Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp believes Premier League has been poorer without Jose Mourinho

Jose Mourinho, Real Madrid

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As the build-up to his Tottenham side’s Champions League clash with Real Madrid continues, Harry Redknapp has taken time to praise Jose Mourniho and claims that he would welcome him back to England with open arms.

Redknapp had only positive things to say of the former Chelsea boss, who has stated that he expects to return to management in the Premier League before the end of his career.

The Spurs boss told The Sun: “The man has huge character and that seems to suit the passion and nature of our game.

“English football has been the poorer for him having left Chelsea four years ago and we should welcome him back when he comes.

“I have the utmost respect for him as a manager, anyone who thinks he isn’t a good boss is either jealous or deluded. His record speaks for itself.”

Redknapp is in little doubt that Mourinho will make good on his promise and once again manage an English team, but he admits there are very few clubs that will be able to afford to lure him back to the Premier League. 

He continued: “If he came back to England, it would be a pretty narrow field of clubs that could afford him, his transfer budget and the wages that go with it.

“I could maybe see him going to United when Alex Ferguson eventually decides to call it a day – but there are not many clubs that could accommodate him.”

The Spurs boss recounted an incident from Mourinho’s spell in England that demonstrated his quirky character.

He went on: “Back in Easter 2007, I was Portsmouth manager and Mourinho was Chelsea chief and engaged in one of his many tussles with Manchester United for the title.

“On the Saturday, Pompey beat United 2-1 at Fratton Park. Not long after the game, I got a call from someone claiming to be Mourinho’s secretary, asking for my address.

“The following morning, a car turned up and the driver knocked at the door. When I answered, he gave me a big bottle of champagne and an attached note, which read: ‘Thanks for the result, Jose’.”

The two men face each other on April 5 in the Champions League quarter-finals, and Redknapp confessed that it would be a boost to the Premier League if his opposite number returned to English football.

“I like people with character as we can’t all be boring, stuffy old sorts in football,” he said. “As well as winning things, managers have to do their bit selling the game to the fans and the world, to keep the money rolling in.

“He has a great knowledge of the game and has a great talent of getting the best out of his players.

“Mourinho is an enthusiastic and intelligent man, proving himself in every country in which he has managed.

“But he seems to have struck a particular chord with England and our Premier League, even saying this week that he still loves it here and feels as if he has unfinished business.

“I think the atmosphere at our grounds, the rivalries, the banter between crowds and the downright animosity are all right up his street.

“He revelled in that siege mentality he constructed around himself at Stamford Bridge when the world – or at least, in his mind, the rest of the world – was against him and his team.

“It would be great to see him managing in England again.”