Harry Redknapp calls new England manager Thomas Tuchel a 'German spy' sent to 'f*** us up' and appears to perform Nazi salute at charity event

Per The Guardian, Redknapp was fielding questions from an audience at a charity event, when he branded new England manager Tuchel a "German spy" and also appeared to perform a Nazi salute. While the former Spurs, West Ham and Portsmouth manager appeared to be joking, his remarks have now been published; Tuchel is the third foreign manager England have had, after the late Sven Goran-Eriksson and Fabio Capello.

The event took place before Tuchel's reign began, as he guided England to qualifying wins over Albania and Latvia. Redknapp's remarks were followed by laughter from the audience, but he left swiftly after. He has not commented on the story.

Redknapp was asked about Tuchel's appointment and replied: "I’ll be honest with you, I think he’s a German spy. I’m telling you. Seriously, he’s been sent over to f*ck us up. He has. I’m telling ya, he’s like Lord Haw Haw in the war – ‘We have your best soldiers captured’ and all that.”

Redknapp then imagined a scenario in which Tuchel is told to "ruin that team". He then affected a German accent, said "Ja" and raised his left arm, in what appeared to be a Nazi salute.

Redknapp has long been retired but he was linked with the England job during his time at Spurs, although he was beaten to the job by Roy Hodgson. Tuchel's England are next in action in June, facing Andorra in a World Cup qualifier and Senegal in a friendly.