Redknapp blames players for Tottenham slump

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp has reacted indignantly to recent criticism of his management style, and has insisted that the players must accept responsibility for his side’s poor form.

Two consecutive defeats have seen Spurs slip out of the top four for the first time since November and many have suggested that the current slump is a result of Redknapp’s lack of squad rotation throughout the season - including defender Vedran Corluka, on loan at Bayer Leverkusen.

However, the former West Ham boss says that he has no regrets over his actions and has hinted that the players should look a little closer to home when seeking to apportion blame.

“I’m very happy with what I’ve done this season,” Redknapp told reporters. “I’ve done what I’ve been allowed to do and I couldn’t do any more.

“At the end of the day, it’s down to the players. When things are going well, we give them all the credit.

“If we hadn’t had a bad run, we would have qualified for the Champions League.”

Redknapp also denied that his squad were suffering from fatigue, insisting that modern-day players can have little to complain about.

“Look at people like Frank Lampard, Wayne Rooney and Ashley Cole,” he continued. “They play well over 40 games most seasons and they’re not rotated. It’s a load of nonsense and it’s an excuse.

“If people keep telling players they’re tired, they’ll believe it. The pitches they train and play on now are unbelievable. It’s not like days gone by when teams were playing ankle-deep in mud.

“Most of these players have had 30 games and I’ve rotated where I can in the Europa League and in the FA Cup. I don’t remember people like Bobby Moore or Dave Mackay complaining about how many games they’ve played.”

Another area of criticism has been the club’s January transfer activity, when squad members Steven Pienaar, Sebastien Bassong, Roman Pavlyuchenko and Corluka were allowed to leave with only the injury-prone Ryan Nelsen and Louis Saha coming in.

Redknapp remains stoic, however, and has insisted that his team are not down and out yet.

He added: “If we could have improved a bit in the window, we would, but the people we wanted weren’t available. We’ve had a bad run but I think our one bad performance in the league has been when we lost at home to Norwich.

“We’re not down or despondent. We have four games to finish in the top three or four and that’s what we’ll try to do.”