• Spurs’ manager says he would have made do
• Accepts that getting Fulop in is ‘within the rules’
Harry Redknapp suggested clubs ought to have to make do with their existing squads, in the event of a selection crisis in goal, as the controversy over Manchester City’s emergency loan of Marton Fulop rumbled on.
The Tottenham Hotspur manager, whose team are in competition with City for the final Champions League spot, has been quick to stress that the north-west club’s short-term capture of Fulop from Sunderland, in the wake of Shay Given’s shoulder injury, was “not a problem”, as it was within the Premier League’s rules. But Redknapp went on to hypothesise about what he would have done if his first-choice goalkeeper, Heurelho Gomes, had suffered a serious injury. His second-choice, Carlo Cudicini, remains a long-term casualty.
“If you have got a goalkeeper, I suppose you would use him,” Redknapp said. “If I got an injury here, I would turn to Ben Alnwick and, if he got injured, I would play Jimmy Walker and, if he wasn’t fit, one of the kids would have played. It wouldn’t have entered my mind about bringing in another goalkeeper but, if you are allowed to do it, that’s not a problem with me.”
City, who have Joe Hart on a season-long loan at Birmingham and have been unable to recall him, are also without their second-choice goalkeeper Stuart Taylor, although Redknapp remarked that he had heard that Taylor had returned to training. City were forced to bring on their third choice, Gunnar Nielsen, a 23-year-old Faroe Islands international, last weekend at Arsenal, after Given had been forced off and they said, in their submissions to the Premier League, that their next option was a 16-year-old academy player, Loris Karius.
Redknapp appeared keen, though, not to be seen to be preparing excuses as the battle for fourth place approaches its climax. Tottenham travel to City on Wednesday in what is likely to be a pivotal game, after entertaining Bolton Wanderers tomorrow afternoon. City are at home to Aston Villa, another team in contention for fourth and whose manager, Martin O’Neill, has said that he did not understand why City were allowed to sign Fulop.
Redknapp said City had only themselves to blame. “If you loan a keeper and have a problem, then you should be able to bring him back,” he said. “You have to make sure you have a clause in the contract.
“They probably forgot to put that clause in, it was probably an oversight. They’re saying that if they had the clause in, they would have been OK to have Hart back, [but] a season-long loan, you shouldn’t recall them. What’s to stop me recalling Jamie O’Hara or Alan Hutton? We had a few injuries a couple of weeks ago but you couldn’t do it.”
Fulop, who conceded seven goals on his last appearance in Sunderland’s defeat at Chelsea in January, spent two and a half years as a back-up goalkeeper at Spurs, although he left before Redknapp took over. “The lads here thought he was a good goalkeeper,” Redknapp said. “We’ll see how he goes against Villa. It will be a big test for him.”
Tottenham HotspurHarry RedknappManchester CityPremier LeagueDavid Hytnerguardian.co.uk
