Tim Sherwood watches Tottenham win his final match as Spurs boss

Published: 13 May, 2014
By DAN CARRIER

IT was hardly a surprise. In Sunday's press conference, Tim Sherwood, who was sacked today (Tuesday) as Spurs manager, was his usual self, holding nothing back, avoiding no questions about his future.

He said he honestly did not know whether he would still be in charge come August, adding he would be speaking to the chairman.

His press officer, tiring of questions about his future, tried to stop the flow of queries from reporters but Sherwood was straight up and continued to answer – even after the journalists present had been warned off the topic. There was an air about the place that he knew he wouldn't be back. This was made apparent, I felt, by the way he shook my hand firmly at the end of the proceedings: it felt like a good-bye.

Sherwood's time has hardly been happy in a season memorable only for various disasters. Being beaten three times by Arsenal and West Ham United, and hammered at home by Manchester City and Liverpool has been painful. Sherwood caught the brunt of the dissatisfaction. He was constantly baited by fans, thrown insults at, which started with him being dubbed 'a back stabbing PE teacher' and moved on to the frankly unprintable.

Criticise the performance, yes, but I couldn't understand the personal aspect.

Before he was manager, I had the privilege to sit next to him and Les Ferdinand at an FA Cup tie away at Watford. He was charming, knowledgeable, and funny. This season, after one match, my 10-year-old son was waiting outside the press area and when Sherwood emerged from a grilling he broke into a smile, shook the lad's hand and began talking football with him. Whatever his flaws as a manager, and his inability to play the cards-close-to-the-chest game, lacking the media management not to criticise players publicly (especially not the fans' favourite, Brazilian hardman Sandro) Sherwood was an honest, friendly and frankly nice bloke.

This age of social media means disgruntled fans were able to publicly give him absolute hell. Drunken pub banter was given a wider audience than it deserved (the Arsenal fan as a kid thing, for example, is the sort of silly criticism that he was mercilessly baited with).

And this was made all the more ridiculous as there were legitimate grounds for his management to be queried.

Tactically, the prevailing view is he didn't make changes when necessary. At Arsenal away in the FA Cup, he went for two up front and seemed helpless to make a switch when it was obvious the midfield was being overrun. But there had been a clamour for an extra man forward after we had watched Roberto Soldado spend the autumn ploughing a lonely furrow in the final third. His reasoning before kick off was perhaps sound.

Then there was his stated idea that in today's game, a midfielder should be a bit of everything: he said he wanted box-to-box players who could defend and attack in equal measure. But the fact is Gylfi Sigurdsson, for all his talent, is never going to be a midfield tackler, and Sandro, for his occasional, spectacular long range effort (think Manchester United) is best at protecting the back four and giving the team a base to build on.

It wasn't Sherwood's team, either. The squad, for all of its investment, was unbalanced: too many players vying for similar positions, none given a run out for any length of time. Regular chopping and changing meant no one could get into their groove. A prime example of this was Roberto Soldado. A hot streak in La Liga and a huge price tag promised much: he struggled under AVB but you could argue it was the system – alone up front in a new league, in a side with inverted wingers who were not placed to whip crosses in. A goal drought followed.

Sherwood played him against Cardiff City with Emmanuel Adebayor next to him and Christian Eriksen just behind – and what do you know? He scored. But instead of saying 'right the monkey's off your back, go forth and multiply', Soldado was dropped and didn't get another sniff.

It was clear he was keeping the seat warm. Heavy, depressing defeats and wimpy exits in the cups sealed the fate, as did disjointed performances even when the side came out on top – a fact Daniel Levy alluded to in his programme notes in Sunday.

The general sense on the terraces is that the next appointment needs to be someone who is given time, to guide the side through the coming three or four seasons as the new stadium is built, and not to expect miracles straight off. The squad doesn't need a fortune spending on it.

A new left back is a priority, and then replacements if Hugo Lloris and Jan Vertonghen decide they don't want to stick around. The next manager will have the benefit of the seven signings last summer having a Premiership season under their belt – something the two casualties of 2013 / 2014 did not enjoy

So Tim: thanks for doing your best to steer Spurs through a horrible Spring, and best of luck in your next job.

Who next?
By DAN CARRIER 

Frank de Boer: Critics say anyone could win four titles on the spin in Holland, and that isn't a good enough reason to bring him in. But he has been there and done it as a player. Holland's most capped individual has cut his teeth as a coach and is keen to step up.

Mauricio Porchettino: The jury is out. He inherited a side that has enjoyed the coming together of some seriously in form players: Shaw, Rodriguez, Lambert and Lallana have helped him look very, very good.

Rafa Benitez: Hugely experienced, won Liverpool the Champions League, but his tenure on Merseyside saw him chop and change line-ups to the fans frustration, his transfer record wasn't great, and does he really have the enthusiasm to return to the Premiership?

Thomas Tuchel: Manager of German club Mainz until January this year when he resigned, he has a burgeoning reputation in the Bundesliga for getting the most from limited resources.

Michael Laudrup: His Swansea team played neat stuff and he is out of a job at the moment. Sense that this is a job too soon and he needs a successful spell at a mid-table outfit before taking the reins at a club aiming for the Champions League.

Danny Grimsdell: Spurs fan brought out of the stands by Sherwood at the end of the game against Villa, Danny G is very vocal about what he wants and clearly has the passion for the job, but his current role as the boss of his own eco-friendly courier company Green Planet Logistics perhaps means that while he may deliver, it's parcels, not football results.