Now more than ever, Tottenham cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves
The outcome of Tottenhams meeting with Watford tonight is unlikely to be discussed as much as their last outing, the FA Cup semi-final loss to Manchester United, yet defeat or even a draw against the Hornets at Wembley has the potential to be even more damaging for the club.
Losing to United prompted more questions about why, despite all the undoubted improvement Tottenham have made in recent seasons, the Mauricio Pochettino era is yet to be marked by a trophy.
Tonights result is unlikely to be scoured for significance to the same extent — any loss can easily be written off as a blip or predictable post-cup hangover — yet the need for a positive result and an unfaltering finish to this season is in some senses more critical than the need for silverware.
After all, winning the FA Cup is only worth £3.4m — barely enough to cover half of chairman Daniel Levys £6m earnings last year. The difference between Tottenhams best possible finish – second – and worst – sixth – is worth about £8m in Premier League merit payments.
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Of far greater importance, however, is the revenue Spurs will miss out on next season should they slip up and let Chelsea take their place in the top four – and next seasons Champions League. Last season Tottenham enjoyed £40m in prize money and TV revenue from Uefa for their Champions League exploits, as well as a £5m boost to matchday income. Next season, the first under a new TV cycle in which BT Sport have increased their rights deal to £1.2bn, that will be worth even more.
Of course, the financial imperative to finish in the top four is nothing new yet the current circumstances Tottenham find themselves in brings it into sharper focus than ever.
Pochettinos Tottenham may still be trophy-less but the Argentinean has, to this point, defended his teams failure on that front with references to the “project” or the “process” — the longer-term, more incremental steps forward Spurs have made under his watch.
“For me, the process is more than winning a title,” he said earlier this season. “I manage a club and a company.
“When you compete against massive sides like Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and the broadcasters give them massive money, that massive money, for them, goes to investing in new players.
“For us it means to build the project so that one day we have the capacity to do the same or change the philosophy. You need results to be sure that all the income will be at a level to start a process to build a new stadium, to attract players, to play Champions League.”
So far, so good. Under Pochettino Tottenham have qualified for consecutive Champions League campaigns for the first time, finished above Arsenal for the first time in 22 years and beaten Chelsea at Stamford Bridge for the first time in 28 years.
The mortar has been mixed, the bricks put in place and, by christening their new £800m, 61,000 capacity stadium with Champions League football next season, Tottenham could fix the joints and sand the surface to finish the process.
But if the process stalls over the final four games of this season, Tottenham could find themselves caught in a vicious cycle. The state-of-the-art stadium is expected to boost Tottenhams matchday income beyond rivals Arsenal yet £100 premier seats, £9,500 Tunnel Club season tickets — where fans will be able to see players as they head from dressing room to pitch and back — or £30,000-per-season memberships to the ultra-exclusive H Club are much easier sells with a club in the Champions League. So is the reported £20m the club is still searching for from a potential stadium sponsor.
The clubs commercial power will be boosted by a continued presence in the Champions League and in an era of widespread TV riches for all Premier League clubs, commercial income is increasingly becoming the determining force between those clubs who can afford to pay the biggest salaries to players and those who cant. Tottenham have too often found themselves amongst the latter and could yet do so with stars such as Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli or Harry Kane.
Tottenhams chances of seeing the glory of cups at their new home will be significantly aided by staying in the Champions League. It may be another season without a trophy, but, now more than ever, they cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves.
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