Tottenham’s former manager, Harry Redknapp, revealed that if it weren’t for problems in the negotiations, Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard would not be with Chelsea today. Instead, the duo would be playing for the Spurs.
“I was with Hazard in Paris, four hours I spent with him,” Redknapp said to talkSport. “He wanted to come to Tottenham, but the deal dragged on and didn’t happen.”
Hazard was named Chelsea's 2014 Player of the Year
Thibaut Courtois had been on Redknapp’s radar since the goalkeeper was 17. Seeing his recent success at 22 makes Redknapp question what went wrong in the negotiations.
“We had him next to nothing when he was 17 and that was another deal that dragged on forever and we didn’t get it over the line,” the English manager claimed.
Thibaut Courtois is quickly becoming a fan-favorite at Chelsea
Courtois is in his first season with the Blues and has lost no time in making an impact, sending legendary goalkeeper Peter Cech to the bench. Hazard recently reached a five-and-a-half-year contract extension with Jose Mourinho’s team.
Both Belgian players have been important in helping Chelsea lead the standings in the Premier League after 25 games. Meanwhile, Tottenham is 16 points behind sitting on sixth.
“If we had bought one or two players in at that time we could have got, I felt we would have had a team capable of winning the league,” Redknapp added.
Problems in negotiations prevented both players from going with the Spurs 
The manager stepped down from his position in Tottenham in 2012, then had a short stint directing Queens Park Rangers after that. QPR was the seventh team he managed.
The 67-year-old coach once won the UEFA Youth Tournament in 1964 after beating Spain 4-0. He also was a candidate to manage the national team, who he believes has a shot at winning the upcoming Euro Cup despite having a young roster.
