White Hot Lines

OCTOBER 98

31.10.98
  • Paolo Tramezzani has had to pay for his operation on his ankle himself and sign a waiver to absolve the club of any responsibility for the outcome. This was the only way that Tottenham would let him be treated by the Belgian surgeon, Marc Martens.
  • Rumours are starting to circulate that Nicola Berti may soon be placed on the transfer list. Since George Graham's arrival at Tottenham, the former Inter midifelder has been notable by his absence from the first team.

30.10.98

  • Tottenham are to start contract talks with Allan Nielsen. The Dane has impressed George Graham and may win a two year extension to his contract.
  • John Scales is out to make sure the new manager does not drop him. After all his injuries since arriving at Spurs, he wants to make himself Sol's central defence partner .
  • Les Ferdinand is fighting to be fit for the Charlton match on Monday. His recovery may have been aided by the fact that both Iversen and Armstrong scoring in his absence.

29.10.98

  • Newspaper reports indicate that Spurs are set to bid £9 million for Blackburn's Chris Sutton.
  • Adidas have pulled out of the proposed £20 million four year kit deal with Spurs. The deal had nothing to do with the appointment of George Graham, it was just that the company did not want to put so much money into one club.
  • Paolo Tramezzani will be having an operation on his achilles tendon injury in London in the next few days.
  • While the club are keeping tabs on the Matt Elliott contract saga, they are also rumoured to be watching the situation at Molineux, where Dean Richards is set to be cashed in on at some stage before his contract expires. Man U, Arsenal and Liverpool have also been linked.
  • Wimbledon have signed Port Vale winger Gareth Ainsworth for £2 million. Tottenham had been linked to the 26 year old wide man.
  • Tottenham's Worthington Cup 4th round tie at Liverpool will be shown live on Sky on Monday 9th November.

28.10.98

  • Tottenham have been drawn away to Liverpool in the 4th round of the Worthington Cup.
  • Transfer fever is again surrounding Tottenham with links being made with Johann Mjallby of AIK Stockholm (£2 million), Chris Sutton (£11 million) and more unlikely Matt Elliott (£4 million).
  • Tottenham Reserves beat Bournemouth 3-1 at Clarence Park, St. Albans tonight with goals from Paul McVeigh and Jose Dominguez (2).

27.10.98

  • Tottenham beat Northampton Town at the Sixfields Stadium by 3-1. They fell behind to a Parrish goal, but replied with Armstrong(2) and Campbell grabbing the goals to give Spurs a place in round four.
  • George Graham is set to bid for Soren Colding, the Danish World Cup defender. Newcastle are also interested, but once Bronby's Champions League effort is over, he may join Allan Nielsen at White Hart Lane.
  • Chris Hughton looks set to be appointed as George Graham's assistant, following O'Leary's acceptance of the Leeds job and a rumour about George Armstrong seems to have been just that.
  • The Matt Elliott transfer rumour has found little favour with Martin O'Neill, who has described it as "a load of baloney". Elliott is due to have talks regarding a new contract and Tottenham's interest may have put a doubt in his mind about signing.
  • Dion Dublin looks set to leave Coventry with Blackburn Rovers looking favourites to sign him. If this is the case, Chris Sutton may be surplus to requirements at Ewood Park.

26.10.98

  • Paolo Tramezzani is in dispute with George Graham after wanting to go to Belgium to be operated on by surgeon Marc Martens. It is something commonly done in Italy, but GG is threatening to cut his salary by half unless he has the op nearer to London.
  • Nicola Berti has said that not all Italians are treated as well as they are at Chelsea - I think Gianfranco Zola may say differently !!
  • Steffen Iversen is set to start in place of the achilles victim, Les Ferdinand, at Northampton Town. Les may be out for several weeks, but until the ankle has had time to rest, the full extent of the injury will not be known.
  • Andy Sinton is being looked at as the experienced winger the club may wish to bring in. The move may be on loan initially, with a view to a permanent deal. He may not wish to drop down two divisions though.
  • Tottenham had scouts at a lot of games on Saturday, apparently, with the main focus on Tony Lock of Colchester United. He managed to score twice before the game was called off at half-time because of a waterlogged pitch.

25.10.98

  • The Sunday papers are again playing the transfer guessing game with Tottenham linked with Andre Bergdolmo, a defender who plays for Rosenborg and is valued at around £1.5 million. Also rumoured to be on his way is Keith Gillespie, who will be valued nearer £4 million should he be allowed to leave Newcastle. George Graham has also apparently expressed interest in bringing Matt Elliott to Tottenham from Leicester City. He would cost about £4 million, but may be tempted away from Filbert Street by the lure of a big club and a hefty wage packet.
  • Reports surfacing in today's newspapers are linking Tottenham with a move for Arsenal's George Armstrong, should David O'Leary stay at Leeds. this would increase the already prominent Highbury link within the backroom staff.

24.10.98

  • Tottenham beat Newcastle United with two goals by Steffen Iversen at White Hart Lane.
  • George Graham has spoken about his training methods and he thinks that it is alright to have a few laughs if you are top of the League, otherwise it's a serious business.
  • Newspaper reports say Tottenham transfer target Gareth Ainsworth of Port Vale is set to join Wimbledon next week in a £1.5 million deal.

23.10.98

  • Allan Nielsen will hope to be available for the Charlton match on November 2 after progressing well with his thigh injury, despite a blood clot hampering his recovery. He is included in the squad for the Newcastle match, but it may be too early for an appearance.
  • A planning application has been made to the local council for the East and West stands to be extended. This would increase capacity to 48,000, but would only take place in the next five years should demand for seats require the works.

22.10.98

  • Mark Arber has been allowed to extend his loan at Barnet for a further month, but George Graham will not sanction a permanent deal with the Third Division club.
  • Sol Campbell and Colin Calderwood will not face FA charges over the Derby tunnel incident.
  • George Graham was at the Rosenborg v Galatasaray European Champions League match last night and it is rumoured he may have been watching Sigurd Rushfeldt, who scored a hat-trick. Spurs scouts were also reportedly at the Huddersfield Town v Sunderland game.
  • Tottenham Hotspur plc's profits fell by 29% in the last financial year and this has been blamed on the rising price of transfers and the increasing wage demands of the players.

21.10.98

  • George hits out at team as they "need to defend more as a unit".
  • There are rumours of heavy transfer activity in the coming weeks at Tottenham with ins and outs, but where the incoming players will be from is a mystery.
  • Ginola may be in Graham's bad books after a needless yellow card for dissent at Leicester has earned him a one-match ban for the Charlton game.
  • Goals by Ross Darcy, Chris Armstrong and Steffen Iversen (2) gave Tottenham Reserves a 4-1 win over their Oxford United counterparts tonight.

20.10.98

  • Players will have to work harder in matches under George Graham when they have not got the ball. Graham was happy with the effort put into last night's 1-2 defeat at Leicester, but said he expected them to work harder off the ball.
  • Tim Sherwood has turned down a contract at Blackburn Rovers and has cited the club as being unambitious.
  • Darren Anderton has pledged his future to the club. He considers Tottenham to have a bright future under George Graham and loves the club, so would like to extend his contract beyond the one year it has to run.
  • Frank Leboeuf has backed David Ginola following his substitution in last night's game at Leicester. he said David is Spurs' best player and he could not understand the manager if he did not play Ginola.
  • George Graham may find it hard to spend £20 million transfer money. He said he wants to bring in top class, experienced players, but nobody wants to sell at the moment.

19.10.98

  • Gary Mabbutt has been linked with the vacant manager's job at Carlisle.
  • George Graham has said that any new signings will be put straight into the first team and will be ready to play for the club.
  • Celtic have denied interest in Les Ferdinand. It is felt that the Scottish club's chairman could see no resale value in buying somebody of Les' age.

18.10.98

  • Tottenham have been mentioned in the same sentence as a number of players in the Sunday press. Robbie Keane of Wolves, Haim Revivo - a 26 year old Israeli striker playing for Celta Vigo and John Carew - a 19 year old striker with Valerengen of Norway, who is rated at £4.5 million.
  • Sol Campbell can captain England in the future according to George Graham.

17.10.98

  • Celtic are rumoured to be interested in buying Les Ferdinand from Tottenham for £3.5 million it was reported today.
  • Tottenham meanwhile have been linked with a £6 million move for Eyal Berkovic, following his bust-up with Hammers team-mate, John Hartson in training recently.

16.12.98

  • Chris Hughton is not fazed by the arrival of George Graham. He has been on the coaching staff while many managers have come and gone and is happy to get on with his job as the top man makes his assessments of the staff.

15.10.98

  • Justin Edinburgh is going to try to prove to George Graham that he has a future at White Hart Lane. The 27 year old full back would like to continue his career at Tottenham, having played over 300 games already for the club and in his recent good form, is trying to maintain his place in the side.
  • Allan Nielsen and Les Ferdinand are training again after their injuries and could feature in the Monday night game at Leicester.
  • Ex-Spur Jason Dozzell has joined Colchester United after being released by Northampton Town.
  • Blackburn have issued a hands off warning to Tottenham over Chris Sutton. They claim he is not for sale and is happy at the club. Heard that before somewhere, I think.

14.10.98

  • Tottenham have denied reports that they are to sell Sol Campbell and David Ginola
  • The club have also poured cold water on the stories speculating that they are set to bid for Keith Gillespie and Chris Sutton.
  • Stephen Clemence hopes to be fit for Tottenham's trip to Leicester City on Monday.

13.10.98

  • Stephen Clemance has had to pull out of the England Under-21's game against Luxembourg due to injury and Sol Campbell has also picked up a knock after the Bulgaria maych on Saturday, although it is not believed to be serious. Les Ferdinand received an injury in training with Tottenham towards the end of last week.
  • Ruel Fox will have talks with George Graham in the next few weeks as his contract is up at the end of the season and he will be free to leave under the Bosman ruling. Boro' still show interest and Graham may decide to cash in on the winger sooner rather than lose him for nothing later.
  • Paris St. germain have reportedly had talks with David Ginola about a return to his old club. Artur Jorge, his manager at the club when he was there in the early nineties, would like him to return, but Tottenham have dismissed it as speculation. However, rumours are circulating that Keith Gillespie of Newcastle may be lined up as a replacement should Ginola want to go back to France.
  • Spurs Reserves won 2-0 at home to Wimbledon tonight with goals from Gain and Armstrong.

12.10.98

  • Barnet have tried to sign Mark Arber on a permanent basis, but Tottenham have refused. He will however, spend a further month on loan at Underhill.
  • Steffen Iversen has been called up for the Norway squad to face Albania on Wednesday.
  • Stephen Carr may make his first appearance for the Eire team against Malta on Wednesday, as Dennis Irwin is injured.

11.10.98

  • Tottenham have been watching Kingstonian's 18 year old striker Gavin Holligan. The player has attracted some Nationwide club scouts, but only Spurs from the Premiership.

10.10.98

  • Sol Campbell was voted as Man of the Match as England drew a disappointing game with Bulgaria at Wembley 0-0. Darren Anderton also played before being substituted after an hour. His main contribution was to receive a yellow card.
  • Tottenham representatives were allegedly at Watford today to watch their game with Birmingham City and in particular, Dele Adebola, the tall striker. Speculation that he may be a target for Graham could spell the end of Les Ferdinand's Spurs career.
  • Mark Bosnich's rumoured move to AS Roma has caused a protest from the Jewish community in the Italian city. The infamous "Nazi Salute" incident at White Hart Lane has been raised as a potential hurdle to the move being completed as the leader of the Jewish people in Rome has said that to sign him would be offensive to them, many of whom support the club.

9.10.98

  • Darren Anderton has passed a fitness test on his injured thigh and is available for England against Bulgaria tomorrow.
  • Ruel Fox is interesting Middlesbrough once more.
  • George Graham is to watch Gareth Ainsworth on Sunday when Port Vale are playing. The winger caught his eye and he was keen to buy him for the Elland Road club. He may be released from Vale Park for a fee around £2 million.
  • Chris Sutton has hinted that he sees his immediate future at Blackburn Rovers, but Tim Sherwood is still linking himself with a move to Tottenham if they are still interested.
  • If the Spurs players thought it was hard work under Christian Gross, then George Graham could surprise them. He intends to reintroduce the hard running sessions on Tuesday that the squad endured under Gerry Francis and to double the agony by doing the same on Thursdays. There will be a regime of shuttle runs and long distance runs to get the team to become one of the fittest in the Premier League.

8.10.98

  • Les Ferdinand has been told by Glenn Hoddle that if he rediscovers his scoring form, he still has a future with the England squad.
  • Darren Anderton may miss England's Euro 2000 qualifier with Bulgaria on Saturday with an injured thigh.
  • Johann Mjallby has said that he would like to come and play in the Premiership with Tottenham as George Graham is a manager he admires and he is also a big Spurs fan.
  • Tim Sherwood is to spend the weekend considering his future at Blackburn Rovers. It has been rumoured that Rovers may be in the chase for David Batty as a replacement for Sherwood, should he decide to return South.
  • George Graham is having his post checked by the Royal Mail, just like M.P.'s, for suspect packages. He has received a lot of hate mail since he took over at White Hart Lane and the monitoring will be maintained until the fuss has died down.
  • Stephen Carr is on standby for the Republic of Ireland's Euro 2000 qualifying game against Malta on Wednesday. The fitness doubts over a couple of defenders may see the Tottenham full-back win his first full cap.

7.10.98

  • Andy Sinton is hoping to be match fit soon after his knee injury. His two appearances as substitute will ba built on with a starting place for the reserves.
  • Allan Nielsen was rushed to hospital after a training match collision with Jon Dahl Tomasson while on duty with Denmark. His thigh muscle was injured and it was believed that there was some internal bleeding.
  • David Pleat said today that Tottenham had watched Johann Mjallby prior to the England match, but he was one that they were not pursuing at the moment.

6.10.98

  • Tim Sherwood has been told that he will be made to honour his contract at Ewood Park. His "come and get me" plea to Spurs yesterday looks to be going unheeded and he will be a Blackburn player for the foreseeable future.
  • David O'Leary has quashed rumours that he will be joining George Graham at Tottenham saying "If I was going to run after George I would have done it by now." However, other rpeorts indicate that he may be surplus to requirements if Martin O'Neill gets the Leeds job and could link up with his former boss again. According to Sky Sports Online, O'Leary's wife's family are all Spurs fans !!!!
  • The Tottenham staff have about four weeks to impress the new manager. He is said to be looking at the squad and backroom boys to determine where he needs to bring people in. He has said that he will not be taking a training session until next week, after the International games are over, but he has been impressed with the spirit at the club.
  • Colin Calderwood has professed his innocence in the Derby Tunnel affair. A 48 year old steward had a sprained thumb and a broken bone in his hand after trying to interject in the tunnel tussle and the FA are to study the ref's report before deciding on any further action.
  • Darren Anderton has praised Eileen Drewery's laying on of hands which reduced the swelling in his knee. It helped him return much quicker than he first imagined.
  • It is thought that George Graham had a £1 million bid for Swede, Johann Mjallby, turned down in the summer and now that he may leave AIK Stockholm for England, the new Spurs boss may return to get his man. Wimbledon withdrew their interest in the player over the last week, so he may be a target for Graham.
  • Both Jurgen Klinsmann and Nicola Berti played in Andreas Brehme's Testamonial match for the World All Stars v Kaiserslauten tonight.

5.10.98

  • Tim Sherwood has said he is keen to join up with George Graham at Tottenham. He is not happy about the way other top players have been allowed to leave Blackburn and wants to return South.
  • Police are to investigate the happenings in the tunnel after saturday's game at derby.
  • Rumours abound that Tottenham may be in the chase for Marc Vivian Foe, the 23 year old Lens and Cameroon defender. Man U are favourites to sign the big centre-half.
  • David Pleat has hinted that Tottenham are not in a position to make any big money transfers at the moment.
  • Spurs reserves lost 1-0 to Chelsea tonight.

4.10.98

  • Teddy Sheringham has criticised Alan Sugar in excerpts from his book published int he News of the World today. He has warned George Graham that the club will never be successful while he is the Chairman.
  • Newspaper reports detail a scuffle that took place in the tunnel as the players left the pitch after yesterday's match at Pride Park. Sol Campbell, Colin Calderwood and Fransesco Baiano were said to be involved and a steward was injured on the arm trying to seperate the players. David Pleat has said that there was a lot of shouting and squaring up to each other, but no punches were thrown. He added that the referee would not be mentioning it in his report.
  • Aston Villa are to join the race to sign David Batty from Newcastle United.
  • George Graham was apparently offered a £10 million five year deal by Leeds in an attempt to stop him joining Tottenham. The deal involved him taking a Director of Football post and leaving David O'Leary with responsibilities for the management of the first team.
  • George Graham has said that he intends to assess the backroom staff currently at Tottenham before deciding whether he will bring in any new personnel. He has also stated that he is happy to work with David Pleat and that the caretaker manager would now be reverting to his Director of Football role, taking charge of the Academy, youth teams and scouting. Graham made it clear that he would identify the players he would want to buy and also decide on which players would leave the club.
  • Rumours reported in the Sunday newspapers is linking Tony Adams with a move to Tottenham as player-coach.

3.10.98

  • Ferdinand and Fox have welcomed George Graham as Spurs boss. Ferdie thinks that although the players will have to work hard to impress him, he is the right man to bring the good times back to White Hart Lane.
  • Tottenham win at Derby County 1-0, thanks to a headed Sol Campbell goal from David Ginola's free-kick after 60 minutes of the match.

2.10.98

  • George Graham has denied that David Ginola does not fit into his plans. In fact, when at Arsenal, he treid to sign the Frenchmen following a tie against Paris St. Germain. However, the winger may have to prove that he can adapt to Graham's requirements for the team's tactics.
  • David Pleat has confirmed that Tottenham have an interest in Kieron Dyer, the Ipswich England U-21 player. It is thought that they may have to move quickly, because Newcastle are preparing a bid of £5 million to secure his services.
  • George Graham is being linked to moves for players at his previous club. Leeds stars Nigel Martyn, Lucas Radebe and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink have all been put forward as possible transfer targets for the new Spurs boss.
  • Speculation still surrounds the man who will become Graham's No.2 at Tottenham. He has said that he will give everybody at the club an opportunity to prove themself, but it is considered that he may bring in his own assistant from outside. David O'Leary has had a change of heart and has now stated that he does not want the manager's job at Elland Road, thus sparking stories that he is set to follow his former Arsenal boss to White Hart Lane. Another rumour is that Stewart Houston, currently with Ipswich may be appointed to help Graham. With Theo Foley already installed at Tottenham as Reserve Team Coach, it could provide a whole new ex-Arsenal backroom staff.

1.10.98

  • TOTTENHAM ANNOUNCE THAT GEORGE GRAHAM IS TO BE NEW MANAGER. At a press conference this afternoon, Alan Sugar introduced the ex-Arsenal boss as the replacement for Christian Gross and he will be on a four year contract at White Hart Lane. He is believed to be on a salry of £1.5 million p.a. and will have around £18 million to spend on new players.
  • Tottenham are to claim £6000 from the FA for the injury suffered by Darren Anderton while on England duty v Sweden. The wages for his absence of three weeks are set to be paid for by the national association.

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