Chronicles of a Tottenham Hotspur fan: The social post that's been sitting my drafts since 2019

It’s not often relationships start off because someone is in tears. But that is how my love affair with Tottenham Hotspur started off.

While visiting my grandparents in Upington, I got introduced to the beautiful game by watching the 1990 World Cup in Italy with my dad. He has been a Spurs fan since the 60s, and I was probably destined to support the team anyway because of him.

But what sealed the deal was Spurs and England midfielder Paul Gascoigne, who was having a stunning tournament. A maverick with the ball at his feet, “Gazza” played with skill and his heart on his sleeve.

Gascoigne cried during England’s epic semi-final against West Germany after receiving a yellow card in extra time for a foul on Thomas Berthold. This was his second booking of the tournament, meaning he would have missed the final if England had advanced.

The emotional weight of potentially missing the biggest game of his career overwhelmed him. I had never seen somebody cry on a sports field before that. It was just a raw moment of passion and vulnerability in equal measure.

The next year Gascoigne would score one of the most iconic FA Cup goals to fire Spurs to the final over the arch enemy Arsenal. Spurs then went on to beat Nottingham Forest in the final.

But success had been few and far between since that famous win, with only two League Cup titles in 1999 and 2008 to show for ourselves. Since the last cup win 17 years ago, there have been plenty of near misses, especially in the last 10 years.

Spurs finished third in a two-horse race when 5000-1 underdogs Leicester City shockingly won the league in the 2015/16 season. It was the season when Spurs were top of all the stats except the one which mattered the most.

In 2019, Mauricio Pochettino managed to drag the team to the Champions League final against Liverpool, trying to get over the line and win a trophy after multiple semi-final exits before that.

That one hurt a lot, because Pochettino has brought Spurs back challenging again. But they started to get a reputation of bottling big games. Opposition fans, during the height of the social media revolution, started to notice and took pot shots at the team.

It’s when the phrase "Warra trophy for Spurs" started, a taunting remark used by opposition fans to mock Spurs for their lack of major silverware.

It's a sarcastic jab, short for "what a trophy," implying that Spurs have little to show in terms of recent competitive success despite their strong performances. Belittling the club’s achievements, like getting to the Champions League final.

Ahead of the 2019 Champions League final I put "Warra trophy for Spurs" in my drafts on Twitter - yes, X was still called that six years ago - to haul it out after the Champions League final to get my own back.

But it didn’t quite go according to plan. The same thing happened after the 2021 League Cup final, where I had to put the post safely back in the bowels of my drafts. 

But on Wednesday there is another opportunity for that post to see the light of day. After enduring 21 defeats in the league this season, Spurs actually have a chance to win the Europa League and end that 17-year trophy drought..

Spurs face a Manchester United team who have also had a disastrous league campaign - it’s 17th vs 16th in the Premier League vying for a title and a place in next season’s Champions League.

Spurs have beaten United three times this season, and the law of averages tells me a fourth time would be something quite remarkable.

But I haven’t been this confident in a long time, especially because Lilywhite’s boss Ange Postecoglou says he always wins a trophy in his second season.

In the last 35 years I’ve cried more than Gazza about this team. But I think Wednesday night is the night that Spurs break the trophy hoodoo and my "Warra trophy for Spurs" post on X will finally see the light …

@JohnGoliath82