SOCCER:HARRY REDKNAPP has a dilemma and it is about more than just persuading the Tottenham Hotspur chairman, Daniel Levy, to provide funds for the top-level striker he considers a priority. The club cling to the dream of a fourth-placed Premier League finish, which would bring them back to the Champions League but their hopes seem slim.
The next best thing for Tottenham would be a fifth-placed finish and a shot at next season’s Europa League but there is a belief that it is more of a poisoned chalice.
“It’s one of those competitions that teams get in and then they try to get out of,” Redknapp said. “You look at the English teams and they all seem to play the reserve teams in it and change. It’s a million miles away from the Champions League.
“It’s been our first year in the Champions League and it’s been a great experience, although it certainly takes its toll. But the Europa League takes an even bigger toll . . . If that’s what we end up with, that’s what we end up with but we still want Champions League football.”
Even if Tottenham fall short, Redknapp wants to improve the squad. The club tried to sign a striker in January – Villarreal quoted €39.5 million for Giuseppe Rossi – but Redknapp knows it could take record bids to succeed.
Redknapp also said Spurs could not afford the wages of the 31-year-old Diego Forlan, whom they inquired about in January. “He’s on about £120,000 (€135,000) a week,” he said. “You’re talking £18 million (€20m) in wages for three years, plus a transfer fee and there’s no return on your money, is there?”
