Harry Redknapp could return to football as manager of Nigeria

The last time we saw Harry Redknapp in the news in a big way was in 2018 when he was the winner of reality show I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here (along with untold interviews through his car window), but there’s a new rumor floating around that’s as tantalizing and juicy as Harry himself.

According to ESPN, the former Tottenham Hotspur manager has been linked with a return to management for the first time since he left Birmingham in 2017 — and it’s with the Nigerian national team. Good old ‘Arry is reportedly wanted by the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports to take over for current manager Gernot Rohr, who is the middle of a disputed process to extend his contract which expires in June.

There’s an expectation that Rohr will receive and possibly sign an extension within the next week, but if things were to fall through, Redknapp is apparently being lined up to take over the Super Eagles as they head into a rescheduled African Cup of Nations year, as well as World Cup 2022 qualifying.

‘Triffic.

If appointed, this wouldn’t be the first time he’s managed a national team. Back in 2016, he was named interim manager of Jordan and managed them in two 2018 World Cup qualifiers — an 8-0 win over Bangladesh and a 5-1 defeat to Australia.

The source article makes it sound as though Redknapp is only a contingency plan in the event that things with Rohr really go south, and all parties expect Rohr to agree to a new deal within the next couple of days. But come on — who among us wouldn’t love to see Harry Redknapp wearing a Nigeria tracksuit and telling players such as Victor Osimhen, Wilfrid Ndidi, and Alex Iwobi to “fackin’ run around a bit”? I enthusiastically raise my hand.