Harry Redknapp fears Spurs will not be able to compete with Premier League elite

12 February 2011 00:15
Harry Redknapp fears Tottenham will be unable to compete with the Barclays Premier League elite if the club fail to secure a bigger stadium.[LNB] West Ham were yesterday confirmed as the preferred bidder to move into the Olympic Stadium after the 2012 Games ahead of Spurs, leaving Redknapp to count the lost revenue that a 60,000-capacity stadium could have meant for his spending power.[LNB] Fears: Redknapp says Spurs need a new stadium to compete[LNB] 'It's hard to compete, unless we have a stadium that can attract 60,000 people,' said Redknapp.[LNB] 'We have a waiting list of 20,000 people for season tickets so we would fill a stadium.[LNB] 'It's very hard to compete in the transfer market, wages or anything else. You need a new stadium. We have the fanbase, so we need to do that.'[LNB] The spiralling costs of redeveloping White Hart Lane, which has a capacity of little more than 36,000, led them into a bold bid for the Stratford stadium. [LNB]Unlike Spurs, West Ham pledged to keep the running track at the Olympic venue, but Redknapp questioned whether supporters will accept the plan.[LNB] 'Football clubs belong to the fans,' said Redknapp, a former West Ham manager. 'They'll be supporting their team long after we are dead and buried.[LNB] 'Do they want to move? Do they want to play with an athletics track around it?[LNB] 'There's no atmosphere, that's my view, and if Tottenham went there I would have given the same answer because I don't want to watch football miles away from the pitch. It wouldn't appeal to me at all. Knowing West Ham fans, not many places can match Upton Park as it's one of the best atmospheres anywhere. On a good day when the crowd were singing Bubbles and the crowd was swaying, they'll miss that for sure.'[LNB] West Ham 14 Tottenham 0! Olympic chiefs hand Hammers the keys to 2012 stadiumSpurs hit out at Olympic Stadium decision as they consider legal action [LNB] [LNB]  Explore more:People: Harry Redknapp Places: Olympic Stadium

Source: Daily_Mail