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Spurs stars warned: Shape up or ship out
Simon Johnson, Evening Standard30 Oct 2007
Tottenham players have been warned they must improve their fitness or new manager Juande Ramos will bring their time at White Hart Lane to an end.
Spurs new first-team coach Marcos Alvarez, who was in charge of physical training under Ramos at Sevilla, has been surprised by the players' lack of sharpness and believes it has played a big part in the club's terrible start to the season.
Ramos oversaw his first day of training yesterday and ordered the squad to do a double session, with a light warm-down in the morning followed by an intensive session after lunch.
Alvarez has already told friends in Spain that he feels Spurs players are not in good enough condition to challenge the best teams in the Premier League.
One said: "Marcos has been surprised at their physical condition and feels there is a lot of work to be done to get them in the kind of shape Juande likes.
"I think the players are going to be shocked because they are going to be worked very hard. Anyone who doesn't get in the right condition won't last very long."
It is understood that the Tottenham board had been worried about former manager Martin Jol's training methods and the condition of the first team for some time.
The Dutchman blamed the team's bad start last season on the fact there was a World Cup in the summer and pre-season training was affected. The board gave him the benefit of the doubt, but it is believed Jol admitted the squad were still three weeks short of fitness at the start of this campaign, despite having all his players available much earlier, and it is one of the things that convinced senior directors of the need for a change.
Tottenham have made their worst start to the Premier League and have the second worst defensive record in the top flight. Five of the 23 goals conceded have come in the 90th minute or added time, costing them seven points and a place in mid-table, rather than the bottom three.
Ramos and Alvarez have been studying Tottenham's games since the start of the season and see an improvement in the players' stamina as key to turning the campaign around.
The pair will be unveiled for the first time at a press conference this afternoon and Ramos admitted today he was excited by the prospect of working in the Premier League. "Sincerely, coaching in the English league has always been my dream," he said.
Sevilla, meanwhile, have accused Tottenham of "treachery" in their pursuit of Ramos.
Club president, Jose Maria del Nido, is to report Spurs to FIFA and UEFA, and said: "We will pour all of our energy and all of our force into making sure Tottenham pay the consequences of this situation, a situation that they have illegitimately provoked."
Reader views (1)
Same old Spurs, always in Arsenal's shadow, 46 years and they have won a couple of cups, 7 managers since Wenger has been at Arsenal.
- Spanner, London, 30/10/2007 21:02
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