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As a Tottenham Hotspur fan, I’m deeply disappointed and angry right now. Disappointed at seeing Harry Redknapp leave and angry at Spurs chairman Daniel Levy for putting personal and business interests in front of team interests. A large part of blame for Redknapp leaving the club will undoubtedly go down to the breakdown of the relationship between Redknapp and Levy, the Manager and the Chairman.
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While the relationship between the boss and the chairman is undoubtedly a very important one for the stable and smooth functioning of a football club, it is certainly not as important as that between the manager and the players. And as long as that relationship is healthy and running, there should be no reason to make a drastic decision as the one that was made last week.
Daniel Levy is a shrewd businessman. We’ve seen that over the years. He managed to sell Dimitar Berbatov at a highly inflated price to Manchester United on the final day of the transfer market, after sensing their desperation. He managed to acquire Dutch playmaker Rafael Van Der Vaart at a throwaway price, again on the last day of the transfer market. But business sense is best kept in the boardroom, and when a club is doing rather well on the field, there isn’t really a need to change anything.
The relationship between the manager and the chairman doesn’t always need to be a very healthy one. That between Redknapp and Levy would be, at best, described as cordial. One wonders how much of a relationship Sir Alex shares with the owners, the Glazers, and the same goes for Arsene Wenger and his boardroom staff. But no matter the status of the relationship, Wenger and Ferguson are allowed to do what they want, when they want.
The important parameter here, is support. Ferguson and Wenger are supported by their boardroom staff. The same should have been for Levy and Redknapp. It is ofcourse for the greater good of the club.
Though irreconcilable differences may be down to the ego issues of Redknapp OR Levy, I’d place Levy at fault here. That is because, whatever Tottenham Hotspur Football Club is today, is all down to Harry Redknapp. Yes, you can make great bargains in the transfer market (Berbatov and VDV) , but ultimately, the performances on the pitch count. And that’s where Harry Redknapp trumps Levy. Redknapp is the bigger man here. Levy should have realized that.
Harry Redknapp took over as the Spurs manager when they were languishing bottom of the table a quarter into the season. In about 2 and a half years, the turnaround is there for all to see. Spurs qualified for the Champions League the next season, lit up the Champions League with some scintillating football and were downright unlucky to not make it to the Champions League again this season. Credit to stabilizing a sinking ship must surely go to Redknapp. Spurs always had the players to make the difference, the belief and the thrust was provided by Redknapp.
Every Spurs fan would have dreaming at the turn of the year, dreaming of the Championship. A 5-0 thrashing of Newcastle at home, and nothing could go wrong at White Hart Lane. But then came all the gossip about the next England manager. Being a successful English manager, Redknapp was obviously in the fray for the job.
You can’t blame Redknapp for that, can you? For any Englishman associated with football, the job of the National Team Manager is the pinnacle of one’s career. It was a media-fuelled frenzy, and Redknapp got distracted. A horrendous run of results later, a manager who could do no wrong was suddenly insecure about his present job.
Once the dust settled and Hodgson was appointed, Spurs got back on its feet and stitched together a few results to cement 4th place. That wouldn’t prove to be enough eventually.
Talk of Redknapp extending his contract with Spurs, with a handsome salary to boot, evaporated. The tabloids said that he’d do well to hold onto his job.
We all know what happened next.
Spurs will struggle to keep hold of Modric and Bale
Expect a mass exodus at Spurs this transfer season. Modric and Bale, the 2 pillars of the team, are being courted by Manchester United and Barcelona respectively. Others may follow suit. They were here for Redknapp,not Levy. They believed in Harry’s project, of Spurs being a top club again.
Daniel Levy would need to bring in a big name now to continue its fantastic domestic performances in the last 3 years as well as further Spurs’ European dreams. Someone like David Moyes or Roberto Martinez just would not do. These are not the names that one would associate big trophies with year after year. Someone like a Laurent Blanc, who may just have realized that club management suits him best and may well be looking for an opening in the Premier League, or an Andre Villas-Boas, who has tasted success before and was rather unfairly sacked at Chelsea, would be perfect for the club. Such a big name would even persuade Modric and Bale to further their careers at White Hart Lane.
We would not like to see Spurs slip back into mid-table mediocrity. After the highs of 4th place twice in 3 seasons and a Champions League quarterfinal, what a shame would that be.
