UEFA Cup: Udinese 2-0 Tottenham Hotspur

[funster]

Oh dear, here we go then.....

With the group stages getting underway, traditionally this has been a time when things start to get serious in European competition. Unlike the last two years though - yes, this is the third season running we've been in Europe (how long are we going to have to wait for another?) - this time 'round many of the travelling faithful approached the trip with some trepidation.

Not through fear of what may happen with the locals, or the police, not even, probably, to do with the football. No. All to do with the fact that as we continued our European campaign, we were rooted to the bottom of the Premier League and the football on display so far had been of a quite shocking standard.

For the first time we did a European trip through the club. The late cancellation of a business trip meant I could go, but the deadline for the ticket only option had passed so it was down to Thomas Cook.

That meant a day trip out of Stansted and given the 7am departure, it also meant a night at the Holiday Inn Express the night before. That meant listening to Liverpool in the Champions League, to be followed by watching Chelsea in the same competition while having a couple of pints before bedtime. Champions League, eh? Nothing could be further from our minds - or from our grasp - these days.

The early morning wake-up call was very early. Beer and what was a very large double cognac a few hours before were still coursing through my veins! But off we went to Stansted.

Now, I've never flown through Stansted before, and it was something of a shock to see it heaving at 5am. Most of the time I've been through Heathrow and Gatwick on all sorts of trips, and although they get busy, they're not a patch on what the terminal at Stansted was like!

I could not believe it! Thankfully the check-in desks for Jet2 were very quiet so we negotiated the process of getting airside with some speed.

It crossed my mind that we should go to the nearest bar, but at 6am it still felt way too early. Not that that had stopped a few of the travelling support! Fair play, but my stomach wasn't up to it at that stage of the proceedings.

When we got to the gate we met up with some of the regulars, and soon enough we were on the plane and destined for nothern Italy.

By the way, anybody ever flown Jet2? Not my cup of tea, but I'm guessing from the fact that every member of the cabin crew spoke with a good northern accent that the airline's based somewhere up north? Regardless, a passable breakfast, and that was about what was needed to get into the swing of things and I soon found myself hankering after a gin'n'tonic. No such luck!

The flight took us into Trieste from where we were to be coached into Udine. Security was well in evidence - as always on a European trip - and one of our merry band got stopped by security after one of the dogs sniffed something out. Turned out to be his variety of inhalers! Of course, none of us bothered waiting. Don't want to get too closely associated with somebody who's just been selected for a secondary security screening. Never know how loud a smacking noise that rubber glove could make when it gets pulled onto the hand of a burly security officer.....!

The coach to Udine took about half an hour and while we made our way there confirmation came through that the authorities would permit the sale of alcohol until 4pm. Phew! There had been rumours that there might not be any, or that it would stop at 2pm. That would've been shocking, and meant a train ride to the next nearest town. Not the sort of hassle you're after really!

We got dropped off at the Piazza Primo Maggio in the centre of town and were greeted with the rather unusual sight of a load of stalls set up as a welcoming party!

Welcoming party at Piazza Primo Maggio


Now this really did come as something of a surprise. Turns out that the Udinese Supporters Club and the local authority had funded a bunch of local food and drink producers to set up the market stalls and serve free wine and cheese to us! There was also the rather enticing prospect of buying half a pint and getting a free snack! Fantastic. Really good show, and the sort of approach that should be adopted more often.

The mob - you won't see me in there..... I'm the one taking the photo!


So we milled around for probably getting on for an hour. Plenty of photos getting taken by the local media, a few interviews. One of travelling band - John - did question how much must go on in Udine if this was the sort of treatment we were getting, but no matter. We lapped it up!

Spurs banners hoisted around Piazza Primo Maggio


With a good four hours till the coaches were going to depart for the stadium, it was time to go exploring.

Now, Udine didn't look the prettiest of places we've been in Europe. You've got to go some to beat Prague, Seville and Krakow for example, but it was nice enough. Oh, and those Italians - stylish bunch overall, aren't they? From the suited and booted business types at Trieste airport to the locals going about their day in Udine. A far cry from the bucket and spade brigade left behind at Stansted!

Surprisingly it seemed quite a few of the shops were closed. Perhaps down to the football? But we found a few bars that were open, got a whip going, and proceeded to start polishing off as much beer as time would permit.

As we whiled away the hours we pondered all sorts of topics Tottenham related. How the hell had we got ourselves into this mess? What formation and players would turn out tonight? Was the Sol Campbell song really all that much of an insult? How many points did we need to stay up? Could we do it with the games left?

That last question in particular raised a lot of concern. 40 points for safety (perhaps more than is needed given what its taken in recent seasons), a horrible away record meaning we could probably scrape ten points on the road, fifteen to play at home with all the big four still to come so write those off, meaning winning ten of the eleven remaining games at The Lane.

That last bit really brought it all home with a crashing realism. How on Earth were we going to win ten games at home?

The questions were relentless. Was Ramos capable of managing? What does Comolli actually do? Are there any merits to the Director of Football? Why does Levy think he's some ****-hot negotiator?

It was mostly light-hearted, as tends to be the case, especially after you've sunk countless beers, but it couldn't hide the increasing worry that's seeping in amongst Spurs supporters.

John getting friendly with the locals!


Sufficiently filled with beer it was time to grab a bit to eat before heading for the game so what else but pizza? In truth it probably wouldn't have mattered what it tasted like, we were starvin' and washed down with more beer, we were ready to head for the ground.

We arrived very early. Very, very early. Near enough two hours till kick off, but at least there were a few food and drink stalls open. A far cry from the policing in Krakow a couple of weeks ago!

Eventually even we couldn't stomach any more espresso and it was time to head into the stadium itself, and what a strange sort of place it was. Three sides uncovered, a roof formed by a large arch and a running track that had seen better days.

Slowly the stadium began filling and as the teams warmed up we knew what the starting eleven was going to be..... King to start. Oh God. Please no.

The stadium


More of that arch shaped stand


Of course, there is never any doubt that before and during the game the team gets the fullest support possible, but eyebrows were raised. With Bolton to come at the weekend, and the high chances of no points being gained from the three games following that, why was King playing? Why? Ludicrous.

The stadium was far from full at kick-off, and the lack of a roof always means the atmosphere is somewhat less, but we were singing away in any case.

The full Spurs line-up was questionable. BAE at left back (oh dear), with Bale pushed forward. King starting, as stated already. Oh, and did I mention? One up front. Oh yes, that old chestnut.

Lining up on the pitch ready for the off


It all looked shocking but incredibly for the first twenty minutes we were much the better side. Udinese offered little in attack, and with plenty of time in midfield much of play was channeled down the right where Lennon was having plenty of success with the Udinese left back.

We look so comfortable that it was almost as though the old days of European away days were being recalled. It would only be a matter of time before we made our dominance count. The only thing detracting from that was the policy of one up front. With two we'd have piled in and won this game easily.

And then it all went horribly, horribly wrong. A back pass, a kicking error from Gomes, a rugby tackle, a penalty.

The ref took his time giving it. He was probably embarrassed. It was such a bad mistake, and Udinese duly converted to take the lead. From a position of seeming comfort and dominance we were behind, yet again.

So far this season we've gone behind against 'Boro, Sunderland, Chelsea, Villa, Pompey, Hull, Stoke and Udinese. The only times we've taken the lead? Wisla home and away, and Newcastle. The only time this season we've scraped a result after going behind? Chelsea. Didn't bode well.

With twenty minutes or so of the half left, Udinese visibly grew in confidence. Suddenly they were seeing more of the ball and finding their own players with their passing. Just as their confidence grew, ours began to drain. Slowly but surely the tone was set further and further in the direction of the Spurs goal.

A goal down at half-time there was still hope, and with the replacement of the woeful BAE for Modric maybe we would finally see what the Croatian playmaker could do in a setting that should give him more opportunity to play. Of course, such a move couldn't have come without a change to the formation. O'Hara withdrawn from a position that he'd been pretty effective in to take BAE's place.

Within ten minutes that change was disastrous as O'Hara picked up two bookings in very quick time. It was disappointing, especially the second, which, from where we stood, looked a very harsh yellow, but having dived in and picked up the first, the lad should've known what the ref was likely to do.

Ten men, a goal down, away in Europe. No chance.

With nothing of note happening, the decision was taken to sub Woodgate and throw on GDS requiring yet another change in playing staff covering for the formation. Zokora now partnering King at the back. Oh dear.

It could've been far worse much sooner. Gomes pulled off a couple of superb saves. Nothing that could really make up for the mistake in the first half, but the second one where he had to back pedal to claw away a lob was top class.

There was plenty of discussion amongst the Spurs faithful about Gomes and his rather eccentric goalkeeping. He's certainly not orthodox and his kicking and punching was badly affected after he conceded the penalty. But I said last week somewhere that half the problem about people thinking he's not good enough is this misguided and outdated, and very English opinion, that to be a good keeper you have to catch. Of course, that's what we all want to see. A safe catch every time means confidence grows and there's no chance of any rebound. But I'll take any which way the ball can be kept out of the net, and I still think he's a very good keeper.

But I digress. During the second half Modric showed glimpses of what he could be capable of. He actually seemed interested in coming back, picking the ball up, and running with it. Of course, Zokora can do that too, and with more pace, but with Modric sometimes you could see there might be an end product.

Mind you, it only happened two or three times, and that's not nearly enough in Europe, never mind in the Premier League.

Also in the second half, where Lennon had been relatively effective in the first, he was a non-entity in the second. One of the blokes standing not far from us whinged about his inability to deliver with his left foot. Would be good if we could see some delivery with his right!

Incredibly we could've had an equaliser. It took the best part of ninety minutes to get there, but Bent almost scored what would have been a totally undeserved goal. A very good save from the Udinese keeper kept the ball out, testing him a lot more than the one chance in the first where a weak header was directed straight at him.

That was as good as it got. A break down the left from Udinese culminated in a neat touch to push the ball on their furthest progressed player, who sidestepped and slotted home off the far post. A classy move, well worked, even if he was a shade lucky to see the ball end in the back of the net.

And that, my friends, was that.

I summarised it as the worst performance since we'd got back into Europe, neatly forgetting Getafe at home last season! But it was a shocker.

After twenty minutes of control, a silly mistake, a penalty successfully converted, confidence drains, and you're off to another losing start in the group stages.

Udinese weren't even that good. Two years ago we'd have taken all three points with great ease. Yet last night we were as far away from looking capable of doing that as is possible.

Defensively we all know what King provides, and his combination with Woodgate demonstrated why its so frustrating - disgusting even? - that this partnership will almost certainly never be cemented. The reasons behind playing King in the UEFA Cup, with all the composure, speed and strength he brings, instead of against Bolton where we are absolutely desperate for three points is mind boggling.

Sadly, the worst performances of the evening came down the left. BAE was utter rubbish, O'Hara lasted all of ten minutes in his place, and Bale's delivery..... well, I don't know whether he had been given the job of taking on David Bentley's mantle after his omission last night, but it was about as bad as you could think of.

Most of the others I've already commented on so no need to dig up old ground again.

This game did provide a turning point. Not in footballing terms. Oh no. That was as bad as we've come to expect this season. The turning point was in the support.

After continued and sustained support for the team on the pitch, it all finally got to be too much. As soon as that final whistle went the chants started, and while not in unison across the entirety of the travelling support, they were sufficient to confirm that the turning point has been reached.

"You're not fit to wear the shirt"

"You should care as much as us"

"Ramos out"

You get the picture. The discontent isn't just growing. Its in great evidence. I commented that when that happens, away, in Europe, you know its curtains.

It sure as hell will be for somebody. A defeat on Sunday - and let's be honest, who can seriously see us picking up points against Bolton? - will hasten the departures from The Lane.

And so they should. Only wholesale changes in the management at the club can allow us to recover from this situation. In a season that was touted as one to build back towards where we were with those successive fifth place finishes, finishing fourth from bottom will be considered a success.

There is no way this can be allowed to continue. Ramos will have to pay the ultimate price. As will Comolli. The problems will be in the replacements. And of course the departures when, and if, they do come will do nothing to remove Levy and his colleagues from the top table where so much of what's wrong at Tottenham Hotspur has manifested itself.

Trudging wearily back to the coaches, we headed back to Trieste airport, boarded the plane, got back to Stansted and made our way quietly back home.

Two days off, and then we put ourselves through it all over again.

[funster]

And here's the now customary video panorama of the stadium before the game.

Anybody out there who questions the support should just listen to that song. I couldn't personally bring myself to sing it, and it certainly wasn't in evidence at the end of the game, but we're nothing if not loyal, vocal and supportive.

Part way through there's a bloke dancing away with a bottle. I want some of what he's got in there! I can't imagine its water!

Stadiumpanorama.flv - Video - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

http://vid182.photobucket.com/albums/x305/funster_photobucket/Udinese%20away/Stadiumpanorama.flv

[MyGoula]

these reports are fantastic funster and I can only dream of making this trips away in europe until I do get older
Much thanks and keep up the good work.

[funster]

these reports are fantastic funster and I can only dream of making this trips away in europe until I do get older
Much thanks and keep up the good work.

No worries mate. My biggest concern is that this will be the last time for a good long while that we can make these trips!

[MyGoula]

No worries mate. My biggest concern is that this will be the last time for a good long while that we can make these trips!

God I know COYS and I agree that Modric was good but playing King is a shocking decision and that we should just tank the UEFA cup and play a youth squad if it means better results in the premiership

[thfcshady27]

good stuff funster but u must have the heart of a lion to keep making them trips to watch that rubbish.....saying that i only wish i could afford it lol dont think ill have to worry about it tho for the next couple of decades! good work mate!

[P UNIT 1980]

Top work as usual mate. All I can do is reiterate shady comments about your passion.

I cant bear to watch them free on the web nowadays let alone trek hundreds of miles and spend endless hours to watch out pitifal excusefor a football team.

I wish the players showd as much pride and passion for the shirt as your good self.

[RiverWire]

Na honestly if i could say 100% that i had the money to go to every game i would with out a shadow of a doubt, i waiting for my lottery win before i buy the family some season tickets

As for the report bud, amazing again, would even go as far to saying they are even getting better which i didnt think was possible top work