Redknapp lauds Sunderland counterpart

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has praised the efforts of Sunderland and Martin O’Neill ahead of the meeting between the teams.

O’Neill, who took over at the Stadium of Light in December 2011, has helped Sunderland rescue their season after a slow start, sitting ninth in the English Premier League.

Redknapp warned his team to expect a tough encounter on Saturday, and also paid tribute to O’Neill’s efforts at the club.

“They have done fantastic. I was impressed with them last year when Steve Bruce was there, to be fair Steve did a great job and things just didn’t turn out right for him in the end and he moved on,” Redknapp said on Friday.

“And Martin’s come in and, as Martin always does, he’s got them up and going straight away and he’s done a great job there and they are a difficult team to play against for sure.”

Redknapp, who will reportedly be approached by the Football Association in the next few weeks to discuss the England job, said his fourth-placed team were one of four still in the race for the final two Champions League spots.

“We can’t afford to drop too many points. As I’ve said, Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, they are all right there and it’s going to be a dogfight right to the end so we’ve got to make sure we go up there and make sure we get a result,” he said.

“It’s a busy weekend having two games. We play tomorrow and then we play again Monday (against Norwich).

The future of striker Emmanuel Adebayor, on-loan at White Hart Lane from Manchester City, is also unclear.

Redknapp said he was in the dark as to whether the Togo striker would stay at Tottenham.

“Manu is on loan at the moment and that’s where we’re at,” Redknapp said.

“The chairman will deal with (any negotiations) at the end of this season. I wouldn’t have a clue whether (a permanent deal) is a possibility or not.”