Tim Sherwood's stock is rising

Tim Sherwood conducted himself admirably on Goal on Sunday at the weekend, worked for ITV on the Cup Final and has been speaking to TalkSPORT, an in demand guy at the moment.

Tim Sherwood's stock is rising

What he has had to say the supporters could see for themselves. His stock in many supporters eyes is rising because he is not bad mouthing a club he has always given his best for. To the radio station he said:

"I never had no bust-ups [with Daniel Levy], and I don't know if he took exception to anything I said [in interviews], but if he did, he knows Tim Sherwood. He's known Tim Sherwood for eight years previously, and if he thought I was going to change, then he was mistaken wasn't he.

"I think [Spurs] is bigger than any player or individual that goes in there and I think that sometimes it's right to act on behalf of the club when you think that there are players thinking they're doing the club a favour by turning out for them.

"A club like Tottenham should not have those players around the place, and I was trying sieve those players out and I would have done if I had longer to do it, and the club would have benefited from that."

Yet more common sense from Sherwood. It was abundantly clear that the mental attitude that is everything in football was missing at Tottenham. I looked at this in the Spurs Need To Go Mental series that covered a range of topics, including how to make 48 small improvements for each player.

Unless you have played sport and played sport to win, not just to enjoy, then the mental side is not something fans are really familiar with. Sandro, Vertonghen, Capoue and Paulinho were four classic examples this season.

All are quality players but all were nowhere near their best. Capoue expected to be first choice and bleated and tried to leave when he wasn't, hardle the attitude of someone fighting for the club.

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Sandro was 50% the player he normally is because he didn't want Sherwood there, Paulinho coasted, winged and let us know he has a lazy streak while Vertonghen simply went through the motions as if he were playing a pub team on a Sunday morning.

I don't care who the manager is, what your problem with him is, that is simply totally unacceptable. Backsides had to be kicked, so Sherwood kicked them.

The result, was a points tally only bettered by Man City, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool during his spell in charge. By the time the Chelsea result came around I think he knew his time was up unless he produced results that the players hadn't a hope of producing thanks to their mental state. That frustrated him and he let them know and us. How he did it may not have been to the taste of everyone but there can be no doubt a few of them needed to hear it.

Now that is not to say their attitude won't change next season with a new boss, Sandro has shown before he can give it everything. That's a decision for the new boss and he has to make it this summer, once the season starts it's too late.

On Goals on Sunday he said:

"I wouldn't do it if I knew it was a five-month job. I was happy where I was, I love the development phase of football, which I think is very poor in England because there's not enough kids getting opportunities. But the club was in a difficult position and it is a club close to our hearts. 

"We always knew if you go into the firing line as a manager your head is going to be on the block and it might be a short tenure. In the end it proved that but I didn't anticipate it would be as short as it actually was. If I had 18 months there I would definitely have taken that club forward."

What he says about youth development is very true, he transformed how we deal with youth which will impact on the club for years to come. Both Bentaleb and Kane showed that given the chance youth can play a part for the club, it doesn't always have to go our and buy a player.

If Sherwood's legacy is that we give youth a greater chance then his ytime as Head Coach will have all been worth the heartache it caused some.

"Gareth Bale has shown what he can do. Last night he scored his 20th goal in La Liga in his first season. He's missed a lot of games due to injury as well. He's top drawer. He's a game changer, not just a good player. We've had fantastic players in Luka Modric, who is a good linker but Bale changes games. It makes managers sleep easy with Bale in your team. He's a freak of nature. 

"You have to resist selling players of that quality because they don't come around. Tottenham could have kept him but you'd have to pay him way and above what anyone would ever be earning at the club. But is he worth it? I think the Tottenham fans would say yes and I'd certainly say yes. I'd have loved to have a season with Gareth Bale."

In an ideal world yes we would pay him £250,000 a week but we don't have that money and he was set on leaving anyway, refusing to play, train or do photo opportunities in the Far East showed that.

"Stats don't lie. When we got the opportunity, which we were very proud to have, from Daniel Levy, he didn't put any pressure on us to finish in the top four. I had a frank conversation with him and told him it was going to be very, very difficult to finish in the top four. I was honest with him. 

"He admitted that it was pretty much accurate, what I was saying, but what he did say was 'can you try to make us a little bit more attractive, score a few more goals'. In the remaining games in the Premier League we managed to score 40 goals so I certainly ticked that box. 

"Unfortunately we couldn't break into that top four. We got into the Europa League, played well in a large number of games and brought Tottenham back to the fans, we achieved that."

On a purely points basis Sherwood did a good job but you could never see the club competing against the top four with the football being produced. We were relying on a bit of brilliance from Eriksen and Adebayor instead of Bale. Two to paper over the cracks instead of one.

"The reasons are they want to choose another manager to take them forward. Tottenham have had eight managers under Daniel Levy. Every decision he makes is in the best interests of Tottenham Football Club. It's nothing personal against me or any other previous manager that's gone. He lives and dies by those decisions. 

"I didn't expect reasons. I'm not bitter about it. I'm sure they want a whole package. Obviously it's not only based on results because the results were there. Every club have got different ideas of what they want from their manager."

The points tally and the youth development can't be knocked but would Sherwood have been able to do both. Half the squad would have left, Vertonghen, Sandro, Paulinho, Capoue to name just a few apart from the ones Sherwood was going to weed out himself. That would have meant another upheaval this summer, not exactly what the club needed.

It really was a him or us situation so with last summers investment Sherwood had to go.

"I think he is [Levy good for Spurs]. You want to leave the football club in a better position than when you went in and if Levy left tomorrow Tottenham is in a better position than when he went into it. One million per cent. 

"We've got the best training facility in the league, we're in the process of building a new stadium which will be up there with the best in Europe. What he has to get right is what's happening on the field but all the infrastructure around that he gets it spot on. 

"Every decision he makes might not be correct but it's what he perceives to be for the best at the time and you can't knock him for that."

I entirely agree Tim, having supported the club for nearly 50 years I remember where we were and see where we are now. It's a different world. Back than it was more about football, now it's more about money buying trophies.

"All those new players will benefit and next year they'll be better. We can't write them off yet. You have to give them time. Christian Eriksen was the pick of the bunch and really did affect what happened on the pitch."

He did under Tim Sherwood for the last 2 months of the season but prior to that he was just an average player who showed flashes now and again. Hugo Lloris must be wondering what he would have to do to get player of the year!

"Speculation was always there. At the press conferences they were always asking about this one and that manager. A lot of managers got mentioned. Then the managers started to take the bait and get quoted on it which I thought was a little disrespectful. Then it became more rife. 

"There's no smoke without fire but it became an inferno in the end with the whole fire brigade from London needing to put it out. Then the players started talking about it. It was a difficult situation I was in but I just had to be professional." 

Towards the end it got silly, every other question was about his future in a press conference and Spurs did themselves no favours they way he was treated, phoning replacements up behind his back basically and lying, although technically not lying, to the public about it. It was a mess and you had to have sympathy for the guy.

"I wear my heart on my sleeve but if I felt that rant at Chelsea harmed the team I would have taken note of that and learnt from that. I'm here to learn, I'm new into management, but I think I'm good at the job and I think I've got a good team I could take to any Premiership club and do very, very well. But it's about getting the opportunity to do it. 

"I would consider any job that's out there. I'd like an honest conversation with the chairman of any club that's interested and see what the expectations are of that club. I'd tell them what I think I could deliver, what I can actually do and not try to pretend I'm someone I'm not. It's easy to tell them what they want to hear but then they'd be scratching their heads saying 'this is an imposter'."

Tottenham have had a series of imposters for which you have to raise questions about the recruitment process. Mentally Sherwood is a winner, some of the players under him at Spurs were not, telling them caused problems though.

Iv'e talked about how we need to become world class in assessing mentality if we are to steal a march on our competition and punch above our weight. Buying players who have a winning mentality is essential to success but they need a manager in the same ilk. Sherwood just need time to find the best way to get his message across. Louis Van Gaal is similar in attitude, you do it my way or get out the club.

"We [Baldini] had a good relationship. I think he has a hand in picking the players but I would have to say I don't think he brings in a player who the manager does not sanction. It's a team effort. The players that are at the club at the moment were sanctioned by Andre Villas-Boas. 

"I think possibly they weren't the first choices in every case but they worked down the list of the types which were required. The role Franco does, it would be good for the supporters to realise what they do. He comes into play when it's the transfer window, he manages a team of scouts and helps with recruitment.

"I think these guys work in the right way but they have to see the merits in what the manager wants otherwise everyone's pointing the finger at everyone else."

Once again Tim is spot on, the supporters should know the role of each staff member at the club, I'd love to know what Steffen Freund's role is, he doesn't seem to have one at the moment.

With experience Tim Sherwood is going to develop into an excellent manager and one I would not be at all surprised at if he ended up in the England job in years to come. Perhaps Roy Hodgson should take him under his wing.