I know that
Harry Redknapp has returned to haunt Alex Ferguson in cups on several
occasions, but I just can't see him doing it again when Tottenham face
Manchester United in the Carling Cup final on Sunday.
On paper it
looks almost like a dream final, but I doubt that people watching it are going
to see that dream become reality.
The
competition was important to me because it was my first ever domestic medal
when I won it with United in 1992, but it was a bigger deal back then.
The
managers of all the big clubs today moan about congested fixture lists, and
often use the cup competitions to rest their players.
Redknapp
has done the same in the Carling and UEFA Cups this season - at least we will
see a full-strength Spurs side at Wembley after he picked a shadow side and saw
his team knocked out of Europe on Thursday.
It's true that he needs to keep Tottenham up, but with
the quality they have in their squad they should be able to avoid relegation
now they are out of the bottom three, even with the extra matches that cup runs
bring.
More games
mean more revenue for the club, which ultimately means more money for him to
spend on players, something he loves to do.
People
never used to care about where they finished in the league, all they cared
about was trophies. It won't matter about who finished where in the future,
only who won what.
I would
have thought that after winning the FA Cup last season with Portsmouth, Harry would be hungry for more
success.
It should
be the same for the players; you play the game because you want to win medals. That
is the theory, although it seems that players like Pascal Chimbonda don't necessarily agree.
If you're just playing to increase the size of your bank
balance rather than your trophy cabinet then you have no right to play the
game.
That's what
makes Alex Ferguson such a good boss. Even during that barren spell he had at
the start of his United career, he always wanted more from himself and his
team.
Harry isn't respecting the fans and the traditions of a club
like Tottenham by focussing almost entirely on survival. You can bet that
30,000 Spurs fans do not want to go to Wembley on Sunday for a day out, they
want to see their team win another trophy.
But Redknapp
has just sacrificed a great chance of winning the UEFA Cup, which provides a
huge opportunity for a side like Tottenham - after all, Middlesbrough
and Rangers have made it to the final in recent years.
He's doing the same thing in the UEFA Cup. If Spurs
gave it a real go then they'd have a
chance of winning it, they've
certainly got the players, but Harry's
just not getting their heads right.
He seems
intent on blaming everyone but himself for their problems, rather than taking
responsibility and trying to win every match as a manager should. And I don't think his negative team selections are helping.
He needn't worry about fixture pile-ups for too much longer
though, because it's highly unlikely
they will be in Europe next season.