Derby at White Hart Lane

Tottenham fans, White Hart Lane

Going to a football match in Britain is something else. It is not just a football match – it is a unique experience.

I have been at White Hart Lane, the home of Tottenham Hotspur, in North East London a few times now and every time I go there I get blown away by the atmosphere. The cheers from the crowd roaring inside the stadium can be almost deafening and people are singing during the entire match. What is different with Barclays Premier League from many other football leagues is that it is not only the biggest matches between the biggest teams that attract big audiences. Almost every match is packed with people and the atmosphere can be just as intense – if not more intense – in a smaller stadium than in the major ones.

Chelsea stars Drogba and Cole

I recently visited a friend in London and went to the derby match between Tottenham and Chelsea. We started off by having lunch (classic football food: burgers and chips) close to the stadium with some other fans, discussing possible starting lineups, goal scorers and final score. The match ended 1-1 with Chelsea missing a penalty late in the game – to my great relief.

After the match we walked with the rest of the crowd (most of them still singing) to the bus stop and took a bus to Angel where my friend lives. We ended the day with a really nice dinner at a the local gastropub around the corner, called The Alma. London really is packed with great pubs!

The Alma, a great gastropub in Islington

So, even if you are not that much into football, I can definitely recommend you to go to a football match in Britain. Tickets vary in price but doesn’t necessarily have to cost more than they do in the Nordics – but the entertainment is so much better!

Read more about the league and how to see a match at our football website.
See where White Hart Lane is located on our Britain Map.
Find The Alma on our Britain Map.

Come on you Spurs!
/Carl

Premier League predictions, part 1

Who will lift the trophy next spring?

So, it’s time. In no more than three days the new Premier League season will kick off and my beloved Spurs will meet the “dark horse” of the title race: Manchester City. With Tottenham in the Champions League and City stronger and richer than ever, I think the Premier League 10/11 season will be the most exciting season in many years.

Norwegian John Carew and Ashley Young, Aston Villa

The Premier League has not been unaffected by the international economic downfall and clubs are not being able to do as much business during the summer as usual. Well, apart from Manchester City, who are buying players like there is no tomorrow. Chelsea have been unusually quiet in the transfer market, Manchester United do not have any money to spend and Liverpool and Arsenal spend more time on trying to keep their best players than recruiting new ones.

This means that clubs like Manchester City, Aston Villa and Tottenham have turned the Premier League into a seven horse race. Though I still find it hard to see someone other than United or Chelsea winning the title this year, it certainly brings even more excitement to the best league in the world.

So, without further ado, here are my predictions for the new season:

8. Everton
On a good day, Everton have the ability to beat every team in the league. The problem is that those days come quite seldom. Last season was ruined by injuries and they need to keep players like Arteta, Cahill, Jagielka and Saha fit this season. I am also excited to see what Jermain Beckford can do in the Premier League.

7. Aston Villa
Villa has a great squad with a lot of pace and technique in their midfield. Key players James Milner and Richard Dunne (!) had a great season last year but their squad is quite small and I can’t see them climbing higher than 7:th this year.

Fernando Torres, Liverpool

6. Liverpool
Last season’s big disappointment have not been too active in the transfer market and even though key players like Gerrard and Torres have pledged their future to the club, Anfield still seems to be in shambles to me. It will be interesting to see what Roy Hodgson can do at a big club like this but if he manages to get the house in order then Liverpool will of course be up there – as they should.

5. Tottenham
I wish I could write that Spurs will follow up their fourth place finish from last year with another one, but I don’t see it happening.  We got a good and rather big squad but still lack that final touch. Last season was a big step forward in the way we play – instead of just trying to pass it around nicely but ineffectively, we managed to play more physically and sometimes even boring long ball football. Not always too fun but more varied and way more successful. But we never seem to be able to finish ahead of the Gunners and I think the other three teams above are just too strong.

What do you think? Am I dillusional in thinking Spurs will finish ahead of Liverpool? Will Liverpool restore the order and finish in the top four? Feel free to comment and discuss below!

Check back here tomorrow for my predictions for the top four spots!
/Carl

10 days to the Premier League 10/11

Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe

I’m excited. Very excited. It’s a bit silly actually, I watched more or less every minute of this summer’s World Cup but I am still hungrier for football than I’ve ever been. And today it is no more than ten days left until the start of the Premier League 2010/11!

As a Tottenham Hotspur fan, last season proved to be the season when “it” finally happened. We took advantage of Liverpool’s dismal season and broke into the top four of the table. This may not sound like an “it” big enough to celebrate but if you have been supporting Spurs for the majority of your life, watching them disappoint and being ridiculed time and time again, then this certainly was a milestone occasion.

Francesc Fabregas

As I wrote back in May, this may not mean more than that they get a shot at getting beaten in the Champions League qualifying rounds by the likes of Ajax, Porto and Lyon in a couple of week’s time, but it is still proof that it is possible to challenge the big four (Manchester Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool) in the race for those four attractive Champions League places. And if they go through to the group stages, that means big games, big money and big honours. And if they go through to the knock-out stages, who knows how far they can go? (I really sound like a classic overoptimistic Spurs supporter, do I not?)

Regardless, I certainly will be watching Tottenham – Manchester City at 12:45 GMT on the 14:th of August and I recommend you to do so too – it truly will be exciting!

I also thought I would predict the outcome of new season but it is way too early for that now. Will Fabregas stay at Arsenal? Will Mascherano leave Liverpool? Is Kaka going to Chelsea? Check back here on the 12:th-13:th for my Premier League predictions and let me know what you think yourself!

For now: Come On You Spurs!

/Carl

Go to our Premier League site to watch player interviews, get more information on the teams and how to get tickets to the games. Click here!

Congratulations to Chelsea… and Tottenham!

Drogba and Cole celebrating

So it is all over and the three month Summer boredom starts. Yesterday was the last match day of Premier League 09/10 and Chelsea came out winners after thrashing Wigan 8-0. That stunning display also ended Manchester United’s hope of a fourth consecutive league win. Far from a Chelsea fan myself I am not too excited about it, but to is hard to argue that they weren’t worthy winners. So, from all my heart (well, at least a corner of it), congratulations to Chelsea FC, their fans and all of South West London!

Frank Lampard, player of the season in my opinion

Irony aside, Chelsea truly did have an amazing season. They won all six games against their three top rivals (Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool). They scored 103 coals, the first team to acieve the century since my beloved Tottenham in 1963. They won 17 of their 19 home games. They also scored seven goals or more in four games this season, which is also a record. Didier Drogba scored three goals on the last day to become the top scorer in the Premier League 09/10.

These facts also signal that Chelsea are not just the defensively strong machine they have had a reputation for being for years. With the new manager Carlo Ancelotti the club has also proven to be an attacking force and, even though it hurts me to write,  a somewhat attractive side to watch.

Little and large, the Tottenham striker partners Crouch and Defoe

OK, I think that is as much positive I could ever write about Tottenham’s London rivals so I will end the post on a personal high note: Tottenham Hotspurs finished fourth! For long it looked like they were going to take advantage of Liverpool’s disastrous season of slip ups. But as it lies in the nature of being a Tottenham supporter to end up very disappointed and severely confused, I was sure Manchester City would nick that last attractive Champions League qualifying place in the end. But after beating City away last Wednesday, history proved to have no guide and Tottenham could celebrate as if they had won more than just a shot at getting beaten in the qualifying rounds by the likes of Ajax, Porto and Lyon.

But still, I for one can’t wait until the new season starts in August. We just have to survive until then. Oh, is there a World Cup this Summer?

/Carl

Team of the Week: Tottenham

And now: the mighty Spurs! North East London outfit Tottenham is one of the oldest and most successful club in British football history. However, the club has not been as successful since the Premier League was founded in 1992 and the club is still dreaming of a return to the glory days in the beginning of the 1960’s. The club has a reputation for playing an attacking football that is easy on the eye, but nowadays also as a bit of an under-achiever. Together with Manchester City, Spurs is the club that spends most money on new players in order to break in to the “top four” (Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal) but has still not managed to do that.

This season, the fans have got their hopes up yet again. After 14 matches the team is third in the league and the spirits are high. Well, as a Spurs fan myself, at least mine is.  A strong central line of players where Palacios, King and Woodgate play important roles plus an attacking flair personalised by the likes of Lennon, Defoe, Keane and Modric, I feel the team certainly has enough quality to beat Arsenal or Liverpool to the fourth spot this season. But I know I have to prepared for yet another disappointment come April.

The club was founded as a cricket club in 1882 and plays their home matches at White Hart Lane, a ground that holds around 36 300 attendants. It is not always easy to get tickets but not at all impossible if you do it a while in advance. Try to catch the home game against Manchester City on the 16:th of December – that is bound to be a cracker!

You can buy Premier League tickets here
If you are going to London in December, check out these Christmas markets
Find your way to White Hart Lane with our Britain Map

Do you want to read more about your favourite team? Burnley, Portsmouth, Birmingham, Hull City, Fulham, Bolton, Manchester United, Chelsea, Wigan, Blackburn, Manchester City, Everton, Wolverhampton, Aston Villa, Liverpool and West Ham.

Come on you Spurs!
/Carl

Come on you Spurs!

Me and a friend (right) at WHL

As a Tottenham Hotspur fan I have seen a few home games at White Hart Lane in Northeast London – and Spurs have yet to lose when I’m there (No, it’s true, it really is true)!

For me, few things can compete with the feeling of being at a stadium packed with 35 000 fans singing “Coome oon youu Spuuuurs!” The atmosphere is just amazing: the expectations before the game at the local crowded pubs, the excitement during the game and the cheering and singing – or sometimes the dwelling and sobbing - after it.

There are several great clubs and stadiums to visit in London: Fulham, Charlton, West Ham, Arsenal (even though I as a Spurs fan would never personally set foot there) and Chelsea. Ticket prices vary but is usually around £30-40. If you are lucky, you can get them directly from the club’s ticket line, otherwise there are several sports travelling agencies that offers packet deals for Premiership games.

Find your way to White Hart Lane with our Britain Map

/Carl