Dressed in a leather jacket, tapas bar chic, and under cover of a nation in mourning, Juande Ramos appeared in front of the press last week to reveal a hitherto unknown gift for his new language. Asked if he would prefer to win 4-3, as Spurs had done against West Ham last season, or 1-0, the Spaniard did not even wait for his translator to pose the question. “If we win, it is the same,” he said, his accent near perfect.

Apparently, Ramos has been studying his English phrasebook hard in the international break, although his new affiliations did not, it seems, extend to watching the debacle of the national side against Croatia at Wembley on Wednesday night. Prepared for the inevitable questions about the technical deficiencies of the England players as opposed to, say, the Spanish side, he neatly deflected the point by saying he had switched to the other channel to watch Spain beat Sweden. Just as well, given that Paul Robinson, Jermain Defoe and Darren Bent had all returned to Tottenham’s north London training ground with their mental, if not physical, state as soggy as the Wembley pitch.

Ramos’s introduction to the Premier League has been relatively sedate, an away draw at Middlesbrough and a thumping home win against Wigan. Now comes a real test, his first London derby. West Ham v Tottenham, an Alka-Seltzer for an international hangover if ever there was one.

The universal language of management allowed Ramos to slip through his first major press conference without discomfort. “Taking each game as it comes” sounds much the same regardless of accent. But the former Sevilla manager, who finally usurped Martin Jol after the end of the longest and most public courtship in football history, cut an unpretentious figure, high on diplomacy, low on expression. No, Robinson would not be going anywhere; any rumours to the contrary had not come from him. Yes, he profoundly hoped that all his four strikers – Dimi-tar Berbatov, Robbie Keane, Defoe and Bent – would still be at the club at the end of the January transfer window. No, there was not much technical difference between the Spanish and the English players in his opinion.

Ramos, though, did not rule out further investment in one of the most expensive squads in the Premier League. “We will conduct a deep analysis of the squad and decide what we need,” he said. “Whether we invest in January or June depends on the situation of the team. In January, if we can get into Europe, it depends on that. The decision needs to be taken then.” His words were meant for the boardroom as much as for the press room.

Whatever the depth of understanding of his new surroundings, Ramos will know far better by tonight the geography and the petty tribalism of football in London. Twice a season Sevilla had dust-ups against city neigh-bours Real Betis; Tottenham are loathed at Chelsea and West Ham, and just plain ignored by Arsenal. To Ramos, parroting any manager on the eve of a big match, this might be just about the next three points, but, particularly at the end of such a depressing week for English football, it is no such thing.

Forgetting for the moment the predominance of foreign players in both sides today, this has always been a very English fixture between two teams that have generally - and often to their cost in recent seasons - placed style above substance.

Last season’s 4-3 victory for Spurs was a giant global billboard for the Premier League. And who cared whether technical efficiency and the tactical nous exhibited so noticeably by the Croats on Wednesday night were sacrificed to the gods of power and pace? This brand of football sells. The national team can look after itself. Ramos certainly was not about to join the growing chorus of support for a limit to overseas players in Europe’s top leagues.

“The most important thing at any club is that they are private companies and they demand good results,” he said. “The borders are open and you need the best. If you have the English players, absolutely perfect. If not, we’ll go abroad.”

Had he bothered to switch channels last week, Ramos might well have been shocked by what he saw. Not just the nihilism of England’s attempt to break down the stubborn Croatia defence, but the absence of any vestige of leadership on the field from a team that included Steven Gerrard, the captain of Liverpool, a European Cup-winner; Frank Lampard; David Beckham (for the second half); and Sol Campbell, all old enough with the experience to take control in the manner of Bryan Robson, England’s last proper captain. Yet at 2-2, with qualification back in safe keeping, the England players were running to take a throw-in.

Leadership on the field, Ramos said last week, was “muy muy importante”, although he would not be drawn into naming the names of his potential leaders at White Hart Lane or in the Sevilla side that won five trophies in three seasons. At the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Ramos had a Dave Mackay figure in Javi Navarro, except tougher and dirtier. “A good defender and a great teammate” was Ramos’s succinct description of his captain, who was once banned for five matches for putting Juan Arango of Real Mallorca into hospital after an elbow to the face.

On arriving at White Hart Lane, Ramos must have looked around his dressing room to find his figurehead, his Navarro. Neither Younes Kaboul, who, along with Steed Malbranque, is injured today, nor Michael Dawson looks the part. Robbie Keane is the senior man and club captain, but when the Irishman was left on the bench at Middlesbrough in Ramos’s first Premier League game, the Spaniard gave the armband to Robinson, who is known to be a strong presence in the Tottenham dressing room.

“Leaders tend to choose themselves,” said Ramos. “They come out of the group of players.” That was the way at Sevilla, and he will be looking for the same commitment to the cause at Tottenham, which might prove a problem for Berbatov and Defoe, to name just two.

“I’d like to keep all my strikers here,” Ramos said. “But it is up to each player to make an analysis of his situation. I think they’ll be happy and comfortable here, but they have to make the decision. If we have to share out the minutes, they may not be able to play all the minutes that they would wish.”

In other words, it’s up to the players if they want to stay or go. In saying little, Ramos managed to convey a surprisingly strong message. By reputation and appearance, he is not the indulgent type.

Inside track
- Spurs did the double over West Ham last season, winning the equivalent fixture 4-3 with late goals from Berbatov and Stalteri

- Robbie Keane has scored in five league games this season but not in a Spurs win

- Only one West Ham goal this term has been a header

TV match West Ham v Tottenham
Today, Sky Sports 1, 1pm, kick-off 1.30pm; highlights, Match of the Day 2, BBC2, 10pm