London – Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp has opened the door to possibly leading England at Euro 2012 this year in a caretaker capacity following last week's shock resignation of Fabio Capello.
Redknapp, the overwhelming favourite to succeed Capello, said that while managing Spurs and England at the same time would be “impossible” in the long-term, he would be able to juggle the jobs on a short-term basis.
The 64-year-old, who was aquitted of tax evasion at a trial last week, had previously indicated he would only be able to do one job or the other.
However, Redknapp appeared to soften his stance on Thursday as he prepared for Tottenham's FA Cup clash with Stevenage Borough this weekend.
“Part-time? In the short term I think it's possible for the European Championship,” said Redknapp.
“In the long term, it's not possible to manage a club team and manage a national team. It's difficult enough to manage in the Premier League without having to worry about managing the England team as well.
“You want to be watching England players play, you want to be watching the opposition. I think whoever they give the job to could only do the one job.
“Maybe for the Euros, it's not such a problem, but once the Euros are finished and the new season starts in England, the manager has to be a Premier League manager – if it's someone who manages in the Premier League – or the England manager.
“To do the two jobs, it would be impossible.”
Football Association chiefs met last week to compile a shortlist for the England vacancy, and had earlier stressed they could make a short-term appointment for the Euros before awarding the job on a long-term basis for the 2014 World Cup campaign.
Stuart Pearce will manage England on a one-off basis in a February 29 friendly against the Netherlands. – Sapa-AFP