The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham news and links for Wednesday, August 24

good morning everyone -

Big news came out of Anaheim, California, yesterday. Arte Moreno, the owner of the Los Angeles Angels, announced he is beginning the process of selling the team.

Moreno’s greatest accomplish since buying the Angels in 2003 has been buying the Angels. In his near 20-year tenure as owner, he has chased the shiniest objects in the sport without addressing the infrastructure needed to create a World Series team. He mortgaged the team’s future again and again, handing out massive contracts to star players who turned out to be awful.

He was far too involved with the management of the team, clung to a manager who was fired at least five years too late, decimated the team’s farm system and is well on the path to wasting two of the greatest talents of this generation in Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.

And an agreement between the organisation and the City of Anaheim to purchase Angel Stadium and the surrounding parking lot for $320 was called off after the FBI conducted a corruption investigation.

Where does this leave the Angels now? Who knows. Ohtani’s contract is expiring soon, which means he could be traded.

Moreno’s mismanagement of the team makes me appreciate Daniel Levy’s handling of Tottenham even more. I have long been a Levy sympathiser, while also noting he has made his share of mistakes.

But Levy’s strategy seems to be so different to Moreno. The Tottenham chairman instead has been careful with players’ wage structures, targeted youth players and set the club up for financial success.

Look to others like Everton, Derby County, Blackpool, Leeds and perhaps Nottingham Forest, and you will see how financial mismanagement can destroy a sports organisation.

Despite the mega contracts they have handed out, the Angels have not had a winning record since 2015, haven’t won a playoff game since 2009. I don’t believe they will ever win a title with Trout or Ohtani, and all that wasted talent will be Moreno’s legacy.

Your hoddler-in-chief will be celebrating the sale of his hometown baseball team whenever it goes through. Some Angels fans have floated the idea of Jeff Bezos buying the team (where have I heard that suggestion before?). All I hope is that, whoever takes it next, will run the team like Levy runs Tottenham.

And for the love of Southern California, get rid of the “Los Angeles”. Anaheim is in Orange County.

The Angels are currently valued at $2.2 billion, according to Forbes.

Fitzie’s track of the day: Are We Alright Again, by EELS

And now for your links:

Dan KP: Antonio Conte facing Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg conundrum

Ukraine’s football restarts with flags, a message from Zelenskyy but no crowd

UK jury to consider verdict in Ryan Giggs trial

Erik Ten Hag reportedly joined Man United players in running punishment

League Two’s Crawley Town defeat Fulham 2-0 in EFL Cup