For me, it isn't simply that he lost his hold on our top 3 challenge whilst being drawn in by all that "Cry Harry For England!" bollocks, it's the fact that he clearly doesn't have any real faith in us. He was as surprised as any of us, when we made top 4, a couple of seasons back, and he's never had any real faith that we could do better than that. Sure, he came out with all the sound-bites when we were riding high in third, giving it large about how we could win the league, but as soon as we gave away huge amounts of ground to Arsenal and plummeted back down to 4th he changed his tune in an instant, and suddenly he was spouting, "Yeah, well, it's a tough league, there're no easy games, son; 4th would be a good result for us, etc." He is a man who changes with the wind. At first, I found it mildly amusing, thinking he was doing it on purpose to take the piss out of the media. Now I know that, in fact, that's how his brain works. We need better than this.
Redknapp's 65 and always looking for an angle though, Lidls. How much continuity can he actually grant us, in the long run?
Er...when we got rid of Ramos and got in Redknapp? You are striving to make a point, LIttle Luke, but your reasoning is fundamentally flawed for one very simple reason... When did sticking with the same manager, who has taken you as far as he can go, ever help a club that is striving always to be the best? Your argument makes the assumption that Harry is the best that we can hope to find, and I simply do not accept that.
changing managers always always will have the potential to work. just like changing a player does. im surprised Luke that you have simplified your thoughts so much.
Essentially Luke, yes continuity is very important if it can be maintained. However, only if that continuation is with the right manager. Many of us are not convinced that Redknapp is.
We are not risking upheaval Luke we already have it. What makes it worse is that the upheaval has been caused by the comments of the manager himself. The ONLY reason to keep Redknapp is the relative success of two 4th places under his stewardship. I am of the opinion that there are a number of managers out there who could have achieved that with the squad we have. A squad which was largely there when Redknapp came. He has made some important signings but that is what you would expect from any manager at this level. I have complained all along about Redknapps spouting to the media and it's not getting better. There was an excuse at first as he adjusted to working for a high profile club like Spurs but all we have now is a high profile manager and often not for the right reasons.
Just seen this in the comment section of the Dear Mr Levy blog. Redknapp on 23rd March in reply to a question about players reacting badly to the speculation about him taking the England job: “Absolute nonsense. That is the biggest load of nonsense I have ever heard in my life. They don’t care whether I’m the manager next year. They wouldn’t lose any sleep over that. That’s football." “Footballers play the game, they come in every day and train. Someone else walks in here tomorrow – the king is dead long live the king! They don’t worry. They don’t think ‘Harry is going to England’ or ‘he is going to go somewhere else’." Redknapp today, commenting on his contract negotiations: 'The simple situation is, I've got a year left on my contract. It's up to Tottenham whether they want to extend that contract or not. If they don't extend it and I go into my last year, it's not an easy one when players know you've only got a year left. 'It's not a case of me looking for security. What it's about is players knowing you've only got year left on your contract and knowing that it doesn't work, basically. 'I think it's a situation of, 'well, he might not be here next year'. The two don't really tally, do they?
Nothing tallys with him PNP because he always comes from a position of what is best for Harry Redknapp. Guile, forethought, diplomacy, and the art of knowing when to keep stum are foreign to him.
How a manager behaves in a crisis defines his worth. The poor run became a crisis and the manager did not react. His 'worth' was thus defined.
I can't remember if it was on this thread or another that I said "Harry changes with the wind." Those quotes that PNP has referred us to proves my point in quite stark fashion! It's the major part of Redknapp that worries me a lot, because it confirms to me that the man lacks conviction (please forgive the unintended pun!).
Err - where's this upheaval you're talking about? You sure it's not just limited to this forum? Cos I just can't see that Spurs are a club in turmoil. And I repeat what I've said before: exactly what has Redknapp done that has been so destructive? I just don't see it. We had a bad run at a time when there was speculation in the media that he might leave at the end of the season. Speculation that he did not try to kill off even though he probably couldn't have. That's it. I repeat - that is it. And then we finished fourth which, incredibly unluckily, was not good enough for CL football but in doing so finished above Liverpool and Chelsea, who have both blown us out of the water financially for years, paying transfer fees and wages we can only dream of. Oh and we finished above Newcastle who had an excellent season and no-one has a bad word to say about. The team is better now than it was a year ago. And it was better then than it was a year before that. And it was better then than a year before that. Why must we put up with this? This poll shows us all one thing: as many people want AVB to be Spurs manager as the number who want Mourhinho. I think that really says something. Or maybe Klinsmann. Maybe Klinsmann will do better than Harry in getting fourth, fifth, fourth and providing a genuine challenge at the top. Yeah, reckon so. Or maybe Bruce Willis will work. You can't prove it wouldn't. Maybe Ledley should be boss. Yeah - that **** tends to work. Or perhaps a fictional character. Maybe Jossie out of Jossie's Giants? Why assume a fictional character couldn't do a better job than Harry? Good grief...
Yeah - I definitely think that he should have said in March "Well the speculation's bound to affect the players isn't it? And that's why we're playing badly". Cos he'd have received no stick at all for that, would he? Of course he says different things at different times. Part of his job is almost political. And it's also a part of his job that he's perhaps not all that good at sometimes. But it's incredibly understandable that he would say what he said in March even if no-one believed it.
Good rant lenny, but that's all it is a rant. I define the upheaval I am referring to as when the Manager complains in public about the terms of his contract. That is pretty basic and shows a division between Chairman and Manager and once you have that situation upheaval is inevitable. Don't believe me just watch as it all unfolds.
Harry Redknapp David Moyes Slaven Bilic Jurgen Klinsmann Roberto Martinez Jose Mourinho Andre Villas-Boas Joachim Löw Rafa Benitez Guus Hiddink Claudio Ranieri Louis Van Gaal Glenn Hoddle Carlo Ancelotti Martin Jol None of the above.
Something has clearly changed in the last few months to convert Levy from being extremely keen for Harry to stay - to what looks like an attempt to force him out. IMO, Levy obviously believes what many of us do - that Harry's blatant courtship of jthe England job has cost the club dearly. We can all speculate on the reasons for our dramatic loss of form towards the end of last season, but there is one person, who is as close as you can be to the whole situation, who has had a complete volte face in attitude. Now, I wonder why that could be??
i think we have to keep Harry for next season,and concentrate,on strenghening the team during the summer,there aren't,many better manager's out there now and the one's that are, are out of our price range.
I recall a certain poster pretty much saying the same thing...on other teams boards! Can't say I'm that happy with events of the last couple of days, but the part highlighted in the post is just rubbish. Just what would you say to media asking the question, when Spurs were a handful of points off the top, and level with United in joint second as were for a week? Ruin team moral with something like... "Oh don't be silly, win the league...what, with this lot!!! hahaha, nah we'll be scrabbling for 4th in a couple of months, this position is false." Of course we had a "a" chance, as remote as it gets, but Harry did not big that situation up in any way. As for repeatedly saying he changes with the wind....what a stupid thing to say, of course as cicumstances change his opinion will...mine will too...so will yours, just what is so odd about that? Did you still want him to announce we'd win the league, in the middle of the bad run...just to be consistant! There are reasons to make an anti Harry point, but this isn't one of them.
I distinctly remember Harry repeatedly saying "I want third" during the middle of the season. As soon as the wheels came off, he changed his tune and suddenly it was back to "if we finish in the top four, we've done great". He changes his tune to suit the situation, basically to cover his arse. HIAG's comments are bang on. Harry contradicts himself at regular intervals. Yesterday he's stating how the dressing room faces uncertainty if his contract isn't renewed. Only weeks ago he claimed players don't give a hoot if a manager stays or goes, only that they get paid. He's full of it and I wish he'd just STFU!!
The club would struggle to get a better manager in that A+ bracket. To be fair Levy has not really supported Redknapp over the last couple of years on the transfer front for various reasons. I wish the club would give us some positive news. The constant battle over the manager, keeping players and an endless lack of quality signings leaves a bitter taste. Levy needs to sort things out than leave everyone in the dark.
