Harry Redknapp was famous for a lot of things when he was a Premier League manager, but without doubt one of them was having a good eye for a player.
For all his infamous wheeler-dealing and some clangers along the way, he always had an eye for a gem.
We wonder what he would have made of some of this crop of Chelsea players, and which ones he might have been able to pick out before they got their big move.
Certainly according to some recent quotes, there’s one he would have enjoyed having in his Portsmouth or Tottenham teams – the wonderful Cole Palmer. There’s certainly something of the Niko Krancjar about him…
Redknapp picked Palmer for his team of the week this week after another match winning performance from the England international:
“Another week, another Cole Palmer selection,” Redknapp wrote in his column for BetVictor.
“Some of his touches are just superb, he’s a class above almost every player on the park most weeks. He scored the winner but his pass for the opener was just sublime. He even had one ruled out in what was yet another top performance from him.”
Former Spurs boss has already compared Palmer to PL star
This follows comments from earlier in the season where Redknapp compared Palmer to goal machine Erling Haaland:
“I’ll say this quietly, but Cole Palmer is putting up numbers that could rival Erling Haaland’s. He got on the scoresheet again this week with that expertly taken goal to put Chelsea 3-0 up away at West Ham. He creates chances and goals constantly, making him the complete attacker. To go away in a London derby and keep a clean sheet like that will give Chelsea a right boost!”
Since he wrote that, that comparison has got steadily less ridiculous.
