The wire is a-buzz with news that Harry Redknapp has left the Spurs after four years at White Hart Lane. Spurs Chairman, Daniel Levy, is said to have met with the disgruntled Redknapp on Wednesday to discuss his future with the club, and at that meeting they agreed to part ways. This could very well set in motion a series of unfortunate events, depending which club you support, for Spurs fans this summer.
First is the aforementioned Harry Redknapp, who I will admit has served the club well since he arrived in London four years ago. Back in 2008, Tottenham was mere point away from relegation. In only two years, he turned the team around and had them playing top-flight football in the Champions League. The team went much further than expected, and people hailed Redknapp for his successful strategizing. Even this past season, his Spurs were near the top of the table all year, and fell just a point shy of catching Arsenal for third, and lost out on a Champions League bid when Chelsea beat Bayern. His downfall occurred after the departure of Fabio Capello as Manager of England’s national team. Speculation was that Redknapp would get offered Capello’s old job, and I believe that when the job went to Roy Hodgson from West Brom, it was a great source of distraction.
The mark of a good manager is when he can get the most out of what he has, and I believe Harry Redknapp has done that. He managed his role players well, and the talented players he had to work with were, for the most part, under control.
Dutch International, Rafael van der Vaart, has publicly stated he wishes Redknapp to stay at White Hart Lane. There have been many reports about Rafa considering a move, with Schalke of the Bundesliga on his radar. Raf has a history with Schalke’s Manager, Huub Stevens, from their time at Hamburg. If he leaves, there will be a huge hole to fill.
There are several other exits that I consider “strong possibilities”, most notably the potential transfer of Luka Modric. The midfielder is highly coveted, and it seems his stock has grown during the Euro Cup. If reports of Redknapp turn out to be true, and if van der Vaart and others continue discuss leaving the club, the negative atmosphere could cause a chain reaction. Clearly, if Modric follows through with what he has been suggesting in the media, the Spurs better open their pocketbooks to replace him!
Reports are circulating that an agreement has been made between Dynamo Kiev and Tottenham for the services of Niko Kranjcar. The disgruntled Kranjcar often found himself playing behind van der Vaart, Bale and Modric, getting very limited playing time. Also set to leave is Vedran Corluka, who has been on loan with Bayer Leverkusen of the Bundesliga. The defender has shown some flashes for the German club.
And there is also the Gareth Bale rumours that won’t go away. The most recent one, which I think is just rubbish, is that Manchester City are offering Adebayor, Adam Johnson and big money in exchanged for Bale. I highly doubt that is even a possibility. Assuming the deal is not going to happen for a minute, Spurs have to consider signing Adebayor, who was on a loan spell from City. While not a fan of him myself, I can see his value in the Spurs attack and think that might be a wise choice to sign him permanently. Of course much would depend on City’s demands.
As you can see, these are tumultuous times for Spurs fans. Every club faces rumour, I understand this more than anybody (Arsenal is linked with every move in the world, literally), but I think there is a legitimate chance that we will see big changes this summer at White Hart Lane.
…until tomorrow, lads.
