Tagged: Tottenham

Football FanCast guest columnist Lee Mills reacts to this morning reports that Jermaine Jenas was dropped at the weekend and wonders if Ramos maybe playing mind games.

If there was one moment from our defeat to PSV Eindhoven that really stood out, it was an incident that happened in the early stages of the second half. Jermaine Jenas burst through on one of his trademark runs before making a real hash of a cross come shot and the ball ended in Gomes's hands. As the England midfielder made his run back to the halfway, he was signalling to the bench that his knee had gone. This was to be a key moment for Ramos as he already had Lennon stripped and ready. The Spaniard clearly wasn't convinced and preceded with the substitution and much to my amazement, Jenas stayed on the pitch.

A ruthless streak by Ramos; a manager who doesn't suffer fools gladly, and he was clearly testing the water with his England man. The injury seemed to clear up and as we know Jenas went on playing for the next hour. You could forgive the Spaniard for feeling slightly bemused and you wonder if our own special one has a longer memory than most.

The reason this moment came back to me was this morning's reports that Jenas may have been dropped for the weekend fixture against Portsmouth. It has yet to be confirmed but for me it wouldn't be the greatest shock in the world. He has hardly been in form of late and you could argue that he hasn't played well since the Arsenal game. He remains an enigma to a lot of Spurs fans and I'm very much unsure about him and his contribution to the team. Is Ramos simply playing mind games with him?

Jenas certainly isn't alone in his seemingly poor form and there are many players who have seemed out of sorts since the Carling Cup final. Chimbonda has been woeful in recent weeks; Malbranque is failing to assert his usual influence in midfield and my word what has happened to Aaron Lennon? There is growing discontentment among the Spurs faithful who are starting to lose patience with a player who lit up the Premier League in his first season. He just seems nervous when he gets the ball and doesn't seem to want to take on anyone. His crossing is diabolical and the less said about his finishing the better.

A great deal has been made of Ramos' plans to make wholesale changes in the summer and I wonder whether he will then this time go and bring in a new midfield. I am surprised that the likes of Kevin Prince Boateng, Taraabt and Danny Rose; who is considered one of the best young players in the country haven't been given a chance to stake their claim. One thing is for sure is we are in safe hands with Ramos and I like the fact he is not afraid to make big decisions. I just wonder whether dropping Jenas may prove to be the best thing that happened to him. Hopefully it might be a sharp shock for a player who has bags of ability and who should be performing at a far greater level than we have been currently seeing.

Time will tell!

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    We're the Park Lane
    Picture of We're the Park Lane
    SPot on about giving
    SPot on about giving youngsters a chance. I hear Rose is a useful left winger so why hasnt he been given a chance. I would move Steed to the right so to accomadate him.

    John Simmo
    Picture of John Simmo
    Lennon has been dreadful and
    Lennon has been dreadful and must be only a matter of time before he faces being dropped. Jenas has been in and out all season but I think Ramos is just trying to get a positive reacion of it.

    N17 4ever
    Picture of N17 4ever
    I would give Taarabt a
    I would give Taarabt a chance, he deserved it for some time and now would be the perfect time to give him a starting place.

    Ted
    Picture of Ted
    Rather than replace
    Rather than replace underperforming players, wouldn't it be better to coach / motivate them to play to their potential? Isn't that the art of management? Not that I'm criticising Ramos who may well be the man to do this, but give the bloke a chance! Ditching Lennon and Jenas will only see them going to some other club and becoming better players than whoever we replace them with.

    PHIL MCCABE
    Picture of PHIL MCCABE
    Aye i totally agree with
    Aye i totally agree with John Simmo on Lennon..very frustrating to watch he's got bags of pace and does make defenders back off and worry about him but for me it's his failure to deliver a final ball and surely as a winger thats your bread and butter...especially if your not chiping in with goals...Dunno what Ramos' thinking but i'm thinking major rebuilding this summer...i just this team or sorry 'squad' is going be moved on ..if not in the summer then soon after it, and i think Lennon could be one..we'd get a decent return on the 1mill we paid Leeds, maybe Ramos' got someone better in mind or maybe Lennons youth might give him someleyway...only time will tell.

    Nathan
    Picture of Nathan
    I think everyone is making a
    I think everyone is making a big deal out of nothing as usual. Ramos said he that Jenas is fit but not as fit as the other players which is why he rested him. Which is understandable considering he is coming back from an injury. It's obvious Ramos is going to try different players over the remainding games. Does this mean everytime someone is rested and another player is tried in his place there's going to be this rubbish that he is going to be sold? Please get real. How is he going to manage buying 17 new players if he only kept 5 untouchable players like some of the press are suggesting.

    Abe
    Picture of Abe
    Would love to see Taraabt
    Would love to see Taraabt play a few games but Ramos is doing the right thing. He is giving the players a chance to prove themselves and he letting them know there are no favourites - who was certainly becoming a problem under Jol. Remember when Ramos came in, Huddlestone was the first to suffer and now he is playing. I guess Ramos wants to see how players react to his decisions. Having said that our midfield is definitely our weakest point. We lack width, a midfield general and a great enforcer. Jenas, Lennon, Huddlestone and Zokora all have potential but don't perform consistently well. We clearly wanted Tiago so it is clear that the midfield will be a priority in the summer.

    ...
    Picture of ...
    jenas was injured .
    jenas was injured .

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