Tottenham manager Tim Sherwood will not be pushed aside by outside criticism of the way he operates.
The 45-year old has received negative feedback for watching his side play from the stands recently but argues the point that it hasn't been a problem at other clubs, so why should it be at his.
As Sherwood prepares his Spurs side for Monday night's clash with bottom-placed Sunderland, he told reporters that he was continuing to keep realistic expectations in the face of pessimism and disapproval from supporters.
"You are damned if you do and damned if you don't," said Sherwood, whose future at White Hart Lane is not clear.
"If (Chelsea's) Jose Mourinho sits up there (in the stands), he's fine.
"Nigel Pearson at Leicester has sat up there all season. But I am realistic to know it's Tottenham, you are under the spotlight no matter what you do.
"You've got a rookie manager coming in here, won the first eight games or whatever it was and everyone thinks it's easy. I didn't, I was realistic, I knew there were going to be some downs.
"It was a case of just cracking on. But whatever decisions I make are my decisions. If I'm going to go down, I'll go down my way.
"It's just one stage at a time and I've got six cup finals between now and the end of the season, and it's really important to me that we show the fans something to make them optimistic about next season."
