‘Arry has signed a new contract with Tottenham Hotspur and will now remain their manager until 2013. The question I have is – would he have signed it if Fabio Capello wasn’t retained by the FA until after the 2012 European Championships?
The answer, I reckon, is no. He would have thrown his hat in the ring for the England managers job and waited to see what the outcome of that would have been.
That Capello remains manager means that Redknapp has now planned his career path with the aim of taking over following the Euros.
He now has three seasons to take Spurs to the next level. He will aim to finish in the top four – at least – in the Premiership each season and make some sort of impact on the Champions League.
He has the backing of the Spurs board to do so, especially in the transfer market and Harry will look to build on his reputation by restoring glory to Tottenham, thus giving the FA no option but to appoint him England manager when Capello steps down.
Top four finishes and Champions League success, likely in the form of quarter final and semi final places, will do that, but the club will want silverware to go with it, so he must pick up the FA Cup or the League Cup at least once along the way.
In three years time it’s also possible that the biggest stumbling block to his appointment as England manager – the court case of tax evasion – will have gone away. That would leave the road clear for the FA to sign him up without fear of future complications.
I’ve already given Redknapp my backing for the job. I think he has what it takes to inspire and build confidence, though he will need a backroom staff that is more capable than he is tactically. He can also talk to the media on their level and is unlikely to follow the path of previous managers in picking teams and players based on press and public demand. Nor will he be afraid of leaving out big name players for the good of the team.
While he lacks tactical awareness right now – and I don’t mean that critically; Redknapp has only managed in England and has no real experience of facing opposition from Europe and farther afield – he will learn plenty from taking his Spurs side into the Champions League against Europe’s best.
Not only has he set out a career path he hopes will culminate in managing his country, he has a learning curve to climb and relish the challenge.
I know Redknapp is not everyone’s cup of tea and I know the negatives to appointing him England manager. In response, I will only ask who else do you think is up to the task? Because I can’t think of anyone better suited right now.
In 2013 that may be different. But for now, I wish Spurs and Redknapp well in their endeavours and I hope it works out for Harry personally and England in the future.
