Harry Redknapp back to Tottenham? Ex-Spurs boss open to replacing Igor Tudor as Premier League relegation battle heats up

Redknapp, who spent four years in charge of the London club and managed to guide them to the League Cup final, has been out of the game for nine years following his brief spell at Birmingham City. However, with Spurs facing a surprise relegation battle, the 79-year-old says he would be happy to take his place in the hot seat amid their current struggles.

"I've been asked a few times if I'd go back to Spurs and it's probably not going to happen, is it?" the veteran manager told The Press Association at Cheltenham races. "Would I go back? Of course I would, but I doubt very much it's going to happen.

"They've got it all on to stay up, it's going to be hard. I'm looking at their fixtures and Nottingham Forest are playing all right, West Ham are playing very well, it's going to be tough for Tottenham."

Despite the mounting speculation, Redknapp insists there has been absolutely no formal contact from the Spurs hierarchy. For now, the former Portsmouth manager is keeping his attention firmly fixed on the racecourse rather than the football pitch. "My only concern at the minute is The Jukebox Man in the Gold Cup, I'm nothing to do with Spurs any more," he declared.

With the club sitting just one point above the relegation zone, Redknapp concluded with a message of goodwill for his former teams. "They haven't been in touch, not at all," he reiterated. "I hope Spurs stay up and I hope West Ham stay up."

The Madrid collapse was defined by 22-year-old Antonin Kinsky's catastrophic Champions League debut for Tottenham. The Czech international endured a nightmare start in the sixth minute when a disastrous slip allowed Marcos Llorente to make it 1-0. Eight minutes later, Antoine Griezmann doubled the lead, leaving the visitors reeling. Kinsky's evening worsened in the 15th minute when he inexplicably gifted the ball to Julian Alvarez, who finished easily for Atletico Madrid's third. Distraught, the youngster put his head in his hands before interim boss Tudor ruthlessly substituted him for Guglielmo Vicario after just 17 minutes, with the devastated player heading unacknowledged down the tunnel.

After the game, the coach said: "What happened is very rare. I’ve been coaching for 15 years, I’ve never done this. It was necessary to preserve the guy, preserve the team. Incredible situation, nothing to comment,” Tudor stated. “It was, before the game, the right choice to do in the moment like we are, with the pressure on Vicario, another competition. Tony is a very good goalkeeper. It was the right decision for me. After this, of course, it’s easy to say that it was not the right decision. So I explained to Tony also, speaking after: he’s the right guy and a good goalkeeper."