We don’t know what is going on behind the scenes at Tottenham (note to self – get a source behind the scenes at Tottenham). But the idea of Harry Redknapp getting sacked is one of the most crazy I have ever heard. Am I alone here?
You don’t have to be a particularly good student of football to see that Tottenham are in the best shape for at least 20 years. I’m thinking back to when Clive Allen got about four million goals in one season and Spurs could easily have won the title if it hadn’t been for the backlog of league games, due to cup involvement.
In a relatively short period, Harry has turned Tottenham into a genuinely top team. He has bought typically well and not only with obvious signings. Noone really wanted Van Der Vaart. Bale was being underused. Tottenham were generally just being Tottenham – everyone liked them because they played nice football but weren’t really a threat to the title challengers.
Unless Harry Redknapp is asking for £40m in wages then Daniel Levy may be about to send Spurs back to the dark ages.
Redknapp was clearly swayed by the chance to manage England but now he’s focused on Tottenham again. If he leaves then surely at least one of the big stars of the team will follow. I just can’t see how his departure could benefit the club.
Conversely, if Harry stays for another few years and is given the financial support to develop the team and squad, Tottenham could genuinely challenge at home and in Europe.
So why is there even a suggestion of Harry getting the boot? What do Tottenham fans think about this?
MyBoy
Jun 13, 2012 at 10:55 am
What do the fans think? Well mostly the fans that go to matches are in the Harry to stay camp, the ones that view the matches from forums and dodgy streams are firmly in the Harry Out camp. He has overseen an upturn in our fortunes for sure but he also took his eye badly off the ball during the whole England saga/mess – not helped in the least by the FA as usual may I add. So our end of season was an utter dismal display compounded by the cheatskis winning the CL and not a trace of the media outcry and uproar that there was when the scousers were the ones who would lose out and the uproar their surely would have been had it been the gooners that finished 4th. So overall the fans are split with wanting him in or gone. Myself I want a decision to be taken one way or the other probably favoring stability by giving him a 3 year contract from now and then backing that up with some financial clout in the transfer market. But this is Spurs and things will be done the Spurs way – ie last minute and totally self destructive.
Lee
Jun 13, 2012 at 10:04 pm
I dont care whether he stays or goes, really dont I have been a season ticket holder for 15 years i go to every home game and every away that i can so i think you need to hold you corner.
Let me ask you some questions is this the best spurs could have done this season, Do you like your manager calling fans idiots because they have an opinion , Do you think spurs should of and could of beaten chelsea in the semi ars*nal away, chelsea away, united at home villa away, everton away, if all the answers to those questions are yes then harry is not the right manager for spurs because they were all done to him. No-one doubts what he has done its how he handles things and the fact of the matter is he didnt bring us from relegation with some idiots he did it with a world class squad he said so himself. We need a manager who will take responsibility when it does not go there way. so when they face the same opponents again he has a leg to stand on football is football and results dont go your way and there is luck and other forces in play. but when those are mostly your manager its time to change.n
Kenny
Jun 13, 2012 at 10:57 am
i think there are too many Harry haters amongst our so called fans, have they got short memories we’ve just had 3 seasons in the top 5 with Redknapp. When was the last time that that happened in the Premier league?? I’ll answer NEVER.
Get him a new contract and support our team to the next level.
bob
Jun 13, 2012 at 10:59 am
I feel that Harry must go. He put the England job above his responsibities with Tottenham
and the club lost it’s way. I have never understood how one man can have so many opinions
and continually shares these with the media. He should have kept his head down and his many
comments to himself and perhaps Tottenham would have held off the Arsenal for third place.
My fear is that we end up with a second rater in Harry’s job!!
Slasher
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:01 am
There are a lot of Spurs fans who don’t like ‘Arry – they think he is not a good tactician, that he likes to wheel and deal too much, and that he is not committed to the club. From my perspective as a Spurs fan, I remember where we were when he came and the number of managers we were going through. He has made Spurs potential contenders and the players seem to really love playing for him and am concerned that we will lose some major players if he walks or is given the sack. I am therefore willing to ignore the calls for his dismissal. I do however think we should offer him a 1 year extension on his existing one year and see where we are in a year. If we replace him I am really concerned at what will happen next season and over the transfer window
Ian
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:04 am
I think Harry game is up.
Too many mistakes last year when arse and chelsea had the worst performances for years we still could not top them. Ok we beat arse but it was not as easy as the game at theirs.
Players were overplayed and underplayed , loaned out then it seems needed, why did we not recall Caulker, if not in contract then after the man city goalie issue two years ago it should have being.
If Harry is as stupid as he played in court then we must get rid and knowing people who have met say he is not.
The is a reason no team has never wanted him and spurs were desperate when they did
Richard Stretton
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:07 am
You are so wrong on so many levels, His purchases are average , Bassong, kranjar, Piennar, Crouch, Defoe, Chimbonda, all these have spent so much time on the bench or in the stand what a waste of millions. Parker good signing , but no sell on value, Walker good signing, VDV,levy bought him .we have a class act in Gio when he plays for mexico, you can count the minutes on one hand he has had an opportunity to impress the yids. When Ramos was here the players didnt want him and got rid of him, why the turnaround so quick when he was gone Clive Allen won the first game. Harry lost the passion when the FA were in his sights and now he needs a job he loves us again or he wants to settle the players he said not that he wants a contract again . Tactics very questionable ,this side was tired three parts the way through the year , he never had squad rotation he said ” we dont need to sign anyone in Jan” then when it turn pear shaped we dont have a big enough player group. This bloke will tell anybody anything like he did to the tax man. They did us a great disservice when they let him off.
Patrick watts
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:10 am
Utter nonsense. Under Martin jol we were 5th twice in a row,this myth that we went from rubbish to top 4 is being peddled by Harry to make us grateful for wherever we finish.he has no ambition,criticises the fans for wanting to finish in the top 4,went missing when the England job came up,and uses the media constantly to push his own agenda.Can you imagine fergie or mourinho losing third place,and then saying oh well,we are only spurs so we should be happy with 4th?!
Desi G
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:14 am
I agree yes he has made mistakes by not rotating the players and also tell me which coach would not have been distracted to coach the national team. With all these rumours, we are creating our own downfall by destabilising our team and prospective players. I agree he has made a difference compare to where we were always on the league table. What would have our responses been had chelsea lost.
Tunin
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:14 am
Absolute nonsense. Harry is a chancer that had a lucky run and threw away 50 million quid and the Champions League by being more interested in his court case and the England job than securing 3rd spot. His tactical decisions in the last half of the season were absurd and costs us dearly.
william pitt
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:17 am
please give harry a two/three year extension. I am aware of the middle east offer and harry may have been ready to abandon ship about a year ago… but he didn’t. As for England, well he has been honest enough to say he would have taken the job.. the England job is the top of the pyramid, which true Englishman would not take the job? Cmon Daniel you know it makes sense to forgive harry his indiscretions and extend his contract. Thank you
Shady
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:30 am
Redknapp has worked wonders for Spurs and he’s done very very well , Spurs fans will always appreciate how he’s managed to turn Spurs into a team that’s capable of consistently challenge for the CL places however that’s only one side to the story.
I wouldn’t say our form dropped because of the backlog of cup competitions at all. Spurs’ form dipped around the same time when he was linked to the England job, he clearly lost focus and the desire couple that with the lack of rotation and (players getting tired physically and mentally in the 2nd half of the season), lack of care and zero leadership with the knack of blaming other factors as to why Spurs let a 10 point lead slip over Arsenal and poor results other than himself then I’d say he has to take the majority of the blame.
Harry has brought well has he?
Kranjcar – Didn’t use him, Bassong – Ditched him after the first season, Pienaar – Didn’t use hum, Saha – Pointless, Parker – Great buy, can’t fault him there, Nelsen – Not great, old, Friedel – Has done a good job, Chimbonda – Pointless, Gallas – Another good purchase, Defoe – No brainer
Not the best record is it. He didn’t buy VdV or Sandro nor did he sanction the Adebayor deal or the pending Verthongen deal, Now tell me again if Harry has brought well?
Not to mention the cringe worthy comments to the media about his contract which fits nicely along with his other comments whilst he’s been Spurs’ boss (calling us fans idiots) etc…and now you can begin to see why DL is irked and reluctant to give him a new 3 year deal.
Now I’m not for a minute saying that we should sack him but I’d totally understand it if he were sacked and I’ll back the chairman every day if he doesn’t want to give him a new 3 year deal and why would he?
What we’ve learnt from his time in charge of Spurs is that we’ve hit a ceiling with Mr Redknapp and it’s maybe time for a change, maybe it’s time for a new young manager with a fresh approach and fresh ideas to the game and not someone who is adamant on sticking with 4-4-2 and doesn’t embarrass the club with his mis-timed, ill judged comments.
Hopefully that clears it up a little.
active8
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:30 am
firstly harry didnt sign van der vaart ,daniel levy brought vdv to whl and levy and the director of football at the time bought most of that squad ,bale was even frozen by harry in his first season it was only when we had injuries that bale got his chance and before harry was thinking of the england job we were pushing man u and man city but during this period we lost 5 or 6 games and that is what cost us champions league football.
johnburg
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:44 am
I think the newly employed Mr Stretford maybe spreading some rumours, a la Rooney last year!!
It is a strange situation as Harry got them in their best position for quite a while but he has some limitations relying on a preferred XI and team pattern. We outplayed MUtd at OT in August for an hour, then Fergie slightly changed his tactics and we came undone – I don’t recall Harry making such decisions??
His management came under scrutiny following the capitulation in March and April and when thinking about the games I have watched I remember last season Crouch being the Plan B when we were struggling against the likes of Stoke & Wolves etc, but he’s now gone so this option wasn’t available and I am not convinced there was a Plan B.
Apart from England speculation the biggest issue seemed that he couldn’t decide what to do when Lennon got injured and tried a bizarre 4-2-3-1 formation where Gareth Bale played the same going forward, but just didn’t bother tracking back – look at the 5 goals Arsenal scored, most included a Full Back prominently in the move! Once teams put about 4 players around Bale there wasn’t an alternative.
Having said all of that we also let in too many soft goals – as much as Ledley King has been a fantastic player, he was really struggling and often we sat back on our 18 yard line to compensate for his lack of pace! But it seems this has been recognised and new players identified. I just hope that this speculation does not cause Modric, VDV to run for the promised land!!
Mikey
Jun 13, 2012 at 11:49 am
There are many reasons why he may be given the chop. 1. Took his eye off the ball as soon as the England job became available, never once claiming his loyalty to Spurs. 2. After failing to finish fourth last season he was on Sky Sports saying that this was as good as it gets and anyone who doesn’t agree is an idiot. What message does that give the players? No wonder Modric wanted out. Tactics or lack of them. Allowing Bale to roam leaving our left back exposed, taking VDV off and putting Parker on when we needed a goal against Villa, not rotating the squad causing players to get worn out and not giving squad players a chance. The list goes on and on. 3. Goes on TV to talk about his contract when his boss is away at his mothers funeral. The guy has lost it, he is only interested in himself and is loyal only to himself. This business of best manager since whenever is a load of rubbish as its the best squad we have had since whenever and that is down to Levy and Levy alone. If it was left to Arry we would still have Crouch, Chimbonda et all and be buying players like Joe Cole and Michael Owen. I hope he does leave ASAP.
Kevin
Jun 13, 2012 at 12:27 pm
I have watched Spurs for 45 years and simply cannot believe the ridiculous anti-Redknapp nonsense spouted by some fans on the internet, who obviously never go to games. Yes, Harry’s obsession with the media is irritating: his refusal to embrace the club and its fans as his own is disappointing; he may be lacking tactically and he definitely took his eye off the ball at the end of last season. But the fact is that under Harry Spurs have finished in the top five three seasons in a row for the first time since the mid-sixties! In Harry’s short time at the club we have also received the quarter final of the Champions League at our first attempt, a League Cup final and two FA Cup semi-finals. All this with little financial backing from the Chairman. Hardly a failure! Of course we all want more and are still hurting from the cruel way Champions League qualification was taken from us but taking it out on Redknapp is not the answer. Things could easily get worse not better if we let him go. He should be given a rolling one year extended contract and Spurs fans should get behind him and judge him at the end of next season.
RhinoNeal
Jun 13, 2012 at 3:51 pm
How can we blame a guy for wanting to manage England. Surely that is the pinnacle for any English manager. Harry has always said he would fancy the England job and probably did take his eye of the ball but the whole thing was fuelled by the media with Harry being their outstanding candidate. The way everybody carried on about “Harry for England” it is no wonder his mind drifted away from Spurs and it must have had an effect throughout the whole team. The way the press are always trying to sell all the Spurs stars I wouldn’t be surprised if they all jumped on the bandwagon and thought this would unsettle Spurs. As far as Harry goes I would like him to stay and yes in the past I have been very angry at Harry for some of his judgement calls, the bad transfer targets and lack of tactics and team rotation but at the end of the day no other manager since Bill Nicholson has taken us to the heights we have enjoyed over the past three seasons. We moan about the players he goes for but do we know if Levy has placed any restrictions on who he can buy. Levy hasn’t exactly been forthcoming in his backing of Harry in the transfer market and the transfer dealings by Levy has been a complete no show with him doing nothing at all when we needed to once we made Champions League the first time. We are all quick to blame Redknapp but why? Is it his ambition to manage England, his tranfer dealings, losing a lead of ten points over Arsenal or his “poor tactics”? We have played some ot the best, most exciting football in years and are not that far away from having a truly great team but I fear that we will wipe all that away because Levy blames Redknapp for missing out on third. Is he kidding? Redknapp has been the only manager to get us there since way before Levy’s time at Spurs.
oldyid
Jun 13, 2012 at 7:49 pm
Any good manager who knew the english game would have done wonders with the squad Rednapp inherited.I have to say apart from Parker and Defoe who actually has Rednapp brought in and used, VDV and Ade not a Rednapp deal, Bale was close to Harry shifting him on and Sandro only got in the team due to injuries otherwise would not have been a Rednapp choice, Dos Santos never given a look in, Krancar under used, a good center back was needed in January no sign of one.
Jol was wrongly sacked by Levy to get the idiot Ramos ,Jol never had the same money to spent on his squad came 5th twice was unlucky with lasagnagate otherwise would have deservedly got 4th.
Rednapp was brought in to do a fairly easy job aviod relegation did it and excelled, but now the players are keeping spurs in the top 6 as nothing much from Rednapp, should have rotated the squad as to keep players fresh for after the Christmas period.
Would i keep Harry tough one as can only see Bilic doing something special with Spurs like Martinez’s style of football but is the lane out of his league at the momment, AVB your having a laugh, Mourinio why would he leave Real Madrid so may be better the devil you know but keep a close eye on him and hide the cash and let Levy bring in some quality player, people forget Levy is a spurs fan Rednapp is not, Rednapp is a Rednapp fan
Lincoln
Jun 13, 2012 at 10:55 pm
Mad to let Harry go. Back to a Manager per season.