Spurs sitting on a tinderbox after documentary decision

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Tottenham Hotspur’s participation in Amazon’s “All or Nothing” documentary is a tinderbox waiting to explode.

The Daily Mail reports that the agents of Spurs players are pushing for pay increases because their clients will be asked to contribute to interviews and on-camera activities.

And one feels that this has been a disastrous decision from the club’s powerbrokers.

Of course, Spurs came into the season on a high. They reached the Champions League final last term and finished in the top four despite a relatively disappointing run of form in the latter half of the season.

This could have been seen as a season of growth, improvement and rebuilding, particularly if new signings were brought in who could have a tangible impact on the starting XI.

Unfortunately, the opposite has happened. While Tanguy Ndombele, Giovani Lo Celso, Ryan Sessegnon and Jack Clarke were signed in the summer, only Fernando Llorente and Kieran Trippier, of last season’s starting XI, were let go. No replacement for the duo was signed.

The season has started in genuinely terrible fashion. Spurs have won just three games in the Premier League, have been knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Colchester United and have won just one of their opening three European games; one of those games was against Bayern Munich. Spurs lost 7-2.

It is not known if cameras were present in the dressing room there but they were on Sunday, per the Mail, as they lost 2-1 to Liverpool in a game in which they actually took the lead.

And all of this feels like a dangerous distraction.

Spurs have built a new stadium at the cost of almost £1bn and simply cannot afford to miss out on qualification for the Champions League.

At this stage, though, they are 11th in the league, eight points behind both Chelsea and Leicester City, and anything that can sap the focus of the players is unlikely to be welcomed in north London.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino is said to have okayed the project and yet, here we are, with reports claiming that players have expressed their own concerns about the access being granted.

This is a tinderbox for the simple reason that dirty laundry is rarely best aired in public.

Imagine the scenes in May if Spurs limp to a sixth-placed finish, qualify only for the Europa League and the documentary premieres, painting a picture of a disappointed, disenfranchised squad.

It is, of course, speculation. Spurs could well rally. The last few episodes of the documentary could show their progress into the top four and their FA Cup run.

At this point, though, that feels remarkably unlikely; one has to ask questions about the decision to let the cameras in, and whether this could all blow up in the club’s face.