Redknapp: Can do better

20 February 2012 07:16

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp admits his chances of becoming the next England manager will not have been helped by his team's poor display in their 0-0 FA Cup draw against Stevenage.

Stevenage began the day 47 places below Spurs in the league ladder, but they defied the odds to stifle the Barclays Premier League title chasers with an impressive display in the fifth round tie at the Lamex Stadium.

Intriguingly for Redknapp, the man tipped to be England's next manager, one of the men who will decide who succeeds Fabio Capello - FA chairman David Bernstein - was in the crowd at the game and the Spurs boss said: "I bet he was impressed with the football I served up, yeah. He was probably thinking - 'who is this geezer?!'"

Spurs may be the highest ranked team in the competition but they were second best for large parts of the game against their npower League One opponents.

There was no evidence of the enterprising attacking football which they have put on all season and their passing was very sloppy, allowing the home side to dominate large parts of the match.

Spurs made six changes to the XI that beat Newcastle 5-0 last weekend, but their side still contained seven internationals and should have beaten Stevenage given the excellent form they have displayed this term. The Londoners only had one real chance of note, however - a second half shot from Gareth Bale which was well saved by Chris Day.

Redknapp was not impressed by his team's display, but admitted the bobbly pitch at the home of the Hertfordshire minnows inhibited his team's ability to play their natural passing game.

"I just had a feeling, looking at the pitch and everything, that it would be tough," Redknapp added. "It was bobbling around everywhere.

"We started lumping it. That wasn't part of the plan but the lads weren't comfortable passing the ball out there and we ended up going long.

"I thought we would come here and win but the longer it went on the more I thought we would take the draw."

Source: PA