Jol begins journey into the unknown

From Ossie Ardiles to Jurgen Klinsmann, Tottenham have a long tradition of persuading football's glitterati to join their club. The swagger and confidence with which their teams once played the game transcended to the boardroom and, over the years, there have been some remarkable transfer coups.

But, while fans drooled over the latest mesmeric playmaker or freescoring striker, at some point the distinction between on and off-field recruitment became blurred. Suddenly Spurs not only needed big-name players, but big- name managers as well.

This century, George Graham, Glenn Hoddle and Jacques Santini have come and gone to little effect and, while stars such as Jermain Defoe and Robbie Keane keep on arriving, the prospects of silverware and European football look ever more remote.

Now chairman Daniel Levy has ordered a change in direction and that means pinning his hopes on a 48-year-old Dutchman with no coaching experience beyond his domestic league and a limited pedigree as a player. It is true that Levy's hand has been forced by the shock departure of Santini, but he is convinced the elevation of ambitious assistant coach Martin Jol will turn out to be an inspired move.

Levy said: "We have had some fantastic candidates in the past. They all have different qualities and as always with these things you need a lot of luck. With Martin, he was already here, he knows all the players, they respect him.

"It was really a very easy decision. My phone has been ringing like mad over the last couple of days with some of the biggest names in football, but it is not about having big names, it is about having the right person.

"Tottenham have gone through a period of always wanting a big name, but a big name doesn't necessarily lead to success. Frank Arnesen [the club's sporting director] believes, with the backing of the board, that Martin is the right guy and we will give him every support possible."

Given that Jol's lack of top-level experience - his previous coaching jobs were with Roda JC and RKC Waalwijk - the Spurs board did discuss the possibility of a caretaker role until the end of the season when his position would be reassessed.

But Levy, who has awarded Jol a three-year contract, said: "I think a short-term appointment would have created further uncertainty. In any case, we didn't need one because we think we have the right man.

"He clearly understands football. He can have fun with the players as well as being strict with them. The players clearly respect him, he understands English football and also the type of football that Spurs fans want to see and he's an excellent communicator. You put all those things together and hopefully we have the makings of an excellent head coach."

For Jol, it is the opportunity to enter the coaching big league by becoming the man who finally revives the fortunes of north London's poor relation. He said: "When you don't dare, you don't do. How could I walk away from the unbelievable challenge of being head coach of Tottenham Hotspur? One of the things Spurs needs is results. It should not be possible for a big club like this to go 10 or 15 years without success so I am hoping we can bring it.

"We want to be in the top half and then we will build on that. I think it is not only about structure or confidence or spirit, you have to be a bit lucky as well."

In his favour, Jol worked with a technical director at RKC for six years and was accustomed to coaching players that he did not sign. At Spurs, he will face the same scenario with Arnesen taking overall responsibility for transfer policy.

Jol said: "I had influence in my last job and I expect it to be the same here. I talk to Frank every day and if I don't like a player I will tell him and he can then make up his mind."

Levy's continental system has been much criticised for generating conflicts between the head coach and the technical director. But at yesterday's club AGM, he launched a staunch defence. Levy said: "After Glenn Hoddle went, I thought something has got to be wrong so I talked to a lot of clubs in Europe as well as some clubs in the UK.

"I wanted to take a hard look at what we were doing wrong. It brought home some of my concerns. Take Sergei Rebrov as an example. He was bought under George Graham and then Glenn Hoddle came in.

"He decided that he didn't think too highly of him and suddenly this club had lost £16million - which was the total cost of the Rebrov transaction.

"I thought this can't go on, it's not sustainable in the long term. So I wanted to minimise the risk of that situation happening again.

"When I spoke to some of the bigger clubs in Europe, they operate with a technical director who has expertise in spotting talent, the negotiation of player contracts, the scouting network, the medical set-up, the youth development. In other words, he is looking at all other aspects except the motivation and the selection of the first team.

"They employ a dedicated coach whose role is purely to motivate and select the first team. He will be judged on results of the first team.

"Over the past few days, unfortunately Jacques has left us and another coach has arrived. But there are going to be no other changes within the squad just because the coach has changed.

"If we were operating the traditional English structure of a manager overseeing everything, we would now be looking at major wholesale changes. That is something in the long-term which the club cannot afford. This system gives the club a lot of protection. It's very clear. Martin's role is purely and simply the first team."

The system may be clear, but whether Spurs have the right technicians to make it work remains to be seen.

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