5Q | Adam Smith: “Sandro’s standing on a chair playing a guitar with all my mates singing ‘Glory, Glory, Tottenham Hotspur’”

He's been with us for huge events including hosting the opening of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and behind-the-scenes access with the squad ahead of the Champions League Final in Madrid.

Adam is also the Official Matchday Host in the Bobby Moore Lounge for every England international and major domestic cup final at Wembley Stadium and is the host and producer of the Inside The Industry: Unfiltered podcast.

More recently, he's teamed-up with us again to co-host our new podcast The Hotspur Way in partnership with Sports Illustrated, alongside fellow Spurs fan, Reshmin Chowdhury – look out for recent episodes with Ben Davies, Andy Robertson and legendary former defender Toby Alderweireld.

@adamjsmithy

Why Spurs?

Adam: “Well, it's a good question, because in my family, I'm quite rare in that we all support different teams. So, my dad is a Wolves fan. I've two brothers and an older half-brother and because Wolves weren't doing brilliantly as we were all growing up, he didn’t want to impart Wolves on anyone, so he decided we could all support our own team. My older brother Daryl supports Watford, my younger brother Nick supports Arsenal, my youngest brother Josh supports Chelsea – and I support Tottenham. It was utter carnage growing up in my house! The reason I support Spurs was at a very young age, 1991, Gascoigne, Lineker, the FA Cup run and the influence Gazza had on me, watching him play, that kit, that Holsten kit. The first goal I remember is that semi-final free-kick against Arsenal. I was very, very young then, so I only remember it in parts, but that was the reason I was a Tottenham fan. My first real childhood hero was David Ginola. It came in three parts, really – Gazza was why I supported Spurs, then the Teddy Sheringham/Darren Anderton era, then Ginola. He was the first player I was obsessed with.”

What is your earliest Spurs memory?

Adam: “That would be, just about, winning the FA Cup in 1991. I was very young but that would be my first memory. The first game I went to was a 3-0 win against Southampton at White Hart Lane. We were in the upper tier, and I vividly remember walking up the steps and my heart skipping a beat because of how big it was and how everything was accentuated and magnified, the smell of the grass, the noise, I remember thinking, ‘wow’. It was quite daunting in a way because it was this huge theatre and I just fell in love with it, and it wasn't just the football, it was the whole spectacle of going - parking, getting the programme, the smell of the hot dogs… I then had a Season Ticket in Park Lane for years and loved it. Football brings communities together. One vivid memory I have is the amount of people who used to go on their own, and they’d form relationships at the football - communities, almost families, because of Tottenham, which I thought was amazing.”

Favourite player?

Adam: “Gazza was my childhood hero. In recent eras I loved watching Gareth Bale. I think Harry Kane is the best player I've ever seen in a Spurs shirt, the best player in the world. He should win the Ballon d'Or (note, this interview was in September). How that’s even a debate, I don’t know. Bale was in an era when I had a Season Ticket and I have so many vivid memories of him scoring winning goals.”

Cult hero?

Adam: “Sandro. I’ve a great story for you. I did a shoot, a very light-hearted sketch for Sky where Sandro had to play the guitar. So, I met him for first time for 30 minutes, did the sketch and we got on really well. Six months later, I hadn't spoken to Sandro, but he had started following me on Twitter. So, I DM'd him and said, ‘hi Sandro, it's my 30th birthday this weekend, having a house party at my house, you're more than welcome to come’. He DM'd me back saying, ‘hello my friend, good to see you, one problem, I don't have a present for you’. I was like, ‘well, obviously you don't have a present for me, you didn't know it was my birthday until five minutes ago!’. Anyway, the next day, a car pulls up to my parents’ house and there’s Sandro! At 11 o'clock at night he's standing on a chair playing a guitar with all my mates singing ‘Glory, Glory, Tottenham Hotspur’. I’ve got a video on my phone of him singing it. Since then, my wife has become mates with his wife, we're good friends, he's stayed at my house - we're very, very close. That is a true story. I must also say, he was the ultimate professional, didn’t drink, but really got involved playing the guitar. He’s one of the most genuine people you’ll ever meet.”

Favourite kit?

Adam: “The Holsten 1991 FA Cup kit, Gazza, Lineker, Gary Mabbutt. It’s just synonymous with that FA Cup win, brings back some great memories.”

Favourite Spurs moment? 

Adam: “That’s an easy one for me, being in the stadium for Lucas Moura’s hat-trick against Ajax. I was in the neutral end – UEFA have a neutral allocation, although we quickly worked out it wasn’t very neutral! I've been at hundreds of games where we've either scored a late goal or conceded a late goal, and it's jubilation or heartbreak. This was disbelief. It went in and it was like an out-of-body experience where I was like, 'we were 3-0 down and we've just scored in the last minute to get to the Champions League final'. I actually, for a minute, think I froze before I celebrated because I could not believe this had happened. Also, the Europa League win, the achievement of winning a trophy, has to be mentioned as well.”

Where were you when… Crouchy scored against City at the Etihad in 2010 to get us into the Champions League?

Adam: “Oh, I remember that vividly. I was in the Duck pub in Clapham Junction. I'd just moved out of my parents’ house. We’d been viewing a flat we couldn’t afford, I was gutted so we went to the pub afterwards – and watched Crouchy score that goal! It was a bad day, but a great evening!”