There are certain figures that, regardless of how hard they try, are relentlessly and incorrigibly, themselves. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one: he is a man who can only give a comment to the media in his own, inimitable, 'Zlatan' way. Fackin' wheeler-dealer Sensible budgeting Harry Redknapp is another one who is forever tied to doing things solely in a 'Harry Redknapp' style.
Redknapp strikes you as a man with an inherent suspicion belief in actual facts, stats and research, and in spite of this, always manages to land himself quite a nice role in football. Redknapp's better nature has revealed itself once more on TalkSPORT, which seems to be a radio station founded to give oxygen to the football mutterings of people like Redknapp and Jason Cundy, a kind of 24-hour audio version of Soccer AM.
Redknapp - in addition to an involvement with Derby County - has recently taken a job as a football consultant with Australian side Central Coast Mariner, and discussed his new role on TalkSPORT.
Firstly, he got the name of his team wrong. He was explicitly asked by the presenters to give some information on his new side:
It’s the South Coast Mariners. I met the owner, he’s a great guy, an English guy. Peter Storrie’s involved and they’ve got an English coach as well. They asked me if I would do a bit as an advisor.
Oops. Peter Storrie, you may remember, was involved alongside Harry Redknapp as Portsmouth won the FA Cup and then went bust. Secondly, Redknapp revealed that he would not be actually visiting the club again:
No, no, I won’t be going. It’s a long way. Thirty-odd hours on a plane. I came home the other week and it took me a week to recover. It’s a long way but it’s a fantastic country when you get there.
If Redknapp's job is to consult the playing staff on how to land easy gigs that involve little or no effort after retirement, then you have to say, there is no better man for the job.
