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Harry Redknapp's 'presence' is the key to his success, suggests Tottenham's Jermain Defoe
The diminutive Spurs striker praised the manager he has known since he was 16-years-old, and also looked towards Saturday's game against Newcastle
10-Feb-2012 4:46:53 PM
By Jay Jaffa
Getty Images
Tottenham's Jermain Defoe has spoken in glowing terms of his manager Harry Redknapp, a man he first played for at the age of 16 at West Ham.
The current Spurs manager is widely anticipated to take the England job after it was vacated by Fabio Capello and Defoe, who has 46 caps for the Three Lions, gave a fine reference.
“Some people just have a presence - an aura about them that inspires you to perform,” Defoe told the Mirror.
“That’s what Harry has. He is one of those managers that wants you to express yourself.
“To enjoy the game, work hard for the team, stick together and win football matches. It's as simple as that.
“He always seems to get the best out of his players. Whether it is players coming to the end of their career who come to the club and kick on to another level, or young players who step up.
“It’s that presence he has. When you play for him, you know that you have to give him 100 percent.
“He always stresses how important it is to realise how important we are in life.
“He tells us, ‘You are in a fantastic position in your life. You are doing something you love.’ And yes, we are living the dream. He is a top manager.”
Defoe was just a 16-year-old academy player at West Ham when he first came in contact with Redknapp. From there he played under Redknapp at West Ham, Portsmouth and Tottenham.
And he thanked the 64-year-old for aiding his breakthrough as a young footballer.
“When I was just 16, I’d be training with the youth team and every day he would call me over and tell me I was training with the first team," Defoe continued.
“You can imagine, at 16, playing against defenders like Rio Ferdinand, who had already played for England, and Tomas Repka.
“But Harry likes to give young kids an opportunity to do well.
“He is one of those managers where it doesn’t matter how young you are. If you are good enough you are playing.
“At West Ham he sent me on loan to Bournemouth. He didn’t want me playing in the reserves.
“He’d always come to the games as well. Every home game he was there. I’ve always remembered that support.
“I even remember doing finishing with the first team at West Ham when I was 16.
“I volleyed one into the bottom corner and Harry turned to the senior pros and said: ‘That’s how you need to finish. Finish like that young kid there.'”
“I was 16 and the first team manager was telling his players, internationals, to finish like me. “As you can imagine I went home and phoned all of my friends.
“I will never forget that. It builds confidence. You go into training the next day and it helps your development.”
Looking ahead to Saturday's game against Newcastle, Defoe admitted he was impressed by their forward line, but did sound a warning to Alan Pardew's outfit.
He added: “I played for Alan for a short while at West Ham. He’s a really good coach, really hands on with the players.
“Up front, Papiss Cisse is a good player who has got off to a great start with a fantastic goal against Aston Villa last week.
“But Demba Ba hasn’t surprised me at all. I remember watching him at West Ham thinking, ‘This guy is a natural goalscorer.’ Even half-chances he scores. He will score goals anywhere.
“But we are blessed with great centre-halves and, having Scott Parker in front of them as well, I think Newcastle will know its going to be a difficult game.”
The current Spurs manager is widely anticipated to take the England job after it was vacated by Fabio Capello and Defoe, who has 46 caps for the Three Lions, gave a fine reference.
“Some people just have a presence - an aura about them that inspires you to perform,” Defoe told the Mirror.
“That’s what Harry has. He is one of those managers that wants you to express yourself.
“To enjoy the game, work hard for the team, stick together and win football matches. It's as simple as that.
“He always seems to get the best out of his players. Whether it is players coming to the end of their career who come to the club and kick on to another level, or young players who step up.
“It’s that presence he has. When you play for him, you know that you have to give him 100 percent.
“He always stresses how important it is to realise how important we are in life.
“He tells us, ‘You are in a fantastic position in your life. You are doing something you love.’ And yes, we are living the dream. He is a top manager.”
Defoe was just a 16-year-old academy player at West Ham when he first came in contact with Redknapp. From there he played under Redknapp at West Ham, Portsmouth and Tottenham.
And he thanked the 64-year-old for aiding his breakthrough as a young footballer.
“When I was just 16, I’d be training with the youth team and every day he would call me over and tell me I was training with the first team," Defoe continued.
“You can imagine, at 16, playing against defenders like Rio Ferdinand, who had already played for England, and Tomas Repka.
“But Harry likes to give young kids an opportunity to do well.
“He is one of those managers where it doesn’t matter how young you are. If you are good enough you are playing.
“At West Ham he sent me on loan to Bournemouth. He didn’t want me playing in the reserves.
“He’d always come to the games as well. Every home game he was there. I’ve always remembered that support.
“I even remember doing finishing with the first team at West Ham when I was 16.
“I volleyed one into the bottom corner and Harry turned to the senior pros and said: ‘That’s how you need to finish. Finish like that young kid there.'”
“I was 16 and the first team manager was telling his players, internationals, to finish like me. “As you can imagine I went home and phoned all of my friends.
“I will never forget that. It builds confidence. You go into training the next day and it helps your development.”
Looking ahead to Saturday's game against Newcastle, Defoe admitted he was impressed by their forward line, but did sound a warning to Alan Pardew's outfit.
He added: “I played for Alan for a short while at West Ham. He’s a really good coach, really hands on with the players.
“Up front, Papiss Cisse is a good player who has got off to a great start with a fantastic goal against Aston Villa last week.
“But Demba Ba hasn’t surprised me at all. I remember watching him at West Ham thinking, ‘This guy is a natural goalscorer.’ Even half-chances he scores. He will score goals anywhere.
“But we are blessed with great centre-halves and, having Scott Parker in front of them as well, I think Newcastle will know its going to be a difficult game.”
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