"He took the brunt of all the criticism" - former Spurs manager defends Daniel Levy

Ziyad Jamal

"He took the brunt of all the criticism" - former Spurs manager defends Daniel Levy image

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The football world was left stunned on Thursday evening (September 4) when it was announced that Daniel Levy would be stepping down as the executive chairman of Tottenham Hotspur.

The shocking exit brought an end to a 25-year stay at the Premier League club for Levy and raises questioned to why it came about.

The 63-year-old's role will be discontinued at the club, with Peter Charrington stepping into the newly formed role of non-executive chairman after previously operating as a non-executive director.

An official statement from Spurs mentioned that the boardroom reshuffle is to ensure the club "is set up to deliver long-term sporting success."

While many Spurs supporters will question if Levy's departure is linked with a potential change in ownership, the club have made it clear that is not the case and ENIC International Limited remain majority owners.

The news of Levy's departure was met by thrilled reactions from sections of the Spurs fanbase, who have been frustrated with the businessman for many years and staged protests to call for his removal.

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Annoyance stemmed from the club not spending near as much money compared to rivals on player transfers and only delivering two pieces of silverware across Levy's tenure.

Levy was also disliked by fans of other Premier League sides due to his renowned stubborn negotiating methods when a Spurs player was targeted by a rival club.

Ex-Spurs manager strongly defends Levy

Former Spurs manager, Harry Redknapp, who was in charge at the North London club from 2008-2012, has come to the defence of Levy in the wake of the recent news.

Harry Redknapp

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The 78-year-old feels that Joe Lewis, who was the majority Spurs owner up until 2022 before handing responsibility over to the Lewis Family Trust, was more accountable for decisions that were made in years gone by.

"I never had a problem with Daniel. I found him very good to work for. I honestly think in the background Joe would be pulling a lot of the strings," said Redknapp on talkSPORT.

"Joe would have the final say, they always had to speak with Joe to get the final word on everything. If Joe didn't want to spend big money in the transfer market, then Daniel wasn’t able to," the former Spurs boss added.

"He (Levy) took the brunt of all the criticism for sure, but the decisions weren't down to Daniel."

Redknapp then suggested that new owners could be on the way at Spurs despite the club's insistence that this is not the case.

"I've heard rumours there's a takeover. We might end up with another Saudi ownership. It wouldn't surprise me. There's big offers in the background."

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Ziyad Jamal

Ziyad Jamal contributes to Sporting News - UK Wires as a freelance writer focusing on all sports. He has written for sites including GiveMeSport, Planet Sport and IBTimes UK. He graduated with a degree in BA (Hons) Football Business and Media at UCFB Wembley in 2021.