With the news that the investment company ENIC has just increased its stake in the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club to 66.8%, now would be a good time to reflect on their 6 years at the helm of our great club, most of which has been masterminded by ENIC Managing Director and Tottenham Hotspur Chairman Daniel Levy.

Regarded by many Tottenham supporters as the darkest period in the club’s recent history, the reign of (Sir) Alan Michael Sugar more or less came to an end in the February of 2001 when the English National Investment Company invested in 29.9% of the club. ENIC, headed by billionaire Joe Lewis and Levy, promised to ‘develop a detailed plan for the Company both over the short term and for the next three to five years’.

Initially, Levy was appointed as Non-Executive Chairman with David Buchler (a Spurs season ticket holder) appointed as Executive Vice-Chairman. However, with Levy having been Managing Director of ENIC since 1995, it would seem that he would have a substantial part to play in the rebuilding of the club.

The first significant move made by the new owners was to sack Manager George Graham; a move which was welcomed by an overwhelming number of diehard Spurs supporters who had never taken to the ex-Arsenal boss. If this wasn’t enough to endear the new owners to the Tottenham faithful, their next move certainly would be. It was with some acrimony that White Hart Lane’s favourite son - Glenn Hoddle - was wrestled from the vice-like grip of Southampton Chairman Rupert Lowe and given the reigns as manager at his spiritual home. After over a decade of mismanagement by their predecessors, ENIC and Levy seemed to be taking the club in the right direction.

As time went on, it became clear that Tottenham Hotspur was now in the hands of a much more capable and efficient board. And happily for the fans, it also became apparent that in Daniel Levy, they seemed to have a Chairman who knew what it meant to be a Spurs supporter. Stories filtered around the ground from different individuals who claimed to have stood next to him on the terraces at White Hart Lane. Levy appeared to be Spurs through and through. But in football, as in life, talk is cheap. It was time for Levy and ENIC to put their money where their mouths were.

When they arrived at Tottenham, ENIC boasted shares in several major European football clubs. But as time passed, their interests in the other clubs decreased as quickly as their commitment to Spurs increased. Slowly but surely, their interests in Glasgow Rangers, AEK Athens, FC Basle and Vicenza were ditched and more recently their interest in Slavia Prague has diminished.

Furthermore, the transition from the Sugar era into the Levy era coincided with the creation of the ‘Tottenham Hotspur Supporter’s Trust’ (THST) – an organisation set up by supporters to bridge the gap between the fans and the board. From the beginning, Levy has facilitated an unprecedented interaction between supporter groups and those involved in the day-to-day running of the club (including the manager and players). Not only did he meet with THST in August 2001 (and several times since), but he has also been known to grant interviews to representatives of unofficial supporter websites such as our very own North London Pride. One can only imagine what response such supporters would have received from ‘Sir’ Alan Sugar had he been approached by the Trust. It probably wouldn’t have been too dissimilar from the kind of response he gives to the sorry individuals that he fires in the early rounds of The Apprentice. Whilst Sugar may have been highly adept at forcing The Daily Mail to issue public apologies to him in their newspaper, he wouldn’t even come close to Levy in the popularity stakes.

But it hasn’t all been rosy for Daniel Levy. There have been several low points during his tenure. Not least the sacking of Glenn Hoddle in 2004, after a series of poor results had left the club closer to relegation than to the Holy Grail of European football. It couldn’t have been easy for Levy – a lifelong Spurs supporter – to have fired his boyhood hero. But when push came to shove, he acted accordingly. The appointment of controversial Director of Football David Pleat as Caretaker Manager was met with discontent by the characteristically impatient and demanding Tottenham faithful. And although Pleat steered the club clear of relegation that year, it was felt by many that the club’s failure to immediately replace Hoddle with a high-profile Manager was an example of Levy’s indecision in the face of adversity. Many supporters and media critics went so far as to accuse the Chairman of dithering. However, Levy stuck to his guns and was adamant that he and the board would take as long as was necessary to find the right man for the job.

It was in the summer of 2004 – several months since the departure of Glenn Hoddle – that the board finally found their man. Jacques Santini left his post as manager of the French national team to take his place as First Team Coach in a new continental regime that saw Frank Arnesen (who replaced David Pleat as Director of Football) and Martin Jol make up an experienced trio that would supposedly take the club to the next level. Many critics lamented Levy’s new European structure. Many so-called experts interpreted the move as an example of his footballing naivety. But yet again, Levy remained focussed and committed to his plan which he heralded as the only way to tackle ‘decades of underachievement’.

In retrospect, Levy’s critics it would seem underestimated him. For as time went on, not only did the continental management system bear fruit, he also proved himself to be a very shrewd businessman – hardly surprising when you consider that he is the only Premiership Chairman to hold a first-class degree from Cambridge University... no mean feat considering his peers.

Surprisingly, Santini’s reign as Spurs Head Coach ended prematurely under the most bizarre circumstances as he headed back to France stating reasons of a personal and private nature for his departure. Martin Jol was swiftly appointed as Head Coach for the remainder of the season and the two seasons to follow. This sparked conspiracy theories amongst fans and the media alike. Mainly because the appointment of Martin Jol – highly respected in Holland and on the continent – in the relatively minor role of Coach seemed slightly strange. This combined with the curious nature of Santini’s disappearance led people to believe that Levy had wanted Jol from the outset but had opted for the high-profile Santini to appease the impatient and highly expectant Tottenham fans. If so, this move should be added to Levy’s ever-growing list of masterstrokes, as Jol has since gone on to become the club’s most successful manager in over a decade.

After weathering the storm created by the loss of the club’s manager, Levy was soon to face another high profile departure. Namely that of the Director of Football Frank Arnesen – who had brought some of the country’s finest young talent to the club, Tom Huddlestone, Michael Dawson and Aaron Lennon to name a few. Arnesen headed across town to Roman Abramovich’s Chelsea with a parting complaint about the impossibility of attracting top players – in particular Mark van Bommel – to White Hart Lane. Levy didn’t give up without a fight and after much posturing, secured a compensation deal rumoured to be around the £10 million mark.

Which brings us on to Levy’s financial record. It is impressive to say the least. The club would ostensibly appear to be extremely healthy despite the large amounts spent on transfer fees since ENIC’s arrival. It would take a very pessimistic Tottenham supporter to criticise Levy for a lack of funds. Indeed, the club have spent around £40 million on new players this summer alone. Many people criticised Levy for allowing Michael Carrick (arguably the club’s best player in the 2005/06 season) to move to Manchester United. However, the deal – believed to be worth around £18 million – would appear to have favoured Tottenham and again represents Levy’s tenacity in the transfer market.

Levy’s dealings in the transfer market are equally impressive when you consider some of the deals made under Alan Sugar. For example, you could buy three Paul Robinsons for the amount Sugar paid for Ramon Vega. The fee paid for Ruel Fox would secure the services of four Aaron Lennons and you would have change left over if you signed Dimitar Berbatov with the amount paid for Sergei Rebrov. In fact, a comparison between the two Chairmen is laughable. Sugar’s list of multi-million-pound signings boasts the likes of Scales, Tramezanni, Fox, Sinton, Dominguez, Iversen, Nielsen, Sherwood, Leonhardsen and Korsten. Whereas Levy has sanctioned the signings of Berbatov, Carrick, Dawson, Robinson, Lennon, Keane, Defoe, Jenas, Huddlestone, Bent and Chimbonda. The latter being a prime example of Levy’s determination to get the best deal for the club. Wigan were reportedly holding out for £6 million, but Levy apparently knocked the price down to between just three and four million pounds.

He must also take the plaudits for the rumoured treatment of potential transfer targets and their families, most recently Gareth Bale. Levy seems to know how to sell the club to players and has secured the services of Bale, Berbatov and Zokora – all of whom had attracted interest from the so-called ‘Top Four’ teams in England. Nowadays, this is done with the considerable help of Damien Comolli – Frank Arnesen’s successor as Director of Football – who has arguably surpassed his predecessor and has been instrumental in not only our more high-profile signings, but also in the signings of exciting young talent like Adel Taarabt and Younes Kaboul. Comolli’s appointment would appear to be yet another masterstroke by our Chairman.

Further achievements would be the shrewd appointment of Ricardo Moniz (a specialist coach brought in to work specifically with players on their ball skills) and the proposed expansion of White Hart Lane to accommodate the ever-increasing demand for season tickets. In fact, one of the most significant blemishes on Levy’s otherwise superb Spurs CV would be his decision to put a red sponsor’s logo on the home shirt – a move which was contested by ardent Arsenal-Haters, but which on reflection is pretty unimportant. Other than that, there can be few complaints.

It would be naive to give praise solely to Daniel Levy for the turnaround in achievements of the club in the last six years. Obviously there are hundreds of other individuals doing their bit for the club. But if things were not going this well, I feel sure that it would be Levy on the receiving end of the derision. So it is only fair that we send our praise his way, as it would seem that he is the architect of the Tottenham revolution which sees us as close as ever to the lucrative Champion’s League.

Finally, I refer back to the original question – Daniel Levy... the best Chairman in the Premiership? Well, let’s compare for a moment. Would we really want Roman Abramovich to swan into N17 flashing the cash for a couple of years and treating our great club as playfully as one of his vintage razors, before casually losing interest and moving onto his latest fancy? Would we want the Glazers attaching their multimillion dollar debts to the club? Would we want the Arsenal board to demolish our home and spend £390 million on a soulless Euro-stadium leaving us unable to compete in the transfer-market? In my opinion, the answer is no. Keep your Randy Lerners, your Mike Ashleys and your Thaksin Shinawatras.  ‘Top Four’ watch your backs! Because there’s a new Sheriff in town... and his name is Daniel Levy.

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