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Harry Redknapp: £150m needed to break into big four

07/05/2008

Harry Redknapp claims Premier League clubs need at least £150 million to have any chance of undoing the dominance of the big four.

Speaking after Newcastle United manager Kevin Keegan argued the league could soon become staid if the power of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool continued to grow, Portsmouth boss Redknapp said financial clout is the main barrier to smaller teams reaching the next level.

"You would need £150million to spend to have any chance of breaking into that top four," he told Soccernet.

"Look at Liverpool last summer, they spent £28million on Fernando Torres and he is a fantastic player but who else can compete with that?

"I agree with Kevin Keegan, I do not see any way that anyone else can break into the top four.

"Tottenham came closest for a few seasons but if you look at them now they have fallen back into mid-table. Nothing is guaranteed by spending money and it is getting harder and harder to get there."

Though Pompey spent some £40 million in the last year on the likes of Glen Johnson, Sulley Muntari, David Nugent and Jermain Defoe, the south coast side still languish 16 points below Liverpool in fourth.

And for Redknapp, the influx of foreign investment into England's top division has irrevocably altered the playing field of the Premier League, with smaller teams desperate for involvement from overseas benefactors such as Roman Abramovich.

"I can see more and more foreign investment coming into the Premier League because everybody wants to be associated with it," Redknapp explained.

"I can see American and Russian billionaires coming in but the trouble is they all want to be winners and only one can win the title.

"Billionaires do not accept being losers," he added, possibly making a veiled reference to under-pressure Manchester City manager Sven Goran Eriksson, whose job is believed to be in jeopardy due to the control of club owner Thaksin Shinawatra, despite Eriksson guiding City to their highest-ever Premier League finish.