£2m worth of reasons why Harry should shuffle the pack

Football FanCast columnist The New Voice of Football feels it is
time that Harry Redknapp put faith in Niko Kranjcar.

As good as Tottenham looked before the
International break, the real acid-test was always going to come in the
back-to-back Premier League clashes against Manchester United and Chelsea that
followed it. Harry Redknapp's, cause certainly not helped by the injury to
Croatian schemer just before players left their clubs for country.

The midfield at White Hart Lane had a
balanced look about it for the first time in years, Modric and Aaron Lennon
given license to create havoc in the oppositions half, while Tom Huddlestone
has clearly benefited from having Wilson Palacios alongside him as opposed to
the headless chicken that has now finally departed thank god, Didier Zokora.

The games against United and Chelsea were
never going to be easy, with the task facing Redknapp even greater due to the
loss of Luka. However, with enough time left in the transfer window to find a
replacement for Modric, Harry pulled off what I thought at the time, was one of
the deals of the summer, with the signing of Modric's compatriot Niko Kranjcar
from former club Portsmouth for the princely sum of around £2million, surely a
masterstroke, by the renowned wheeler-dealer.

Yes, Kranjcar only had a year left on his
deal on the south coast, but in anybodies book £2million is still daylight
robbery for a 25-year-old International, with a half-century of caps to his
name. I can possibly understand Kranjcar only being on the bench for the United
game at White Hart Lane, with Harry deciding to field an attacking side and
play Defoe, Keane and Crouch. After all he had only just arrived and Spurs were
enjoying their best start to a campaign since they won it.

Tottenham lost, despite playing well, but
lesson were not learnt. The balance, that was so evidently there before the
International break had been lost. So with this in mind, why did Redknapp not
start with Kranjcar against Chelsea?

I know Kranjcar is not a like-for-like
replacement for Modric, but unlike Jermaine Jenas, Palacios or Huddlestone he
is a more than accomplished player on the left side of the park. And having
been signed for Pompey by Harry, should know what the Tottenham gaffer expects
and is all about. Redknapp saw the midfield quartet sent out against the Blues
didn't work, with Jenas drafted in to give it a little more bite against the
formidable Chelsea trio of Frank Lampard Lampard, Michael Ballack and Essien.

Harry stuck Lennon out on the left in a
bid to change things at The Bridge, but Aaron is barely half as effective out
there as he is on the right for Spurs, which further weakened Tottenham's
chances of getting anything out of the game.

People might say, that Huddlestone was
found wanting, but I disagree, with no outlet on the left his game suffered as
passing and not mobility is Tom's forte. Or that Wilson was guilty of switching
off on occasion, but the Honduran can't be everywhere all the time to bail,
Spurs out. The loss of King also not helping matters just before yet another
dubious penalty decision going against Spurs from Howard Webb. While Jenas as
hardworking and honest as the day is long, just simply was not the right choice
to restore the balance, the United game showed Spurs were missing.

Could things have been different if
Kranjcar had started? Maybe, maybe not, but he would have slotted in with no
problem on the left and almost certainly helped to keep the balance Tottenham
had before the Internationals, with Modric in the side. He must start against
Burnley on Saturday if Redknapp wants to get Spurs' season back on track. For
if he doesn't start against the Clarets, why buy him in the first place? Even
for £2million!

Redknapp probably will play him from the
start at the weekend and Tottenham will probably win. But I feel Harry missed a
trick in not playing Niko against Chelsea, with the inclusion of Jenas, through
no fault of his own, weakening the strengths of the trio that played alongside
Luka. It takes no courage to start Kranjcar against Burnley though, and
Redknapp must have faith in the player he has signed twice in his career and
must clearly like in the bigger games to come, should Modric not be available.
Otherwise what was the point?

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