This week, Harry Redknapp was asked a question which would have sent shivers down the spine of all Tottenham Hotspur fans: He was asked if he would be interested in the England job. You see, Fabio Capello’s contract is up at the end of Euro 2012 next July, and there is a pretty strong chance that one or both parties will not seek to renew it.
And so the tabloids look for the man most likely. Capello has rubbed many England fans the wrong way, in the manner of Sven Goran Eriksson before him. Choosing someone from abroad is galling enough, so when the new man leaves Premiership games early, appears to lack respect for the English game, and then gets meekly punted out in the World Cup quarter finals, the call for an Englishman grows pretty strong in some of the more parochial quarters.
In the Premier League, only one manager in the top six is Englishman. There are two Scots, an Italian, a Portugese and a Frenchman, but only one Englishman, and it’s Harry Redknapp.
It’s not hard to see why there are plenty who want him. On the second Monday of this Premier League season, Tottenham Hotspur opened their season with a trip to Manchester United. They were utterly dreadful, losing 3-0. The following weekend they hosted Manchester City, losing 5-0. After these two games, I made a prediction upon which I am now chewing. I said Tottenham would be lucky to finish in the top half this season. That prediction isn’t looking too crash hot right now.
They’re fourth now, level on points with the mighty Chelsea and with a game in hand. They sit there because Redknapp, with the sturdy assistance and acumen of chairman Daniel Levy, not only kept a side together which could have unravelled over the summer, but then added to it where needed.
Luka Modric looked certain to leave in the summer. Bought for around £17 million, Chelsea or Manchester United may have paid £40 million for him if courted. Redknapp was having none of it. Gareth Bale could have fetched a similar amount after his superb last season. Redknapp said that entertaining offers for him would make them a ‘selling club,’ and that Spurs were a big club chasing trophies, including the league title.
He kept them both. Modric clearly wanted to go. Redknapp left him out against United in the first game because his “head wasn’t right.” He’s playing superbly now. While the transfer question may arise again, Redknapp has got more out of Modric than most managers in the country could under the circumstances.
Not content with simply preserving the existing squad, he evolved it. Scott Parker is a wonderful signing, adding an industry and urgency to go with some of Spurs more graceful players. Parker is an evolution from the days of Tom Huddlestone (still a fine player), and Wilson Palacios.
Emmanuel Adebayor is a masterstroke, brought in on loan and combining the pace, grace, skill and physical presence Spurs have lacked up front. Jermaine Defoe and Peter Crouch each offer some of these traits; Adebayor offers them all and completes the side.
Tottenham Hotspur were the Premier League’s punch line for many seasons. Every year the same: underachievers. They should cover White Hart Lane in A4 sheets, because they’re only good on paper. Redknapp changed this from the minute he walked in. One of his first games as manager was thw remarkable, stirring 4-4 draw with Arsenal at the Emirates in 2008, and since then Spurs have taken the game to the big teams.
At the end of the 2009/10 season, Sir Alex Ferguson commented that it was Tottenham who were showing the Championship-winning form, rather than the actual contenders United and Chelsea.
All of these things combine to make Redknapp attractive to some as England manager.
If he’s given the role it would be a challenge. His time at Spurs has been defined by clever signings: Rafael van der Vaart, Brad Friedel, Scott Parker. As manager of a national team, you have to make do with what you have.
Despite all this, what is certain is that Harry Redknapp has transformed Tottenham Hotspur, and that their fans will not want to share him with the rest of the country.
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