Ramos deserves Clemence-y

6:04pm Monday 6th October 2008

Former Tottenham goalkeeper Ray Clemence believes the club's summer transfer turmoil is no longer a valid excuse for their wretched start to the Barclays Premier League campaign.

But Clemence is also convinced that sacking Juande Ramos would be counter-productive and insists the Spaniard's tenure should only be reassessed at the end of the season.

"The big thing is confidence. They had the transfer turmoil before the start of the season and that was a slight excuse, but it is no longer an excuse," said Clemence.

Spurs have made their worst start since 1912 with Sunday's 1-0 loss at home to top-flight newcomers Hull leaving them with just two points from their first seven games.

Russia striker Roman Pavlyuchenko has struggled to make an impact after the club sold Dimitar Berbatov and Robbie Keane, but Clemence claims the fans and directors must keep believing a turnaround of fortunes will arrive soon.

He added: "All the confidence is draining from these players. They are conceding more goals than you would expect them to.

"The only way out is to work hard and trust in the players you are alongside because there are some quality players there. Quality will eventually come through. As long as you keep working hard it will turn for you.

"Obviously it wasn't good in terms of losing at home to Hull City, no disrespect to them as they are having a great season at the moment.

"They (Spurs) were obviously a side that is playing with no confidence and things aren't going right for them. They actually played some good football and created some opportunities but they didn't have the luck.

"They hit the bar and the post, the goalkeeper made a few good saves but they also missed a number of opportunities that players who were full of confidence would have scored."

Editor's choice