All managers make crazy decision at times, Jol used to make crap tactical moves in games and Avb was the same with his squad use, so Redknapp can't be singled out for squad use when managers before and after have been making mistakes. In fact Jol used to freeze players out, He froze out Danny Murphy who has proven to be a more then competent midfielder, and when he played due to an injury to Jenas we where a better team but Jol then froze him out once Jenas returned so I don't get why Redknapp gets singled out for squad issues. Yes Pienaar was a talented player but his move never worked out and he never settled, Nor did Gds so I personally won't blame Redknapp for players who didn't settle or in Gds case who I believe wasn't suited to the league.
I'm ambivalent about Redknapp. Yes, he was needed at that time to bring some obviously needed stability to the side. He had his good points in the way he let his chosen players go out and express themselves. He benefitted from having some very good players, though. However, I can't ignore his glaringly obvious faults. He always had his favourites, and would consistently try and fit square pegs into round holes by playing many of them way out of position. As PNP has said, if for any reason Harry didn't like a player, he just froze them out. I thought Pienaar was a steal at £2mil, or whatever, but he never was given a decent chance to show what he could do. What finished Redknapp for me, and I suspect many others, was his blatant courtship of the England job - taking his eye of the ball at Spurs whilst doing so. Sorry, inexcusable!..
He finished twice in the top four and once outside In 5th in the three full seasons so that's more than luck or having good players as I notice I have to remind people the year we got top four Redknapp used his knowledge by signing players such as Crouch, Defoe, Kaboul, Bassong. Or has your memory evaded you as that year Redknapp got the best out of a fairly limited team. Also Jol Froze players out and left us in the relegation zone. No mention of that? Selective memory Is what most people have when attempting to criticise Redknapp and praise Jol. Plus as much as I respect Pnp for his views, he proved that by mentioning players like Huddlestone who was injured for ten months that people will attempt any sort of invented opinion to try and critise Redknapp.
You accuse others of taking a blinkered approach to Redknapp, whist doing exactly the same thing yourself. I repeat, he was not all bad, but he had glaring faults. His constant self promotion, his refusal to accept any blame for anything that went wrong, whilst eagerly claiming all the credit when it went well. That's just additional to the blindingly obvious faults already mentioned.
Every manager has faults but did Redknapps positives, Outweigh the faults? Yes because he's our most successful premier league manager and left us in 4th whereas Jol and Avb left us in inferior positions so considering Redknapp gave us our best football and memories in over 20 years, it's actually ridiculous people focus on negatives when even at his worse he was better then anyone else since the PL started.
Again, he had the players. Yes, full credit for Bale's advancement, but even that was needs must at the time. Modric was always on his way out - probably VDV the same, for personal reasons. How would he have done without those two, and the loss of King and Bale? Well, we'll never know. But, I doubt he would have still achieved top 4. Saying Redknapp was the best manager we've had in 22 years about says it all really. Mostly about the club's abysmal record of managerial appointments. Even Redknapp was only appointed in a panic, after yet another failed appointment had left us bottom of the Premiership.
You change you're opinion more then Defoe changes wags as a few months back we had a debate where you said Redknapp deserved no credit for Bale but now all of a sudden you're fixated on praising Redknapp for Bale which proves your opinion can't be taken serious as im fairly confident for three years and 7 months you enjoyed Redknapps management. Plus you have been told the team that got top four didn't have these superstars in their prime the players who got us top four where mostly his signings such as crouch, Defoe, Kaboul, Bassong to compliment the squad in place which needed Redknapps management to fulfil it's potential. But judging by your comments I doubt you remember what team we had that year.
I give up! It's impossible to have any reasonable debate with anybody so blinkered and short sighted. If you care to read through my previous postings, I gave Redlnapp credit for advancing Bale but pointed out that it was partly from necessity at that time. As for the rest of your ramblings, it's too ridiculous to merit any serious response.
It's ridiculous to merit any sort of response in stating Redknapp managed us to the top four by building on the previous squad by signing his players and getting the best out of the team? Lol. You can't make a serious response that's why you're '' giving up ''.
I gave up as you were starting to put me into a coma with your dogmatic, myopic view of "Saint Harry" The 2009-2010 squad contained both Bale and Modric. O.k. no VDV until a tad later - reputedly a Levy signing, by the way. I have tried to give you what any reasonable person would consider serious responses. However, you are so blind to any possible flaws in the the sainted 'Arry that you see only what you want to see..
Huh? I never wanted Redknap at the club, in the first place! Why the hell would I want the average gobshite to remain at the club? He was an average manager, who had the greatest fortune to be in the right place at exactly the right time, when he landed the Spurs job. **** me! Mark Hughes could have got us 4th! That's how easy it was with that team. And don't give me all this bollocks about "'Arry making Bale into the player he became." No one buys that. Bale always was a great prospect, long before Redknap and his gaggle of mates infested our club, and he was always going to become the player he is today. Redknap relegated every team he managed, and he would have done the same with us, eventually.
Our top scorer was Defoe, Crouch scored the winning goal at City, Bassong was one of the leading centre backs and as was Kaboul, the main players of that team which got us champions league football where the "limited" players that either Redknapp signed or got performing to a level no other manager could. Nice of you to finally remember VDV wasn't around, google is superb for people with a weak memory.
For a start, I don't know where you've got that quote from, or the context it was written in. It may well have escaped your attention, or you may be too dense to have figured it out, but most of the time what I write is contrary to what I actually mean. it's called irony, and I use it a lot, mainly as a means of deflecting most of the pain inflicted by the mis-management of our team. Rather than wasting your time trawling through the hundreds of threads and tens of thousands of words that have been written on this board since the time that Redknap was in charge, hoping to find something to incriminate me with - which, by the way is as creepy as it's sad - I suggest that you relax and try not to take life too seriously.
HIAG, I'm sat here laughing at you, not angry buddy as its ironic the way you reacted considering you don't even know if that quote was real and nice to see I got an insult, calm down and stop taking things so serious when you get wound up.
I'm not wound up. Just having a slight dig at you for having a slight dig at me. Let's face it, this is handbags compared with the all-out war that kicks off over on the Goons' board! No real offense taken, mate, I can heartily assure you.
I know (you know) and by the way I rated Mick McCarthy once!...even if that is sad (and creepy()! I'm just waiting for NSIS to reply and insult me again. I'll try and take it on the chin!
...yes, it's superb for people who couldn't remember Bale and Modric being in the squad either. I'm afraid your myopic intransigence over the semi- deity, Redknapp is now starting to bore me!...
You do know that I'm taking the piss with the whole "Mick McCarthy" thing, right? NB: Re the "sad and creepy" jibe... Yes, it would have been sad and creepy to trawl the hundreds of threads in a desperate attempt to catch me (or anyone else) out, but I can see, now, that you didn't do that; and I heartily apologise for even beginning to think that you would! In fact, there's only one person on this entire site whom I believe capable of undertaking such a disturbing task, and I am forbidden from ever writing his name on this board.
Don't worry old chap I remember but Huddlestone and Crouch where more important then Bale & Modric that season, Modric and Bale where our main players in the following seasons but you're not alone in forgetting who played thier part as a few fans have said "VDV got us into the champions league". Even more impressive when he wasn't signed until the following year.
