Dubai: Harry Redknapp’s criticism of the English Football Association (FA) has ended any hope there was of him one day managing England, while unnecessarily throwing scorn upon the appointment of Roy Hodgson.
Books have to be interesting to sell, but his comments in his autobiography Always Managing, which has been serialised pre-release in a UK newspaper this week, are counter-productive.
“I wouldn’t trust the FA to show me a good manager if their lives depended on it,” and “How would they know? What clubs have they ever run? Who do they speak to who really knows the game?” are just some of the extracts that smack of sour grapes, dating back to when Hodgson was appointed England manager ahead of Redknapp before Euro 2012.
Frustrations against the FA are misguided, however, especially seeing as Redknapp was in court for alleged tax avoidance, a charge for which he was later cleared, leading up to the tournament. And anyway his club at the time, Tottenham Hotspur, had placed a £16 million (Dh95 million) compensation clause on his head, tipping the scales in favour of West Bromwich Albion’s baggage-free Hodgson.
Now — just like had Brian Clough managed to England or Roy Keane the Republic of Ireland — the Three Lions will be bereft of a ‘tell it like it is’ personality that many believe could make a difference. Whether these hypothetical appointments are as glamourous as the reality, though, we’ll never know, but it’s easy for the ignored to live off that endless speculation instead of confronting the real issues.
Redknapp, 66, insists: “I have no hard feelings towards Roy. I phoned him to wish him good luck, and I meant it. He has managed some of the biggest clubs in the world.”
But the damage has been done. Hodgson’s England are still mid-qualification for next year’s World Cup and their passage is far from assured with two games at home to Montenegro and Poland to come on Friday and next Tuesday respectively. England are perilously perched on top of Group H, just one point clear of Ukraine, who have Poland at home and San Marino away.
You can’t help but feel that Redknapp’s revelations could have been held until after qualification was confirmed, hopefully on October 15. But again book sales and relevance dictate, no matter how disruptive it is to your country and a managerial campaign — in Hodgson’s case — that already has many unconvinced.
However you look at it, Redknapp has dealt Hodgson a back-handed compliment, heralding Hodgson’s experience at the same time as admitting “Roy was more the FA’s cup of tea”, while saying “the FA don’t have a clue on managerial selection”. Redknapp also implying that the players and the fans wanted him instead is also a poorly timed affront to Hodgson’s efforts and ability, which serve only to needlessly unsettle.
