Source: Telegraph
Carling Cup: Harry Redknapp searches for historic fourth cup win against United
Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur
Kick-off: Sun Feb 28, 3.00pm; Wembley Stadium, LondonTV: Sky Sports 1 (14:30-17:30), Sky Sports HD1 (14:30-17:30)Radio: BBC Radio 5 Live
HARRY REDKNAPP v SIR ALEX FERGUSON Redknapp6Ferguson16 Drawn8Forget talk of a Manchester United quintuple, it's the quadruple that interests Harry Redknapp. Having guided Bournemouth, West Ham and Portsmouth to domestic cup wins over United, Redknapp is eyeing another memorable upset at Wembley. Could it be a case of Harry the fourth? History suggests United will need to be on their mettle.
Bournemouth 2-0 Manchester United, FA Cup third round, 7 Jan 1984
Ron Atkinson's United were the holders and had lost just once away all season. Nobody gave Bournemouth a chance – nobody apart from Redknapp. "We were together the night before and he really had us believing we could win," recalls Ian Thompson, the striker who put the contest beyond United following Milton Graham's opener.
"By half-time we'd had the better of the game, and he just continued that theme. He said, 'Guys, you're going to win this – I'm so confident.' Once we were 2-0 up nobody thought we were going to lose.
So credit to Harry for making a bunch of Third Division journeymen totally believe in themselves. We played out of our skins and that's down to him. He got the best out of us by designing a system around our strengths and making us believe in it."
Manchester United 0-1 West Ham, FA Cup fourth round, 28 Jan 2001
Shaka Hislop attributes this victory to his former manager's team-building abilities. "Winning at Old Trafford is a fantastic achievement, a once-in-a-career happening," says Hislop. "We had to survive an almighty onslaught, but Harry had built a team that was a whole lot better than it should have been when you looked at it on paper.
He brought in players who were surplus to requirements elsewhere – me, for instance, and Paolo Di Canio – and got the best out of them. We managed to hold out, and then Paolo got that goal where [United goalkeeper] Fabien Barthez tried to freak him out. We were ecstatic." So was Redknapp.
"This is my greatest win as a manager," he said after Di Canio had shrugged off Barthez's audacious offside bluff.
Manchester United 0-1 Portsmouth, FA Cup sixth round, 8 Mar 2008
With United aiming for a repeat of the 1999 treble, Redknapp's side were once again cast as rank outsiders. "We'll play our usual system: two wide men who can't defend to save their lives and a front man who can't run about much," he quipped.
Kanu, the front man in question, attributed Pompey's win – capped when Sulley Muntari drove the decisive penalty past ersatz goalkeeper Rio Ferdinand following Tomasz Kuszczak's dismissal – to Redknapp's legendary motivational powers.
Kanu said: "Some coaches know what you can do and believe in you, but they don't tell you. He knows what you can do and he gives you freedom. If the gaffer believes in you and you are happy then you produce." Redknapp's view? "I haven't got a magic formula on how to beat them." Some might disagree.
