Harry Redknapp has the last word on Jim Jefferies sacking

IF HEART of Midlothian fans required some comfort prior to what is, on the face of it, a rather mismatched clash of haves and have-nots this evening, then yesterday's audience with Harry Redknapp was the place to be.

The Tottenham manager sounded genuinely worried prior to tonight's Europa League play-off, which pitches last season's Champions League quarter-finalists against a side who this week flirted with the threat of administration. Spurs are in the midst of an injury crisis, although Scottish observers might be persuaded to hold the sympathy as Redknapp outlined his struggles. While he has been left with one fit midfielder in Jake Livermore, he has the option of pulling someone as talented as Rafael van der Vaart into the middle of the park. And that's before contemplating the embarrassment of riches in attack, where Peter Crouch and Roman Pavlyuchenko are cast as bit-part players.

The loss of Lukas Modric is, though, a blow for Redknapp. Although the Croatian midfielder looked sprightly enough in training on Tuesay, he was said yesterday to have a groin injury. His absence tonight has reignited rumours that he is bound for Chelsea. Redknapp didn't try to hide the fact that this remains a realistic possibility. "It's difficult, isn't it?" he said. "What would you do if someone wanted to treble your wages? It's not easy for him. I have never met a nicer boy. He's different class."

Hearts fans have been denied the chance to judge for themselves tonight, not that it should unduly bother anyone of the maroon persuasion. Neither should Hearts be concerned about Redknapp's further anxieties to do with a midfield department shorn of a number of options.

"Tom Huddlestone has an ankle injury, Luka Modric a groin injury, Jermaine Jenas, Wilson Palacios and Sandro are also out," Redknapp detailed yesterday. "That's five central midfielders, leaving us with only Jake Livermore as the only fit central midfielder on our books."

Such are the mounting injury woes, Redknapp said they were seeking to "invent a new formation", one which features only a single midfielder.

Although he struggles to give the impression that he is completely bowled over by Scottish football, Redknapp was accommodating and engaging yesterday as he previewed the tie. He registered his sympathy for former Hearts manager Jim Jefferies, sacked this month just two league games into the season.

"Yeah I was very surprised at that," said Redknapp. "I've known Jim for years and he is a great character and a good manager. So I was very, very surprised. How do you sack someone after just one or two games? I don't know. It's a symptom of modern football. People react very quickly, they listen to too many people's opinions from outside of the game. You can't avoid it now, it's non-stop,. And people want change too quickly. If you look at the top clubs they don't do that. They have more stability."

Spurs Lodge, the Essex headquarters in which Redknapp sat, dates back to when Alan Sugar owned the club, and The Apprentice host still has a home nearby. However, the club are preparing to move to a new 45 million training academy at Bulls Cross in Enfield, Middlesex. According to chairman Daniel Levy, it will help "attract, train and retain quality players", and this - at the least the attracting and retaining parts - was a theme yesterday. While Hearts fathom how they can possibly bridge the financial gulf between themselves and tonight's opponents, Redknapp's mind was occupied by the seeming futile attempt to keep up with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City. Even Liverpool, who Spurs finished two points ahead of last season, have raised the financial bar this season. "It's a scrap between ourselves, Liverpool and Arsenal for the last (Champions League] spot," Redknapp said.

It is all relative of course. Redknapp is negotiating a deal to bring Manchester City striker Emmanual Adebayor to the club. "I don't know if he is coming here so I ain't going to say anything at the moment," he said. But then he did go on to say something, of course he did. "If he comes, I am sure the fans will accept him," he replied, when asked about the sensitivities involve when signing a former Arsenal player. "He fell out with the Arsenal, didn't he? The Arsenal fans all hate him so the Tottenham fans will love him. He has an advantage. He upset them so he will be a hero here!"

Any and every topic was taken on by Redknapp, who is likely to have packed his golf clubs on the trip to St Andrews, which due to accommodation problems presented by the Edinburgh Festival has been chosen as Spurs' pre-match base. But that shouldn't be a sign of a man without a care in the world. They are just different to the ones facing Paulo Sergio, whom Redknapp had a good word for yesterday.

"I met him when he was in charge of Sporting Lisbon when we played them in a tournament in New York and I was impressed with him," he said. "So it's going to be a tough game. They'll be up for it, won't they? I don't know how many Scotsmen they have in their team - I don't know how many Englishmen we have in ours come to think about it!"