The first of two consecutive controversial entries in this list, Gary Mabbutt was and still is undoubtedly a club legend at White Hart Lane. However, the fact is that Spurs kept him on as a player for far too long. Mabbutt's Spurs career lasted sixteen years - from 1982 to 1998 - and he made well over 600 competitive appearances for the club in all competitions, but he was almost 37 when he finally retired and, at the start of the 1997-97 season when he was 35, he broke his leg. He had already deteriorated a lot in quality by that point and Spurs' worst feature was their defence, so he really should have retired there and then. However, it wasn't until the end of the following season that he would do so. There is no doubt that Mabbutt was a fantastic servant for Spurs and he is still rightfully remembered fondly today. He would, however, have been even better remembered had he retired in his prime (or at least closer to it), as fans who were only just getting into football in the mid-1990s only remember him as something of an injury-prone liability.
