Spurs players like to hide when the going gets tough

I didn't jump on the Adebayor bandwagon immediately after his comments, in fact I didn't bother to read them until today. They do not surprise me, especially after I wrote before the Stoke game why inviting Newcastle players into the dressing room or any room, was and is, totally wrong.

Adebayor needs a few games of pool

I've re-posted this mornings article as it epitomises what is wrong at Tottenham and shows why we are in the relegation battle we are now in. I only hope the club realises the situation before it's too late. Those of us who have watched Spurs for 30 years or more have seen this situation of countless occasions and teams that are considered too good, get relegated whereas others appreciate the situation before it's too late. As with any situation you have to first appreciate it before you can tackle it.

It [inviting Newcastle players] demonstrates a state of mind that shows losing doesn't matter much, it gives off an I couldn't care less attitude and this is supposed to be a vice-captain remember. He should be setting an example for the others to follow.

His latest comments just reaffirm that mentally he is not a winner, it explains why he only performs at the top level when it suits him, why Manchester City and Real Madrid got rid of him. He played 34 games in 3 years at Man City and only 5 full games when moving to Real Madrid in January 2010/11.

"In football people forget so quickly what you have done."

Well what exactly have you or this Spurs side done Mr Adebayor? You scored goals for a season when you wanted a contract, you couldn't be bothered to come back from the African Cup of Nations for a Tottenham game, you tried under Tim Sherwood but apart from that spell have consistently under performed whether you have been booed or not and demonstrated on countless occasions you have a losers mentality.

You have flashed your wealth with a series of pictures to show what is important to you, money, not Tottenham success.

What have this Spurs team done? Nothing, even when not being booed so show me the difference it has made. What you fail to realise Mr Adebayor is that if you have a winners mentality. booing makes you more determined and you up your game, a loser is affected by it, so your comments tell me once again that you are not up to it mentally. You are also therefore saying that other players are mentally weak.

Does it affect Hugo Lloris, how have his performances suffered?

"So instead of booing people, which will make it even worse, it is better to support the players. 
"Right now, a lot of players when they put on the shirt and go out on to the pitch, are finding it hard in the head. I have been through a lot so I am used to it. 
"It's hard when you know the first bad ball you make the fans are going to boo you. For thirteen years now I've been a professional and I've had to deal with that everywhere I've been."

What nonsense, the fans don't boo after a players first mistake so that is simply exaggeration for effect. You are effectively saying weak minded players know if they make too many mistakes they will be booed and that is affecting their performance, which if that is the case, then these players are not good enough mentally and need to be sold.

If you are used to it and still don't perform you are demonstrating once again that you simply don't care.

"If I make a mistake it doesn't mean I'm lazy. I always try my best. When you score two goals everyone is like 'Wow, he's back on form and back to his best'. 
"But even when things aren't going my way I am still trying the same. But because you have missed a couple of chances, people are like 'Whoa, he is not trying and shouldn't be in the first team.'"

You haven't a clue Mr Adebayor, there isn't a Spurs fan out there who thinks you always try your best, we all know you put in lazy performances so to try and pull the wool over our eyes is an insult. If you had a Graham Roberts desire to play for the shirt, or a Gary Mabbutt, you wouldn't produce the rubbish you produce.

You simply don't care enough and we do. The fans life is lived through his team, his team determines whether he is happy all week or down whenever he thinks of his side. Players who play for the shirt don't criticise the fans. Why? Because mentally they are winners, not losers. They accept when they have not been good enough or try even harder, concentrate even harder, they give it everything, everything for the cause, they don't suggest their mild sensibilities are being affected, they take responsibility. Losers look for someone to blame, winners don't.

Are your comments the comments of a winner or a loser Mr Adebayor?

"When you are playing in front of your own crowd you want them to support you. But now it is like going through a sad moment and your family not welcoming you home. "That's the worst thing ever - because you have nowhere to go."

This gets worse. You have nowhere to go? You mean when things are not going right you want to run away and hide? You are a vice-captain for goodness sake, you should be fighting harder, did Graham Roberts want to run away and hide?

I've said it many time, someone with a losers mentality can not comprehend a winning mentality, winning is everything, enjoyment comes from winning, losing should hurt, not the oh well it doesn't matter Adebayor approach.

"I was on the bench and I could see that nobody wanted the ball. It's hard for the players. It's not their fault and or the fans - they want to see a response."

Well make your mind up, you are criticising the fans for booing and then saying it's not the fans fault! At least you have grasped the fans want to see a response but how is a player going to give that response if he wants to hide? Fair weather footballers are of no use at all, players who can perform in adversity, in other words under pressure, are the players a club needs. This lot are fair weather footballers and you yourself sum that up Mr Adebayor.

Whenever there is adversity you don't perform, you hide, when we are 2-0 up then you want to be seen, then you drop into midfield to pass the ball around. That 'we have done enough' attitude is what is wrong with the club, there should always be a 'we want more' approach. That is a constant attitude, not just something you turn on and off.

"Maybe we can go out and win the next game 3-0 or 4-0 and the fans will be back enjoying Tottenham again and it will be like when I first came.

"Then I was happy to play because I knew I was going to have fun. Now it is not fun anymore. It cannot go any lower than this."

There is no chance of a 3 or 4 goal victory. Football is about winning as I say, the 'fun' comes from winning, not 'playing to have fun' they are completely different. One is the attitude of a winner, one is not. You are giving off all the wrong messages again and again. The worrying thing is you don't know they are the wrong messages and you are one of the players as a vice-captain the players turn to to solve the problems.

Again I've written before, how can the players solve their mentality problems when they are getting advice from someone who can't even see a mentality problem exists? You can't just keep buying and selling players in the hope that they have the mentality of a Graham Roberts, Gary Mabbutt or Paul Miller.

"Maybe it will be better playing away from home right now. At least you know you are going to be having the opposition fans booing you rather than your own.

"All managers bring their own philosophies. But this is the third or fourth manager here in two or three years so we just have to stop it now it being about the manager. 
"He's a good manager and we have to find a way to understand what he wants. If every player could do that then we would win the Champions League. But at the moment we are not getting the message. He is a good manager and a good man - we just have to get what he is telling us. 
"Tactically, he is working hard. But at the moment there is a blockage somewhere. Hopefully we can overcome that."

We know it's not about the manager, we know it's the players who are the problem, players like yourself Mr Adebayor, players with a losers mentality. Mauricio Pochettino has been at Tottenham for 5 months and you still have to find a way to understand what he wants? What have you been doing for 5 months, having fun.

Like I say someone with a losers mentality can't understand a winners mentality and 'we just have to get what he is telling us' has no hope of success, not without a Sports Psychologist changing the way you think. A mentality affects everything you do, train, prepare, play and even enjoy yourself. Playing for fun almost doesn't exist, a game of pool in the pub for instance is all about winning.

Have a laugh and a joke, a beer, but when it's your shot, the winners head is switched on. You would have watched the game, read which shot you would have played or worked out future shots, potential opportunities.

When it's your shot you'll consider all the options, you'll consider what happens if it goes wrong, what you would leave your opponent, you weigh up a sequence of shots and then you'll calculate what is the best option before getting down to play it with complete concentration and determination.

It may only be a pub game with a bunch of mates, but winning is still everything and let me tell you Mr Adebayor, some of those mates will become determined to beat you, they will learn, they will improve, they will start thinking about the game and their mentality will change simply by being around you and your attitude. They then enjoy the tussle and when they beat you once they then want to do it again.

Having winners in a club is absolutely essential, having losers as your figurehead, as the people to go to is a complete waste of time.