The former Tottenham Hotspur boss talks about his time at the club and his phone conversations with the former chairman and owner.
Harry Redknapp believes a couple of phone calls from Daniel Levy and Joe Lewis about Robbie Keane led to his sacking from Tottenham.
Redknapp spent four years at Spurs with one of the best squads in recent memory with the likes of Luka Modric, Gareth Bale, Rafael van der Vaart, Ledley King, Aaron Lennon, Kyle Walker, Danny Rose, Jermain Defoe and Keane. In his final year in charge, he was sacked by Tottenham in June 2012 with a year left on his contract amid a slump in results and ties to the England job, with Redknapp admitting at the time that he would leave if offered the role.
Redknapp, now 79, believes a series of phone calls from ex-chairman Levy and former club owner Lewis Keane about Keane made him realize the end could be near.
“We were second in the league, we were doing great. I’d never met Joe Lewis. Joe Lewis owns Tottenham. He was the boss. Daniel, you know, had all the day-to-day business. But Joe was the governor and I’d never met Joe. Then one Friday I got a phone call on my way to Stansted Airport.” The show will be shown at the end of October.
“Daniel calls me. He never called me on Friday, he never interfered. Daniel was good as gold with me. I have to be honest. I never had a problem with Daniel Levy. I don’t speak to him now, but I have to be honest, he was good with me, he was good with me. But before the trip to Old Trafford, I go to Stansted Airport.
“Daniel calls me. ‘Harry, who are you going to play up front tomorrow?’ We had a couple of injuries. I said, ‘Robbie Keane.’ He said, ‘Robbie Keane?’ Why?” He said, “Ah, I’m a little surprised. Have you thought about asking Rafa van der Vaart who he wants to play with?” I said, “What’s it got to do with Rafa van der Vaart, Daniel? I choose the team, not Rafa.” “Well, I thought it might be interesting.” “No, no. I’m not interested. I play Robbie.”
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He continued: “I got to the hotel in Manchester that night. My phone is ringing. It’s Ivana, Joe Lewis’ secretary. ‘Hi, Ivana.’ He said: “That Robbie Keane is useless, isn’t he?” I said, “That’s your idea, Joe, innit.”
“He said, ‘He doesn’t even know the offside rule.’ I said, “I think he does, Joe. He scored X.” He said, “I’m telling you, if he plays tomorrow, I’m not going to watch that game on TV.” I said, “That’s your choice, Joe.” And I knew then, it was after Christmas, I thought, “There might be a problem here.”
“Obviously the next day I played Robbie and Daniel said again: ‘Why don’t you ask Rafa who he wants to play with?’ Same answer again. But I knew if things didn’t go my way, if there was the slightest slip, I’d go. I think Daniel was overwhelmed to see me go, if I’m honest. I think he’d probably never fought in my corner. I had that problem when I played Robbie Keane.”
Tottenham are bottom of the Premier League table under Roberto De Zerbi after five games this season, but Redknapp believes the Italian and his squad will soon be promoted.
“I don’t know. I’d say top four, top five, top six for them this season. I think they’ll turn it around. I think they’ll do well. They’ve got to do it with this group of players,” said the former Portsmouth and West Ham boss. “But the 17th, you know, unbelievable. Good managers, good players. There’s something not right. But I don’t know what it is. They’ve got players, you know.
“Last year, the year before, they were better than where they finished. They definitely should have done better. They had good enough players to fight for European places.
“As I heard someone say the other day, they’ve bought players who didn’t make the team at their previous clubs. They’re not exactly consistent winners, are they? One or two of them have been relegated. And what they’ve had hasn’t exactly set the world on fire either.
“So you still expect them to finish in the top six and I still feel confident that my bet will be good at the end of the year. But they better hurry.”