Harry Redknapp aiming for Premier League title
Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp has revealed that Liverpool’s new recruit Joe Cole was destined to end up at Spurs before making a U-turn and signing for the reds.
Joe Cole completed his deal with Liverpool after a free transfer, since Cole was out of contract with Chelsea and he was a free agent.
Redknapp said that he had talked to Cole over a month ago and the midfielder had expressed his desire to move to Tottenham. Harry said that he knows Cole quite well from his days at West Ham United. Harry Redknapp was the man in charge of West Ham when Joe Cole emerged as a young midfielder with great potential.
He added that he was sure that the England player would be signing with them, but something happened after the World Cup and Liverpool moved in with a lucrative deal.
Joe Cole has put pen to paper on a deal that would see him stay with the reds for 4 years; he is expected to earn around 90,000 pounds per week at Anfield.
Redknapp is believed to be one of the most capable managers around; his optimism however may not be shared by many. Redknapp said that he strongly believes that his team can win the Premier League this season.
Tottenham ended on their best Premier League place last season, finishing 4th and earning a chance to play in the Champions League. The European competition does have number of added advantages there is the ability to lure big names to the club, and not to forget the financial benefits.
Harry said that he knows the team he has is capable of putting up a great challenge to Chelsea and Manchester United for the title. He added that the monopoly at the top has to be broken someday and why not now.
Harry added that the season is very long and does give his team ample time to formulate a long term strategy. Harry went on to say that a league season is not a sprint race but a marathon and the one that can sustain it the longest will win. He said that his players are very optimistic about their chances and believe strongly in his plans.
Harry said that when the last season started he had clearly told his team that he wanted and expected them to finish in top 4. He said if you set your sights at something and work hard for it there is no reason that it cannot be achieved.
The former Portsmouth manager admitted that he does need to strengthen his team before the transfer window closes. Spurs have made just one signing in this window that is the Brazilian midfielder Sandro,.
Harry said that since the team will be active in Premier League and Europe there needs to be an extra cushion for the players to last the whole season and also play at their best.
Redknapp said that he is fully aware of the big financial boost the club will get from the Champions League, and even if they are not able to get their hands on the player till the end of August the January transfer window can also prove to be quite productive.
Harry went on to say that most of the players in his team, though are very capable but lack the European experience. He added that if his team can make it past the group stages it will be a big achievement for the club.
The Spurs manager believes that there will have to be constant rotation in the playing 11 in order to keep the balance right. He said that he will identify some players particularly for Europe and will make sure he signs at least 2 players specifically with Champions League in mind.
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