• 'I've had so many well-wishers, especially English managers'
• Manager knows he's in a privileged position starting at Spurs
Tim Sherwood has revealed that he has been receiving advice from other managers on keeping his emotions in check during matches and the Tottenham Hotspur manager admits that it would be beneficial if he were calmer on the touchline.
Sherwood has been criticised for losing his temper in the technical area in recent weeks and, while he does not want to hide his true character, he said that watching Tottenham's defeat to Benfica in the last 16 of the Europa League from the directors' box on Thursday night gave him a different perspective on his team.
"With respect to the man in the street, I don't listen to that too much but I listen to managers who have been in the situation. I don't want to tell you who's contacted me but some people have given me a little bit of advice," Sherwood said. "If I can try and be a bit calmer and not manage on emotion too much, it would help. I was allowed to sit up there and make a few notes and you see a different game up there."
Sherwood, who replaced André Villas-Boas in December, is coming under increasing pressure after Tottenham's poor run of form, during which they have been knocked out of Europe and their hopes of finishing in the top four have diminished. He is unlikely to have appreciated comments on Friday from Glenn Hoddle, who hinted that he almost returned to Tottenham when Villas-Boas was sacked, before they opted for Sherwood. Yet Sherwood appreciates the help he has received from other sources.
"I've had so many well-wishers in the game, especially English managers," he said. "They all want me to do well. Ex-managers want me to do well. I feel the pressure of that because I really want to do well, because I want to fly the flag for English managers. But I want to do it in my way.
"I know I'm in a privileged position to be given this opportunity at a big club and a lot of them start at a different level but it hasn't spoilt their enthusiasm in wishing me well.
"It's a shame when you hear some people who should know a little bit better. It's a tough job. Until you've stood in that technical area, you don't really know. As much as I was close to it for many years, until you're there and the buck stops with you, you can't really comment. I do respect the people who have been in there and told me. And the other ones who have just passed comment, then I would say to them 'you don't know'."
Tottenham were without 11 senior players because of injuries and suspensions against Benfica, but Sherwood is hopeful of having some of those absentees back for the visit of Southampton on Sunday. Although Danny Rose is a doubt after picking up a knee problem, Sherwood is hopeful that Mousa Dembélé and Younès Kaboul will return, while Emmanuel Adebayor is expected to start after recovering from his hamstring injury.
That could mean that Roberto Soldado, who was wasteful against Benfica, will drop to the bench. The £26m striker has scored one goal in 2014 but Sherwood offered him support. "He's not dying," Sherwood said. "He's just in a barren spell. He knows that. To be fair if I rewind a little bit, he scored against Cardiff and he's really unlucky how the fixtures fell after that.
"We had to go away at Stamford Bridge and you can't play with two up front there, you'll get murdered. So we changed the way we played and we got it right for an hour until we had a calamity with a few goals.
"If we had played at home against one of the teams lower he probably would have played and maybe got into a rhythm." Reported by guardian.co.uk 5 hours ago.
• Manager knows he's in a privileged position starting at Spurs
Tim Sherwood has revealed that he has been receiving advice from other managers on keeping his emotions in check during matches and the Tottenham Hotspur manager admits that it would be beneficial if he were calmer on the touchline.
Sherwood has been criticised for losing his temper in the technical area in recent weeks and, while he does not want to hide his true character, he said that watching Tottenham's defeat to Benfica in the last 16 of the Europa League from the directors' box on Thursday night gave him a different perspective on his team.
"With respect to the man in the street, I don't listen to that too much but I listen to managers who have been in the situation. I don't want to tell you who's contacted me but some people have given me a little bit of advice," Sherwood said. "If I can try and be a bit calmer and not manage on emotion too much, it would help. I was allowed to sit up there and make a few notes and you see a different game up there."
Sherwood, who replaced André Villas-Boas in December, is coming under increasing pressure after Tottenham's poor run of form, during which they have been knocked out of Europe and their hopes of finishing in the top four have diminished. He is unlikely to have appreciated comments on Friday from Glenn Hoddle, who hinted that he almost returned to Tottenham when Villas-Boas was sacked, before they opted for Sherwood. Yet Sherwood appreciates the help he has received from other sources.
"I've had so many well-wishers in the game, especially English managers," he said. "They all want me to do well. Ex-managers want me to do well. I feel the pressure of that because I really want to do well, because I want to fly the flag for English managers. But I want to do it in my way.
"I know I'm in a privileged position to be given this opportunity at a big club and a lot of them start at a different level but it hasn't spoilt their enthusiasm in wishing me well.
"It's a shame when you hear some people who should know a little bit better. It's a tough job. Until you've stood in that technical area, you don't really know. As much as I was close to it for many years, until you're there and the buck stops with you, you can't really comment. I do respect the people who have been in there and told me. And the other ones who have just passed comment, then I would say to them 'you don't know'."
Tottenham were without 11 senior players because of injuries and suspensions against Benfica, but Sherwood is hopeful of having some of those absentees back for the visit of Southampton on Sunday. Although Danny Rose is a doubt after picking up a knee problem, Sherwood is hopeful that Mousa Dembélé and Younès Kaboul will return, while Emmanuel Adebayor is expected to start after recovering from his hamstring injury.
That could mean that Roberto Soldado, who was wasteful against Benfica, will drop to the bench. The £26m striker has scored one goal in 2014 but Sherwood offered him support. "He's not dying," Sherwood said. "He's just in a barren spell. He knows that. To be fair if I rewind a little bit, he scored against Cardiff and he's really unlucky how the fixtures fell after that.
"We had to go away at Stamford Bridge and you can't play with two up front there, you'll get murdered. So we changed the way we played and we got it right for an hour until we had a calamity with a few goals.
"If we had played at home against one of the teams lower he probably would have played and maybe got into a rhythm." Reported by guardian.co.uk 5 hours ago.
