year, operating profits rose from £32m to £35m.

Spurs also forked out an extra £14m on an increased wage bill and "one-off costs which were incurred related to the restructuring of coaching staff".

Martin Jol was sacked as manager in October 2007, with Seville boss Ramos moving to White Hart Lane.

In his statement to the City, Levy also warned that the global economic crisis could hit Spurs.

He said: "The world is currently experiencing unprecedented events in the financial sector this will affect us all to a varying degree and football clubs will not be immune."

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Levy admits transfer blunders were to blame for their dreadful start

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