A change of priority

If I cast my mind back two years ago, no competition was bigger than the Carling Cup, which doesn't even hold the distinction of second prize among English football's three major trophies.

The reason: it was the one within reach for my team, Tottenham Hotspur.

What a difference 728 days can make.

Now, casting my mind back a mere two days, it's a competition I'm glad we're well shot of, following a 4-1 extra-time hammering at the hands of the old enemy from down the Seven Sisters' road, Arsenal. Let them enjoy it - we've got bigger fish to fry.

The Champions League really is where it's at. 10 days ago I watched Spurs lose their Champions League virginity by holding Werder Bremen to a 2-2 draw. My reaction during the game ranged from elation to sheer panic; my reaction after the game one of disappointment we didn't leave Germany with all three points.

My response to our third-round tie against the Gunners? Snoring with sporadic twitching as I thought about our very first home game in the Champions League next week, when we host FC Twente. Reaction to the result after the game? A quick "meh" with an ever-so-slight shrug of the shoulders.

The Carling Cup has its place in English football, but I now understand why cubs such as Chelsea, Manchester United, the current holders, and Arsenal use the competition to blood their young.

Despite my bravado, I'm realistic enough to know that Spurs will not win the Champions League. However, a few games into the domestic season has made me seriously re-think what our priorities should be in terms of competitions and how many eggs we should throw into each basket.

We do not have the squad or the know-how to compete full-throttle in a Champions League game with matches against Premier League opposition the weekend before and after. My prediction earlier this season, which seems pretty bold now, that we would finish third was based on the form we showed in the league last season without the distraction of competing in Europe's premier competition.

So of the four tournaments we started out in at the beginning of the season, Arsenal have already done us a favour by kicking us out of one. The FA Cup, as much as it pains me to say, would not have the dog living in fear of a kick up the backside if we were no longer partaking come January, leaving just the league and the Champions League.

I now think it's within our best interest to do as well as we can in Europe's stellar event. We have been wise to the pitfalls that have befallen clubs like Leeds United in the past who chased the dream at all costs. Spurs are one of the best managed teams in the league in terms of finance, having turned a profit every year for the past seven.

We have a squad that, although by no means the best in Europe, is certainly competitive. The adventure has us dreaming, not of making the final at Wembley Stadium in May, but of magical European nights not seen at White Hart Lane on a regular basis for over 20 years.

My hope is that we can give a good account of ourselves in our maiden outing in the competition. Who knows, maybe even qualify from the group stages?

Finishing in the top four is going to be a monumental task, one that know Spurs fan should expect of their team if taking the scalps of Inter Milan, Bremen and Twente is what's really whetting our appetite.

Some would say it's a backward step to break into the top four only to surrender it so meekly after one season. I disagree. The more big-game experience we get, the better equipped we'll be to mount a sustained challenge to the stanglehold Chelsea, United and Arsenal have at the top.