Spurs have signed fifteen players since the summer
Spurs have spent a combined total of £16.7m on their new talent
We have signed ten players since the summer
We have spent a combined total of £5.2m on new talent
And let's not forget the difference in the quality of players the clubs have signed. Despite the fact that we finished above Tottenham last season, there is no denying that they are still seen as a much larger club. And let's be honest, so they should be - established in the Premiership, big stadium, big players. And also let's not forget that there was a time, only three months ago, that we travelled away from home expecting to lose heavily.
So why is it that a 3-1 defeat against a good team sees the razor blades broken out again?
I can only presume it's going to be like this every time for the rest of the season now. We won against Middlesbrough on Tuesday and we were the best thing since sliced bread and only a few points away from Europe, now we lose and suddenly people are pointing out we're only a few points away from the relegation zone. The fact is, we're a midtable team. That's going to be our only achievement for this season and it's time to get used to it - we are going to flap about in midtable. We've just lost our entire backroom management staff for crying out loud - how many other clubs would suffer that and then sink without trace? It's to our credit that we've practically managed to assure our safety and can plan ahead for the summer and the vast redevelopment of the squad.
Ok, so we didn't play well yesterday. Berger looked off the pace, Yakubu looked like he didn't care and Stefanovic looked out of position at time. But these things happen. Tottenham played like a team who have spent nearly £20m on new players and probably would've beaten anyone yesterday. At the risk of sounding like Harry Redknapp, look at their side compared to ours - the Republic of Ireland's leading goalscorer on the bench, an England international striker, defender and goalkeeper starting the match, and then there's us; a decent enough team on our day but we're not the best away from home, in a period of transition, and missing good players like LuaLua and Stone.
I say this to all the wrist slashers - if I'd said to you three years ago you'd be screaming and shouting because we only lost by two goals to Spurs, would you have believed me?