• Premier League

Balotelli too much for me, says Redknapp

The drama surrounding Mario Balotelli would be too much to handle said Harry Redknapp © PA Photos

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QPR manager Harry Redknapp is grateful for his 'lucky escape' in failing to sign Mario Balotelli when he was at the helm of Tottenham Hotspur.

Redknapp has knocked a few noses out of joint at Loftus Road since taking charge in November with his latest blast at his players coming on Saturday after his team lost 4-2 to MK Dons in the FA Cup.

But he believes his man-management methods would not have worked on the Italian striker, who is currently out of favour with Roberto Mancini at Manchester City.

"I once tried to sign him [Balotelli] for Spurs before he went to City," Redknapp wrote in his column in the Sun.

"I spoke with his brother and had a meeting with his agent after he'd had a fall-out with Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan. But we wanted him on loan and Inter weren't interested. And that's when I thought: 'If Jose can't handle him, what chance have I got?'

"Maybe it was a lucky escape because I don't think I'd have been able to handle the way he has behaved in England."

Bottom-of-the-table QPR will face City on Tuesday night in the Premier League and with three points equally important to the champions, Rangers will need to show the resilience they displayed against Chelsea and Tottenham if they are to get anything out of the game. But Redknapp is confident his side can upset the form book once again.

"They are a great squad and it looks like the race will go down to the wire again with Manchester United," he added. "Mind you, we will be doing our best to improve United's title challenge by taking points off City on Tuesday.

"Since our poor defeat by Liverpool, we've beaten Chelsea and drawn with Spurs and West Ham. If we can keep taking five points from every three games to the end of the season, that will take us to 40 points and give us a fighting chance of staying up."

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