Neal Collins soccer
Glenn Hoddle officially left Southampton on Wednesday, bound for Tottenham Hotspur, his alleged spiritual home. Great timing. On Saturday, they’ve got Arsenal at Highbury in the Premiership’s traditionally murderous north London derby. Eight days later, they’ll all trek up the M1 motorway to Manchester, for an FA Cup semi-final at Old Trafford where 65 000 people (and millions watching on telly) will see them battle against … Arsenal. Those who have never attended a north London derby may not appreciate the significance of such games. Okay, it’s not quite up there with Celtic vs Rangers where sectarianism and mcmadness plays a part, but it competes with Everton vs Liverpool; Barcelona vs Real Madrid or Kaizer Chiefs vs Orlando Pirates. Red and white should be separated by barbed wire and mounted police. And that’s just between rival fans at work. Paul Gascoigne’s free kick at Wembley, which put paid to Arsenal at the semifinal stage 10 long years ago (Spurs always win the cup when the year ends in one, but some suspect they will never win anything while the year starts in two), looms large in any conversation between otherwise friendly colleagues who find themselves split by the Spurs vs Gooner chasm. It’s going to be some week for both sets of fans. A few years ago, after taking Swindon into the dizzy heights of the Premiership and Chelsea to Wembley where they were thumped by Manchester United, Hoddle might have quaked at such a baptism. He’s never been known as a tough guy. He was a big softie as a player, preferring the long, raking pass to the brutal raking of the shin pad. While other professional footballers drank, gambled and smoked in the unhealthy Eighties, Hoddle was a clean-living soul who joined Chris Waddle on Top of the Pops to sing an awful ditty called Diamond Lights, a number that went down particularly well among the gay community. Their hairstyles remain a subject of some amusement all these years later. Hoddle of course is a born again Christian, though it doesn’t explain the hair, only the attitude. His unlamented reign as England manager (yes, he got them to France 98 but no, he couldn’t guide England past Argentina) was disrupted by a faith healer called Eileen Drewery and a biography with Football Association representative David Davies that told us too much about the pain of rejection suffered by Gascoigne. A couple of defeats and a strange oft-denied quote about disabled people suffering for their past lives ended his reign as international manager. Suddenly Hoddle whose divorce added to the growing tide of ill-feeling found himself ridiculed, vilified. And out of a job. A half-chance presented itself at Southampton. They were in their traditional position at the bottom of the Premiership, and manager Dave Jones was involved in a nasty court case. Hoddle took charge, saved them from relegation and, this season, has lifted the Saints to an unheard-of eighth in the Premiership. Their fans are lost without the prospect of the annual spring relegation battle. He hasn’t spent much money, hasn’t rocked too many boats; but they have five wins on the trot and nobody’s scored against the Saints in eight games. The word is, he’s toughened up. No more Mr Nice Guy. Though opinions on his time with Chelsea and England remain divided, his success at Southampton is indisputable. So George Graham found himself sacked by Spurs’ new owners ENIC, Southampton tried to forget the get-out clause in Hoddle’s contract … and the new, tougher Hoddle took a holiday in South Africa before, on Tuesday, he began talks with David Buchler and ENIC. All these events happened by coincidence of course. Nothing illegal occurred in this switch. Who would suggest such a thing (though Graham is apparently taking legal action). The point is, nothing (barring a poor pay deal) would have been able to stop Hoddle going back to his roots.
Spurs fans will be over the moon (as fans tend to be when they’re not sick as parrots). Former Arsenal player and manager Graham was always “one of them”; Hoddle has always been “one of us”. Hoddle’s arrival at White Hart Lane will lift spirits, lift fans and will probably lift Spurs into an FA Cup final. But ENIC will have to come up with real cash to continue the revival. If they do, Hoddle might just prove to be the great manager England should have stuck with.