First, take a trip with us down memory lane. It’s the 7th of March 2018 and we have the second leg of the Round of 16 tie between Tottenham Spurs and Juventus in the Champions League. The first leg in Turin had ended in a 2-2 draw and the second leg in North London seemed to be going Spurs’ way. Heung-min Son had put Spurs in front in the first half with an easy tap-in and Wembley Stadium, temporary home of Spurs, was bouncing. With a one-goal advantage and two away goals, Tottenham appeared to hold a significant edge, requiring Juventus to score at least twice to avoid elimination. We all know how the story ended. Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala scored in the 64th and 67th minutes to turn the tie around as The Old Lady won 2-1 (4-3 on aggregate). Questioned about their resilience and how they were able to maintain composure while facing possible elimination, Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini delivered one of the most iconic quotes in modern football: **“It is the history of the Tottenham. They always created many chances to score so much, but at the end, they always miss something to arrive at the end. We believe in the history.”**
**The definition of “Spursy”** Spursy /spəːsi/ “a certain fragility in the team that consistently fail to live up to expectations and crumble within sight of victory.” Chiellini’s damning remark inevitably became a sensation, swiftly circulating across the internet and becoming a favoured weapon wielded by opposing fans whenever Tottenham Hotspur faced adversity in Cup tournaments or EPL matches. While his words were undeniably cutting, it’s hard to deny their accuracy. Since clinching the League Cup in 2008, Spurs have yet to secure another trophy despite promising seasons. In fact, over six years since Chiellini’s statement, Tottenham has seen a revolving door of seven individuals occupy the Head Coaching role, including José Mourinho, Ryan Mason (twice), Nuno Espírito Santo, Antonio Conte, Cristian Stellini, and Ange Postecoglu, either on a permanent or interim basis. **How “Spursiness” has affected Tottenham over the years** Throughout the years, Tottenham Hotspur’s perceived weak mentality has cost them potential glory. In the 2015/16 Premier League season, both Leicester City and Spurs were vying for the title as the campaign entered its final stages, creating a clear two-horse race for the English crown. While Leicester City ultimately won the title, marking one of football’s greatest fairytale runs, Spurs faltered and finished in 3rd place behind Arsenal. This led to the infamous quip, “Spurs are the only side to finish third in a two-horse race.” Reflecting further back, in a match over two decades ago, Manchester United orchestrated a remarkable comeback against Spurs at White Hart Lane. Trailing 3-0 at halftime, United rallied to secure a stunning 5-3 victory. Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane revealed that during halftime, the players were expecting a fiery team talk from Sir Alex Ferguson, but the legendary manager delivered just three simple words: “Lads, it’s Tottenham.” Keane hailed it as the best team talk ever, and United players responded by dominating the second half. These instances underscored Tottenham’s historical struggles with maintaining a strong mentality in crucial moments. Some of it is bad luck and a lack of ruthlessness when it comes to winning. In 2021, Spurs reached the EFL Cup final where they were scheduled to face Manchester City. As expected, Spurs were the underdogs, but with Jose Mourinho, a man who had won cup finals for fun, they had a good chance of causing an upset. Mourinho and club chairman, Daniel Levy were on bad terms, thanks to a disagreement over summer and winter signings. However, many expected a parting of ways to come at the end of the season. To the surprise of the footballing world, Jose Mourinho was sacked just days before the final, leaving 29-year-old Ryan Mason in charge of the final. To add to the heavy disadvantage, star striker Harry Kane who was one of the EPL top scorers, wasn’t fully fit for the final. In the weekend before the final, he scored a brace for Spurs as they rescued a point against Everton, but then limped off with an ankle injury. Despite his injury, Kane still played in the final, and Spurs ultimately fell to Manchester City. Levy’s decision to sack Mourinho before the final was seen by some as a cost-saving measure, potentially avoiding a larger severance package had Mourinho won the EFL Cup. He gave up a chance to end a trophy drought just to save a few millions. As Giorgio Chiellini famously remarked, “... they always miss something to arrive at the end.” Harry Kane’s injury before a crucial cup final wasn’t unfamiliar territory for Tottenham Hotspur. In the 2019 season, Mauricio Pochettino led the North Londoners to their first ever Champions League final, a journey which included a remarkable comeback against Ajax in Amsterdam. Kane had sustained an injury during the first leg of the quarter-final against Manchester City and was sidelined for the remainder of the season, missing the final nine games across all competitions. At least, that’s what it should have been - a season-ending injury. Kane was hurriedly brought back to play against Liverpool in the final. It was inconceivable for the club’s leading scorer and one of the best football players in the world to miss such a historic match. As expected, Liverpool were victorious, with an unfit Kane unable to make a significant impact for Spurs. Bad luck.
**Can “Spursiness” be exported?** How the joke goes: **Question:** What do you get when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object? **Answer:** Whatever is happening at FC Bayern Munich this season. Despite Harry Kane’s high-profile £100m move to Bayern Munich, a club where trophies are an almost-certain guarantee, his fortunes haven’t seen a significant turnaround from the luck he experienced in England. Impressively, he has scored 31 goals and 8 assists in just 32 appearances for the Bavarians, with 27 of those goals coming in 24 Bundesliga matches. Kane will win the Golden Boot and may even break Robert Lewandowski’s record of 41 league goals scored in a single season. However, despite his individual success, Kane could be trophyless once again. Bayern suffered a 3-0 defeat to RB Leipzig in the DFL Supercup on his debut, and months later, they were eliminated from the DFB Pokal by 3rd-tier side FC Saarbrücken. Their Bundesliga results haven’t been impressive either. Bayern trails league leaders Bayer Leverkusen by 10 points and is set to miss out on being crowned champions for the first time in 12 years. Their sole hope for silverware rests on the Champions League., where they qualified for the quarterfinals after a Kane brace. However, given the squad’s current state, the prevailing football prediction is that they will fall short of winning the UCL.
**So… Are Spurs truly cursed?** So, is a “curse” responsible for their multiple failures over nearly two decades? Probably not. It’s not a curse, per se. You could point to a combination of things - bad timing, weak mentality, bad luck, a lack of willingness to do everything possible to win, and coincidence. Basically, Spursiness Whether Spurs are truly cursed depends on how you define a curse. If you view it as a combination of factors like bad timing, a weak mentality, bad luck, a lack of willingness to do everything possible to win, and coincidence, then perhaps Spurs are indeed cursed. However, if you consider a curse to be akin to the one placed by Bela Guttman on Benfica, then perhaps not. Guttman, who led Benfica to consecutive European Cup (Champions League) victories in 1961 and 1962, asked for a pay rise commensurate with his achievements, but the club declined his request disrespectfully. In retaliation, Guttman left the club and allegedly cursed them, declaring, **“Not in a hundred years from now will Benfica ever be European champion.”** Since then, Benfica has suffered eight straight losses in European finals across the Champions League and Europa League. Now, that is a curse!
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