On the latest episode of the Last Word on Spurs podcast, Ricky Sacks and John Wenham of Lilywhite Rose welcomed former Tottenham Hotspur defender Michael Dawson on as a guest.
The current Nottingham Forest ace discussed a number of topics during the show, which was titled: ‘Michael Dawson – Special’, one of which was the infamous ‘Lasagnagate’ incident in 2006.
Spurs travelled to Upton Park for the final game of the season in the knowledge that if they matched Arsenal’s result against Wigan Athletic, then they would secure Champions League football for next season, but several members of the Spurs squad, including Dawson, suffered from food poisoning, and they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat (per Sky Sports).
Here’s what the centre-back had to say about the controversy on the podcast:
“This was just an absolute nightmare. It was a hot day. We go down for a walk at 11 o’clock and I’m looking at the lads and I look green. I’m thinking, how am I going to play? The police were there and they’re like, ‘we can put the game back for an hour’. What’s an hour gonna do for you? I’m dehydrated, I’ve got no energy. It’s five or six of us who were really struggling and the lads are like ‘Daws, we want you to play because you’ve had a good season, you’re playing well’. In hindsight, I shouldn’t have played.”
TIF Thoughts…
The game was certainly a controversial one and from the sounds of things, Dawson was not fit to play against West Ham but felt he needed to do so due to the gravity of the situation. However, considering the final result, you can certainly understand why he felt he shouldn’t have featured at Upton Park.
Do you think the game against West Ham should have been replayed?
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Luckily for Spurs and Dawson, they would only have to wait until the 2009/10 season to secure qualification to the Champions League, a competition they have certainly established themselves as regulars in over the last few campaigns (per Premier League).