Former Tottenham captain, Hugo Lloris, has recently shed light on a moment that made him question the club's desire to win. This revelation comes from an interaction with Daniel Levy, the club chairman, just days before the 2019 Champions League Final.
The mention of the 2019 Champions League Final often sends Spurs fans into a reflective state. It was a time when they were on the brink of glory but had their hopes dashed within just one minute into the game. This event marked the climax of Tottenham’s project under Mauricio Pochettino who had brought them close to ending their trophy drought with second-place finishes in both Premier League and League Cup.
However, it was during this period that Lloris experienced an incident with Levy that made him doubt whether Tottenham possessed the right mentality to succeed. In his soon-to-be-released autobiography featured in The Guardian, Lloris revealed that four days before the Champions League Final, Levy presented engraved watches as gifts to all players. According to Lloris, this gesture was not well received by him or his teammates.
Misguided gesture?
While reaching the final was indeed an incredible achievement for a Spurs side struggling due to poor squad investment decisions at that time; however, according to Lloris' account in his book - this gesture by Levy seemed more like celebrating mediocrity rather than pushing for victory.
Former Tottenham Hotspur captain, Hugo Lloris, said:
“At first, we were excited to see the elegant boxes. Then we opened them and discovered that he’d had the back of each timepiece engraved with the player’s name and ‘Champions League Finalist 2019’. ‘Finalist.’
Who does such a thing at a moment like this? I still haven’t got over it, and I’m not alone. If we’d won, he wouldn’t have asked for the watches back to have ‘Winner’ engraved instead.
I have considerable respect and esteem for the man and all he has done for the club as chairman – I got to know him – but there are things he is simply not sensitive to. As magnificent as the watch is, I have never worn it. I would have preferred there to be nothing on it. With an engraving like that, Levy couldn’t have been surprised if we had been 1–0 down after a couple of minutes: so it was written.”
Levy has been instrumental in providing infrastructure such as Hotspur Way and building up a world-class stadium which has solidified Tottenham's position as one of Premier Leagues top clubs. However, he has also been criticized for making footballing mistakes along his journey.
Lessons learned and hopes for the future
The incident serves as a reminder of why football-minded individuals are crucial in a club’s management hierarchy. It is hoped that Daniel Levy has learned from these kinds of missteps and will make better decisions moving forward.
As Spurs aim to reach another illustrious final, it is essential that the players feel their ambitions of winning are aligned with and supported by those who run the club. This alignment could be key to ensuring future success for Tottenham and avoiding similar situations that could potentially shake players' faith in the club's desire to win.
