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There's a crucial few months in store for Harry Redknapp says Mike Norman, as the Tottenham boss tries to retain his current playing staff as well as adding enough quality to mount a Top 4 challenge.


It surely has to be one of the most frustrating aspects of being a top football manager. You put together a highly talented squad capable of challenging for domestic and European trophies, but as soon your club's progression stalls slightly your big name players seemingly want to jump ship and play their football elsewhere.

And this is exactly what seems to be happening to Harry Redknapp at Tottenham currently.

Redknapp must be tearing his hair out right now. It seems a day doesn't go by without more news about Luka Modric's desire to play for Chelsea, Rafael van der Vaart being linked to a host of top European clubs, and Gareth Bale making noises about leaving White Hart Lane if other star players are sold. And all this because the Lilywhites failed to qualify for next season's Champions League.

The irony is, if Tottenham had have finished sixth (and not fourth) at the end of the 2009/10 season, and then fifth as they did last term, then the likes of Modric and Bale perhaps wouldn't even entertain the thought of leaving such a progressive club. But it's because they've had that delectable taste of Champions League football already that they now crave it even more. And you can hardly blame them for having such desires - asking Modric and Bale to endure a season of Europa League football is like asking a meat lover to have a pork chop instead of a Wagyu steak!

But despite what Tottenham's star players might inwardly hope for (or their agents outwardly seek), their departures from White Hart Lane this summer are far from certain.

If media reports are correct then Chelsea appear to be the only club interested in signing Modric, but why would new Blues boss Andre Villas-Boas go for the 25-year-old Croatian when for the same cost - likely to be in the region of £35m-£40m - he can raid his old club Porto and sign two, perhaps three, excellent players? And how many clubs in the world would be willing to stump up Tottenham's asking price for Bale, a brilliant 21-year-old who still has four years remaining on a lucrative contract?

The chances are both will stay, and that's exactly what most Betfair punters believe; the Yes option in the Modric To Stay market can be backed at 1.62, whilst the same option in the Bale To Stay market is available to back at just 1.16.

Redknapp and his Spurs side were victims of their own success last season; they lost to the likes of Bolton, Blackpool and Wigan, and failed to beat West Ham, in Premier League fixtures that immediately followed a Champions League game, but the experience gained from that campaign will doubtless prove pivotal this term. Of course, no club of Tottenham's stature really wants Europa League football and Redknapp should get the balance correct this season, after all, his priority is undoubtedly the Premier League and a Top 4 Finish, for which they can be backed at 4.5.

Redknapp's problems will arise if Modric or Bale (or both) are sold, because despite having a wad full of cash to spend, there aren't many players around, if any, who can replace the pair. Charlie Adam from Blackpool, Stewart Downing from Aston Villa perhaps, but the options are thin on the ground and it's likely that a contingent of foreign footballers would need to be brought in.

And who's to say that won't happen anyway? Tottenham definitely need to strengthen to sustain a top four challenge this season, with a central defender and a striker likely to be top of Redknapp's shopping list.

On one hand Tottenham are in a great position having no Champions League football, enabling them to concentrate on the Premier League whilst their fringe players get European experience via the Europa League. But on the other hand they need to strengthen their squad with some world class players if they are to get back into the top four. And how do you do that if you don't have the carrot of Champions League football to dangle in front of your top target's eyes?

Who'd be Harry Redknapp right now?


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