Michael Carrick followed in the footsteps of Jermain Defoe and Frederic Kanoute by making the short move from West Ham to Tottenham on August 24th 2004, for £2.75m. Having joined the club with a slight knee injury, Carrick made an inauspicious start to his Tottenham career and was unable to break in to the first team as the new look Tottenham started the season well, taking 8 points from the opening 4 games. Michael's chances took a further setback when he sprained his ankle in training, resulting in a further five-week lay off, but he finally made his debut on 18th October, coming off the bench in a 1-0 defeat away to Portsmouth. Carrick still struggled to break into the starting XI however and had to settle for more substitute appearances, including a 2-0 defeat away to Fulham, which turned out to be the last game of Jacques Santini's short tenure. Martin Jol took charge of first team affairs for the next game at home to Charlton, who lead 3-0 at one stage, but the introduction of Carrick sparked a mini-revival as Spurs fought back to 3-2. This would prove to be the turning point of Michael's Tottenham career. He made his first start in Jol's first official game in charge away to Burnley in the League Cup three days later, putting in a majestic performance and creating the first goal with a sublime pass for Robbie Keane. In one move, Carrick had provided the creative spark the Tottenham midfield had been so desperately lacking. Michael maintained his place in the holding role of midfield for the remainder of the season, only missing one game, and his performances helped cause an upturn in Tottenham's fortunes as they went on a run that carried them up to a 9th place finish, narrowly missing out on UEFA cup qualification. Carrick's second season is one that Tottenham fans fondly remember, but not for its conclusion. His role in front of the back four was influential in Tottenham's successful league campaign, but he also got his name among the goalscorers too, scoring his only two goals for the club in matches against Sunderland and Manchester City. The first was the winner in a dramatic 3-2 victory over the Wearsiders at White Hart Lane, Michael receiving the ball in space on the right side of the penalty area before calmly stroking the ball through a melee of defenders. His second goal was also a winner, this time firing home from close range past David James in the City goal. The season, however, was to end in disappointment, with Michael among the ten players struck down with food poisoning the night before the crucial final game with West Ham which Spurs went on to lose 2-1, an exhausted Carrick being replaced in the 60th minute. The defeat meant that Spurs agonisingly missed on qualification for the Champions League, bitter rivals Arsenal pipping them to 4th place. It was to be Carrick's last game for the club as he signed for Manchester United on 31st July 2006, for an eyebrow-raising fee of up to £18.6m, the large sum going someway to dispel the Spurs fans' disappointment in his transfer. (Stephen Bradley)