DANNY ROSE ADMITS playing at Wembley is “just not nice anymore”, with the honour of gracing such a stage having lost its appeal during Tottenham’s residence at the home of English football.
Initially, with White Hart Lane undergoing redevelopment, the opportunity to turn out at the home of English football on a regular basis was embraced by players and supporters.
What was supposed to be a one-season lease has, however, been extended indefinitely through the 2018-19 campaign.
Fans are now voting with their feet, with only 33,012 in attendance for a 3-1 midweek win over Southampton, and Rose concedes that everybody is tired of the stadium delays and relocation.
A man who has graced Wembley on a regular basis with England alongside his club commitments told reporters: “It’s just not nice anymore.
It’s lost its… I don’t feel it’s an honour to play at Wembley. The atmosphere is a bit flat.
“I obviously sympathise with the fans, travelling further to come to Wembley, but it’s the lowest attendance since we’ve been at Wembley. That speaks volumes.
“We’re all itching to get in the new stadium and hopefully it’s not too much longer.”
Spurs have taken in 41 fixtures at Wembley across Premier League, domestic cup and Champions League competition.
They were supposed to be back at White Hart Lane in September, but that grand opening continues to be pushed back.
A meeting with Manchester United on 13 January is the target, but there is no guarantee that everything will be in place by then.
“The manager has said we’re all itching to get in,” Rose added.
“We’re disappointed it’s taken longer than expected but we know everybody is putting in the hours to make sure the stadium is as good as possible.
“It’s not that much longer now, so hopefully over the next couple of months we’re going to be in there and we all sympathise with the fans.
“We just have to stick together now. We know it’s not going to be too much longer.”
Tottenham’s next two fixtures are set to take them out on the road, to Leicester and Barcelona, before returning to Wembley for a meeting with Burnley on 15 December.
- Omni
Murray Kinsella, Gavan Casey and Andy Dunne preview a big weekend of Heineken Cup action and dissect the week’s main talking points.
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Paid the price for personnel moves he wasn’t responsible for. Rodgers on the roster yes, but not much else
@Seriously: Plenty of good players on that roster but the coaching message had probably gone stale. His methods and plays haven’t really moved with the times.
A great coach but clearly lost the dressing room – pity it wasn’t his decision