Redknapp expresses Drogba admiration

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp has admitted he is a huge admirer of Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, but has also said that the Ivorian's wage demands would prove to be a stumbling block to any potential move for the player in the summer.



Drogba's contract with the Blues is up at the end of the current season and he has been heavily linked with a big-money move to Chinese side Shanghai Shenua, where his former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka is now in charge.



The 34-year-old produced a timely reminder of his value over the past week with impressive goalscoring displays against Spurs in the FA Cup and Barcelona in the Champions League, and Redknapp believes he could still do an excellent job for Chelsea or any other club which can afford him.



"He is a free but I was just reading in the paper about him going to China," said Redknapp. "It seems the money in China at the moment is incredible. Players can go there and make a fortune.



"He would be a great player for Chelsea to keep or for somebody else to take. Anyone would be interested but you would have to be able to afford his wages. That is going to be the key. If he is on a free you are going to have to pay him a fortune.



"But he is a powerhouse when he is on his game. He is strong and almost unplayable when he is really at it. It was an amazing goal he scored against us. He smashed it from an angle.



"His strength in holding [Spurs defender William] Gallas off and then hitting the ball from where he did, there aren't too many players who could have done that."



Another running theme is Redknapp's constant link to the England position, something which was stirred up again this week when FA board member and Bolton chairman Phil Gartside said the 65-year-old would do an 'outstanding' job.



There have been suggestions that the continuous speculation has contributed to Spurs' slump in form, but Redknapp refuses to pay any credence to such an idea.



"Other people talk about [England] but I don't talk about it," he said. "I just concentrate on my job here and never look beyond Tottenham. "Recently it was only the Norwich game really (where Spurs played poorly).



"Arsenal did not lose to Wigan and QPR because they were concentrating on Arsene Wenger going to manage France, were they?"