This was the day we all knew was coming, we just hoped that it would take a little more time, we also hoped that it would be the day that Ivan Juric finally showed us why he was put in charge in the first place.
I am not going to dwell on this game too long, once again Ivan Juric desperately changed his side and tactics in the hope that for once he might hit on a winning formula and again he failed to do so.
The truth was that this game was played like it was a pre season friendly, Spurs had their eyes on their Europa League fixture in midweek and were their for the taking, we declined the invitation and even when we pulled back a late goal to give us a fleeting glimpse of a draw, we petered out to concede another late goal.
The fact of the matter is that Ivan Juric is badly out of his depth and his presence now is counter productive, this game was just as much about those who were not even on the bench, Adam Lallana, Charlie Taylor, Ryan Fraser, Ronnie Edwards, Albert Gronbaek even out on loan Adam Armstrong .
There you have 5 players who have seemingly become completely ostracised by Juric, he cannot even find space for them on the bench, but they are 6 players who are experienced and could arguably done a better job out there on the pitch than those who played in their positions and indeed could form the basis of a decent Championship side next season.
Perhaps they are not top class Premier League players, but at Championship level they are good and they are all honest players who will put in a shift.
That is the chaos that Juric has brought to this club and every day he remains in charge he will dismantle this squad a little more.
We are relegated, there is nothing more to play for other than getting two more points and over taking Derby County's unwanted record, but there is the future to be built and we need to start doing that now, those 6 players whom I have mentioned need to know that there will be a new manager in charge next season, that they are wanted and we are building for the future.
Ivan Juric is surely not the man for that job, if he is still in place, I fear for the attendances at St Mary's next season, the fans have been absolutely battered this season, they have had to put up with a lot and again on Sunday in North London they turned up en masse and backed their team.
Before the game some of them may have witnessed protesting Spurs supporters demonstrating against their own owners and board, perhaps that will motivate them to make their own protests next week if Ivan Juric is still in place.
I have seen criticism online of the Saints fans up at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, mainly due to the gallows humour chants that went on throughout the game and that many stayed around to applaud the team at the end.
Now personally I didn't think that much of those chants, but I am not going to slag off those who joined in, neither am I going to give them stick for clapping the team at the end, this defeat and the relegation runs far deeper than the performances of the players, unlike those who are now staying away, they have no choice to be able to do that, they have to go and be part of the circus.
The fans who stayed after the final whistle were clapping the players as individuals, they were not clapping Ivan Juric, or the club.
Increasingly as Spurs fans were pointing out on the streets before the game and long term fans of Liverpool & Manchester United will tell you, they cannot support the football club, but they still support the team !
That may sound strange but there is a difference, of course the players have to take a share of the blame for relegation, some more than others, but at the end of the day, they were not helped by the stringent possession football tactics in the first half of the season and the bizarre selections and tactics in the second half.
So yesterday should be the moment that this season ended and next season or at least the planning for it begins.
The supporters need to see the club leading from the front, show that they are in control of the situation and are not going to let the cancer in the club fester any longer.
If Danny Rohl is the man, then get him in now and pay the compensation, assuming that it is reasonable and not as some have suggested £10 million.
The fans need to be given some hope for next season, every day that Ivan Juric remains in charge of the team will see more and more Saints fans turn their backs, not just on turning up this season and I think the board will have noted that 3-4,000 season ticket holders didn't turn up the Crystal Palace game, but for next season.
The shoots of recovery have to start to appear now, not in 8 weeks time or so when the season is over.
The ball is in the court of Dragan Solak, Phil Parsons & Johannes Spors, are they going to show leadership or just go down with the ship.
All Photos Via Reuters
Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
andywelsh added 09:57 - Apr 7
Like you Nick, I agree it’s time now to put Juric on gardening leave until the end of the season. Rohl looks the perfect fit for us and ideally I agree we would appoint him now, but realistically no business is going to throw away money unnecessarily and our experience with Swansea two seasons ago should have taught us how best to proceed this time. If they keep Juric then there is little hope for any effective governance moving forward.
You need to login in order to post your comments