Sloppy. Careless. Checked Out. Spurs' Mentality Crisis Isn’t New — I’ve Been Warning About It for Years
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| I'm at a loss to understand why football doesn't take mentality training more seriously |
It’s time for Tottenham Hotspur to lead football out of the psychological dark ages
Simon Jordan didn’t pull his punches on talkSPORT.
“They’re [Spurs] sloppy. Careless. They’re not doing it for themselves... or the manager.”
He’s right — but he’s late.
Because I’ve been saying this for years.
Whilst this is a dip in form...
It’s not about Ange Postecoglou’s tactics.
It’s a mentality crisis...
And it runs deep through Tottenham Hotspur Football Club...
And into the fanbase.
🧠 The Real Issue? A Lack of Structured Mentality Training
Tottenham Hotspur — like far too many clubs — still rely on the same outdated model:
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Buy talent.
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Hope they gel.
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Hope they care.
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Sack the manager if they don’t.
But hope isn’t a plan.
Football is still decades behind in one crucial area: sports psychology.
The All Blacks, the most successful rugby team in history, have baked it into their DNA.
In cricket, Olympic sports, and even Formula One...
Mindset training is core curriculum.
So why is football...
The world’s richest sport...
Still treating mentality as an afterthought?
🔁 The Same Players, The Same Mental Mistakes
Simon Jordan rightly called out Cristian Romero.
It’s not just about performance. It’s about mindset.
Romero plays like he’s auditioning, not leading.
Bissouma caught inhaling nitrous oxide mid-season?
That’s not a player with a winning mentality.
That’s a player disconnected from the mission.
These are not isolated incidents/
They’re symptoms of a club that has no consistent mental performance culture.
And neither does the fanbase.
🔎 What I’ve Been Calling For
For years, I’ve argued that sports psychologists should be a compulsory part of training...
Not a bolt-on.
Not a last resort.
Not optional if a player admits they have a mentality problem.
The players who have a mentality problem...
Are the players who don't know they have a mentality problem!
So how are they optionally going to fix a problem...
They don't even know they have?
It is not just for youth development.
Not something players go to if they’re “struggling.”
Not something undertaken for mental heath...
And haven't we had our share of mental health problems.
We need something radically different:
A structured, club-wide mentality program built into daily routines — like a gym session for the brain.
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Each player’s true motivations (not the ones they say on camera) should be identified by a trained psychologist.
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That insight should be fed directly to the manager and coaching team.
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If a player is dropped from the squad? The psychologist should explain how that relates to his personal goals — and what he must do to get back on track. That means how to mentally approach the challenge, not tell them to curl the ball into the net for half an hour.
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If a player sulks or switches off? That’s a signal, and the mentality coach should be involved — immediately.
It’s time to track mentality as carefully as we track running stats.
⚪ Why Tottenham Hotspur Should Lead This Revolution
If Tottenham Hotspur want to break the cycle...
Of near-misses...
Of folding in big moments...
Of always being the “almost” team...
We must lead football out of the psychological dark ages.
The club has the vision.
The fanbase has the passion.
Now, it needs the backbone — and that starts with mindset.
Not slogans.
Not vibes.
But a system.
A structured, daily program that ensures players don’t just train their feet...
They train their minds.
🧠 Ange Needs Help — Not Doubt
I still believe Ange Postecoglou could be the right man for Tottenham Hotspur.
Just the same as previous managers could be the right men for Spurs.
But he or any of them have shown cannot do it alone.
This isn't a Daniel Levy issue.
It's a coaching issue.
The recurring mentality problem should be identified...
And fixed...
Otherwise, it just reoccurs.
I'll repeat the coach's mantra to you again...
Fix the root cause.
The root cause is not Daniel Levy.
The root cause is the mentality.
I appreciate that comes from the top...
But this is the coach's problem...
He is the one who should be devising the solution...
That's what he is paid for.
But no coach has been taught to include mentality training...
On the scale I band on about...
So they leave players to their own devices...
And learn from experience.
Well, it is human nature for 80-85% of them to give up...
To stop playing for the manager...
To force a change.
Why?
Because they want an easy life with a guaranteed place in the team...
With as little effort as possible.
It's a cop out.
If the players have “given up on him [Postecoglou],” as Simon Jordan claims ...
Then the solution isn’t another manager.
It’s a mentality overhaul.
The kind I’ve been calling for over and over again.
Because tactics don’t matter if the players mentally check out.
And sitting 17th in the Premier League, even with a shot at Europa League glory, exposes just how hollow the mental foundation really is.
Ange doesn’t need sacking.
He needs a team of players with a winning mindset.
He needs Tottenham Hotspur to step into the future...
And finally, start training the brain as much as the body.
We have had two of the best coaches in the world...
And the players didn't want to play for them.
They checked out...
They stopped performing.
Nothing to do with signings.
Everything to do with player mentality.
Until that change happens, the cycle will repeat.
And no trophy will hide the truth:
Mentality wins titles. Weak minds don’t.
THBN The Final Thought
If you finish 17th and win the Europa League, as Jordan said, what does that say about the competition?
Maybe the better question is:
What does it say about our standards?
It’s time for those standards to rise.
And it starts in the one place football still ignores —
the mind.
COYS
The article to read if you haven't already: Forget Talent – This Is Why New Zealand Wins and Tottenham Doesn’t (Yet) - how Tottenham Hotspur can turn themselves into winners
Tottenham Hotspur are guilty of: The Elastic Band Principle and Tottenham Hotspur’s Coaching Identity
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| Another hard-hitting THBN article: You Booed the Sub Who Scored: Spurs Fans, This Is Why You Lose |
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2 comments
Yes. It's a Groundhog Day situation - except, unlike in that film, the central character (Spurs in this case) is refusing ever to learn from past mistakes.
When there are problems, the first step is accurately to identify what the problem actually is. The next is to identify what might counter or fix that problem. The next after that is to apply the identified fix.
TBC.
In all honesty, our problems are not unique. Some version of the same issues come up in most clubs at some point. Very few clubs are in such a position that pretty much everything else is nicely aligned though, so we get to see where the issue truly lies. It's an opportunity to observe what's going on when we all other indicators are aligned well for us. Only the mentality issue stands out as an obvious problem. Let's see if Spurs can't find a solution now the problem is clear.
COYS!!