It’s probably fair to say that Spurs are the newest team to have forced their way into the Big Six. They’ve always been a team that has been on the peripherals of any league or cup dog fights, but these days they are much more competitive.
What’s been interesting about the approach of Tottenham is that they haven’t thrown the money around that some of their rivals within the Big Six has. In fact, over the last 5 years the club have spent the least of these teams, with a total spend of £400milllion, compared with Man City’s total spend of £900million over the same period.
To add to that, it’s also worth noting that in the same period only Swansea City and Southampton have had a lower net spend than Spurs since 2013, meaning they are very much keeping their balance sheets in check.
However, they have invested almost £1billion in funding to their new stadium, that opened its doors in 2019. The stadium replaced the former White Hart Lane site and throughout the time it has been getting built, Spurs have been playing their home games at Wembley Stadium no less.
It’s been argued by many that once the team were able to get back “home” that this would kick them on even further and be a real force within the league. Whilst they certainly aren’t the weakest team in the Big Six, the fact they haven’t won the league before definitely makes them as outsiders for toppling one of the more established teams.
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Spurs are often taunted by rival teams for their lack of success, especially in recent times. They get referred to as the “nearly men” of the league and on several occasions have had chances to win the league but been able to get over the line. One of the most infamous came in 2015/16 when they finished third to Leicester City and Arsenal but had several chances to win it themselves.
But, they have been league champions on two separate occasions in the clubs history, back in 1951 and 1961. Unfortunately, since then the club have had a baron run and it’s only been over the last few years since they have broken into the top 6 on a consistent basis have people started to ask questions about whether they can win the league or not.
The cup competitions have been much kinder to the club and has been their main form of success for the most part. They have been able to win the FA Cup a total of 8 times, the join-third most, alongside Chelsea and behind both Arsenal and Manchester United. They are also one of few teams that have managed to win back to back FA Cup’s in 1981 and then again in 1982.
The League Cup is Spurs’ most recent major piece of silverware, with their latest win coming in 2007-08 season. What made the win that little be sweeter was the fact they were able to beat an inform Chelsea team thanks to a Jonathan Woodgate winner in extra time. Tottenham have won the League Cup a total of 4 times in their existence.
Finally, their domestic record is capped with 7 Community Shield victories, stretching from 1921 through to 1991. Although, it is worth noting that three of these occasions were shared, as the format used to be that the shield would go to both teams if it ended in a draw. This has now been changed a winner will be decided on the day, be it via extra time and penalties if needed.
You’d think that given the limited success Spurs has seen over the decades in domestic football compared to most of the Big Six, the success in Europe would have been limited. But, they have been about to snag the coveted trophy of the UEFA Cup (now Europa League) on two occasions in 1972 and 1984. The win in 1972 was actually played against Wolverhampton Wanderers, where Spurs were able to hold on to a 1-2 victory in the first leg, to draw 1-1 in the second and take the cup. The second final in 1984 was equally as close, with Spurs beating R.S.C. Anderlecht 4-3 on penalties after two 1-1 draws both at home and away from home.
Major Rivalries
It’s no secret that Spurs’ biggest rivals come in the form of their north London counterparts, Arsenal. It’s one of the biggest rivalries in the history of the game and is the first fixture that both sets of fans look forward to.
However, being from London, there’s some sort of rivalry with pretty much all teams from within the area. Aside from Arsenal, it’s West Ham that have a strong relationship with Spurs, although some Spurs fans do think that this is more West Ham than them.
However, the two teams have been pretty evenly matched for long parts of their history. They were both famed for having heavy handed “firms” that used to represent each team and often match days there were as many fireworks off the pitch as well as on the pitch.