Newspaper reports have suggested this week that Harry Redknapp could be lined up as a replacement for West Ham manager Sam Allardyce at the end of this season, should QPR be relegated.
Anyone with the slightest idea about football must be able to see this story as the steaming pile of, erm, ‘speculation’ that it is.
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Why on earth would David Sullivan and David Gold go and do something so stupid and jeopardise the future of the club, especially after all the West Ham owners have done to stabilise it?
Okay, he was excellent for West Ham during his time as manager of the club between 1994 and 2001, leading the Hammers to a fifth place finish and Europe in 1999. But that was a very long time ago and a very different Redknapp.
Since he left Upton Park, Redknapp has proven himself to be the kind of manager who needs a big budget in order to achieve his goals, no matter what the long-term consequences may be for his side.
The 66-year-old won the FA Cup with Portsmouth in 2008 – the south-coast club’s first major piece of silverware for 58 years, which gave them their first appearance in Europe in their history – but just look at what has happened to Pompey as a result.
Redknapp left Portsmouth for Tottenham Hotspur soon after winning the FA Cup. He managed to achieve moderate success at Spurs, guiding them into the Champions League by finishing fourth in 2009/2010. But, again, he spent a vast sum of money and ended up leaving White Harte Lane trophy-less after three and a half years.
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Now Redknapp finds himself leading QPR’s desperate scramble for Premier League safety. And how does ‘Harry Houdini’ plan to get out of this one? Spend, spend, spend, of course. QPR were reported to have splashed around £22m on two players – Löic Rémy and Christopher Samba – in the January transfer window, and that was just a month after Redknapp said this:
“I don’t want to spend their (the club’s) money, to be honest with you.
“There are a lot of players at this club who earn far too much money for what they are; far, far, far too much money for their ability and what they give to the club.
“I don’t really want to see the owners have their pants taken down like they have in the past. There’s a lot of agents made money out of them.
“I fined a player last week and he was earning more than any player earned at Tottenham.
“You shouldn’t be paying massive wages when you’ve got a stadium that holds 18,000 people.”
Obviously investing in the club to ensure its survival is a much better thing to do than just lay down and die, but QPR remain bottom of the Premier League and lost to fellow strugglers Aston Villa in their last game. So, yes, spending to stay up can be a good Idea, but it is a very risky gamble and one QPR could well lose.
As previously mentioned, QPR’s relegation could pave the way for ‘Arry’s return to the Boleyn Ground according to reports. If it is true, that would be such a huge embarrassment for West Ham, to bring in the man that failed at their London rivals. It would also be quite unfair on Sam Allardyce, who, despite the questionable aesthetics of his methods, has done all he has been asked to do by West Ham up until now.
Big Sam has been the subject of other dubious reports this week, with the Daily Mail suggesting West Ham have opened up negotiations for a contract extension with the former Bolton, Newcastle and Blackburn boss. This comes despite David Gold insisting the club would only speak to Allardyce once the Hammers are guaranteed to be playing Premier League football next season.
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So the story about Big Sam is likely to be as reliable as the rubbish about Redknapp, but keeping Allardyce would be a much wiser move for West Ham.
The cliché says that there is no smoke without fire, but in this case Hammers fans should really hope that the media has been deceived by a cloud of dry ice emanating from a machine somewhere, because Harry Redknapp and West Ham is a match that could burn the club to the ground.
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Redknap is not a bad coach but I agree with the article.
!Mostly I would not like to enter the new stadium with our nazi, bad tempered legend DiCanio.
What a load of bollocks! The best manager we have has since the legendary John Lyall. You obviously don’t go every week and put up with the clueless long ball shit I have to watch home and a way! Have a mind of your own and stop jumping on the we hate Harry bandwagon!
NO! Redknapp would only be a step back!
Allardyce has brought us stability, and keep him for 2 more years to establish ourselves in the Premier League. And all those who say “Allardyce won’t attract players,” well would Di Canio? All he’d do is replace all the staff, fall out with the chairmen and players, then leave in a tantrum! He is the next Mourinho (and not the good side of him.)
Undecided really, don’t think Saggy Chops is that bad a manager but as you say he chops and changes the squad a bit too much and needs money to spend. He bought a few decent players in the side and saved our ARSE with his Swoop for Kitson and Hartson. We won the ill fated Intertoto Cup and Qualified for UEFA Cup under him. Our only real run in European Competition in Years. Mind remember The Sale of Andy Impey just before a game against Derby he only gets to a certain level and think given time Big Sam will get up playing more consistent, would love a spell in the Europa League though.
Would Love to see Julian and Paolo in a Coaching capacity though.
Paulo was a great player but not necessarily a great man. Surely everyone remembers 2003 when he sulked all season then strangely recovered when Trev took over from Roeder? Too late to save us from relegation. Some short memories among Hammers fans.
Spot on Gary, totally agree!
he wont come back we dont want him back when he was at totts he said we will never fill it slaged us off went behind bonzos back trys to nick our players that we go after stick with big sam love to have paulo julian or alvin any whu legends brooking / bonds what a team
Don’t forget either that Harry left the club after a very poor run of results. So not quite as successful as people like to think.
Arry’s dog would do a better job. Arry is past it and is bad news for our fragile finances.
Hari Kari?
No thank you!
Arry’s got an ego the size of a planet and whilst he’s been away he’s done nothing but try to undermine this club either in the transfer market or with verbal diarrhea DURING his time with us and whilst he was away.
What He done to Sir William Bonds was totally unforgivable and shows what the man is about.
Other than that, he’s not welcome back in my book!
Yep been singing that song for a long time. Billy Bonds is a LEGEND and ‘Arry stuck a knife in his back. I’d swap the 5th place finish and Loser’s Cup in a heartbeat to have never have had him. Don’t need enemies when he’s about. Sir Trev knows the score!
In my 40’s, a Hammer all the way and seen the lot. I remember well all that Harry did for us. Frankly it was great. We strongly disapproved of how he came into power and forgave all when he delivered beyond our expectations. Let no-one tell you different. For a short while, Harry rocked our world. Under Mr. R all was rosy in a way we hadn’t experienced for a long old time. Then suddenly he was gone (storys of fingers in the till, over-spending), plus the Lampard debacle on top. This is Harrys quote:
“The chairman Terry Brown had offered me a new four-year contract. What I did was talk to a fanzine, made some comments, and sometimes I should be a bit more careful. I sat down with these guys from the fanzine and they started asking me questions and I spoke to them in the way I’d talk to someone in a pub. I said a few things I shouldn’t have said. He read it and got very upset. I walked into his office expecting to sign the contract and walked out without a job!”
So ok, Sh*t happens. What now? Well for those that knock him, look at his previous record with us, seriously, he knows his job and can do it. More than that, he has done it and there is no logical reason he can’t do it again,
But would we want him? He’s more devisive than a pair of shears. he is possibly the most happily journeyman manager football has ever seen (Portsmouth- bounce-Sthampton-bounce-Portsmth etc), spend, spend, spend. TBH theres a historical tale of disaster he leaves in his wake.
Sam Allardyce will never be right for my club. His football is simply wrong. But if he gives us Premiership mediocrity for the next 2-3 yrs without any great dramas, I’ll live with it. And this is the thing Hammers fans have to decide upon more than any other question:
Are you a Hammer for the short term, OR FOR LIFE? Its a Campaign, not a battle.
i,ve been in a 45 year campaign then lo!
He makes everything about him and I want it to be about the team. It’s sickening watching all the pundits kissing his butt and falling for his fake friendliness. Players aren’t stupid they will see through his falseness soon enough and then we’d have problems.
This is why he is never at a club for more than 5 minutes
We have just been promoted to the PL & above all we need to stabilise. We do not need all of this speculation to rock the boat. Apart from a few hiccups, we’ve done ok, albeit not by the most fashionable means as some see it.
BFS is the guy who got us promoted without breaking the bank. He is the guy whom we should stick with for the time being – pretty football or not. All Harry seems to have done over the past ten years or more is left a trail of tears in his wake & that we do not need.
All l can say is the two David’s shouldn’t have got rid of Zola it’s that simple
With the greatest respect, Zola was a good guy, likeable but with unproven ability. The trouble was, he was naive as a manager and put too much trust in people around him instead of being his own man. Remember Savio?
Zola was out of his depth where you need shrewdness and steel as a manager at the highest level. Who knows he might have learnt a lesson from his first managerial post but getting rid of Zola was the right decision, unfortunately the job then went to the wrong man as the Davids will admit but no-one could have foreseen what would develop!
If he comes back I will walk away.
Can’t stand the sight of him
Redknapp is a Judas . He leaves every club he goes near broke . He is a con man and a crook … sorry it was his dog !!! what a pile of s…t
Supported Hammers since 1964, but if anyone was fool enough to employ Redknapp I’d walk away. Apart from his managerial shortcomings I will never forgive him for what he did to Billy Bonds – a true legend, whose boots Redknapp wasn’t fit to clean.
It has all been said! Phew! Thought I was the only one who could see through ol’saggy chops!
He would be an absolute disaster for the club and rip us apart just at the time when we need stability the most!
Big Sam is the man for that! A safe pair of hands at the time when we need it most!
I think the only thing up for debate is how he progresses the club in the seasons leading up to our move to the promised land! It will be interesting to see how Sam gets on as money improves and the standard of player we can attract improves also?
Hopefully the standard of football will improve also!
But whatever happens the future will be the most exciting in the clubs history! COYI!