Transfer Centre

Daniel Levy hits out at "incorrect" claims over Tottenham Hotspur spending

By Ben Knapton, Senior Reporter | 09 June 2023

Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy blasts "incorrect" claims that the Lilywhites have failed to back previous managers in the transfer market.

Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy has rejected the notion that Spurs failed to adequately back previous head coaches in the transfer market.

Fingers have often been pointed at the unpopular 61-year-old and scarcely-seen owner Joe Lewis for Tottenham's trophyless streak, which now stands at 15 years since the 2007-08 EFL Cup.

Despite winning the fans over with an exciting brand of attacking football, Mauricio Pochettino failed to end Spurs' trophy drought, getting as far as the 2018-19 Champions League final before losing to Liverpool.

In between the short-lived reign of Nuno Espirito Santo, Tottenham turned to two proven winners in Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte, but neither man could deliver a coveted piece of silverware to North London.

Conte's time in charge came to an acrimonious end in March as he blasted his "selfish" players for throwing away a two-goal lead at Southampton, while also questioning Tottenham's lack of trophies during the ENIC era.

Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy before the match on April 25, 2023 © Reuters

A positive January 2022 transfer window for Tottenham saw the astute arrivals of Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur from Juventus, before Spurs spent over £150m on the signings of Richarlison, Djed Spence, Yves Bissouma, Destiny Udogie and Cristian Romero, whose move from Atalanta BC was made permanent last summer.

Despite their significant outlay, Tottenham could only muster an eighth-placed finish in the 2022-23 Premier League season, failing to qualify for European football for the first time in 14 years.

Once again, fans took aim at Levy for a perceived lack of investment in the transfer market, and the 61-year-old recently took questions from members of Tottenham's supporter groups ahead of the launch of their new Fan Advisory Board.

When questioned on the topic of transfers, Levy insisted that Spurs had adequately supported their head coaches in the transfer market, and he believes that the club are "paying the price" for hiring managers who failed to meet expectations.

"The notion that Tottenham haven't backed certain managers is incorrect. We're currently paying the price, perhaps, where some of the acquisitions have not turned out to be as we hoped," Levy explained.

Joe Lewis and Daniel Levy pictured in 2016 © Reuters

Conte's former assistant Cristian Stellini stayed on to take the reins after his compatriot's exit, but the Italian's four-game reign was brought to a swift end a day after their harrowing 6-1 loss to Newcastle United.

Ryan Mason then stepped up to the plate for a second time, but the 31-year-old won just two of his six games in charge, and Spurs have since hired Ange Postecoglou as their new head coach on a four-year deal.

Tottenham failed to convince the likes of Julian Nagelsmann, Arne Slot, Xabi Alonso and Vincent Kompany to join the club before hiring the Celtic treble-winner, but Levy is confident that Postecoglou will transform Spurs into an entertaining attacking unit again.

"We made a conscious decision that we wanted a coach who would understand what we really wanted as a Club, which was to play attacking football, to enable everyone to enjoy coming to a match and be entertained, and also someone who understood the importance of the Academy," Levy said on the Australian's arrival.

Posteoclgou also addressed Tottenham fans for the first time on Friday afternoon, claiming that he would "leave no stone unturned" in his bid to deliver success to the club.