Harry Redknapp has revealed how close he came to leaving Queens Park Rangers and retiring from football management last season.
The 67 year old took over at Loftus Road in 2012 but could not prevent the west London club being relegated from the Premier League.
Although they were favourites to seal an immediate return, poor form around Christmas saw Redknapp’s side having to negotiate the play-offs to gain promotion.
Read more: Harry Redknapp vows not to repeat errors at Queens Park Rangers
And it was during the play-off final win over Derby when Redknapp started to face the prospect of walking away – only for Bobby Zamora to score a last-gasp winner.
“If we hadn’t gone up this year I would have turned it in,” he acknowledged.
“I would have definitely packed up. I wouldn’t have gone back and done another year in the Championship, it didn’t appeal to me any more.
“If we had got beat I would have turned it in, definitely.
“With 10 minutes to go I was thinking ‘what golf club should I join this year – should I play here or there?’ and then suddenly Bobby ruined it all.”
Zamora’s strike secured a top-flight return and Redknapp is glad to still be at the helm as he looks to help QPR flourish in the Premier League this time around – with a troublesome knee also no longer causing him problems.
“Now I am excited again,” he said. “To go to Anfield and Old Trafford is fantastic, I am so lucky to be able to do that.
“I wouldn’t have missed the Championship. I didn’t fancy it. I would have said ‘let somebody else have a go for a year’ because I like the people here – I like the chairman, I genuinely look forward to seeing him.
“My leg is a lot better. I was struggling last year. I didn’t need an operation in the end, I just got on the bike and strengthened it.
“I thought I would be out for three months with an operation, but the Premier League is exciting and I am looking forward to it.”
With former England and Manchester United captain Rio Ferdinand the only new recruit so far, Redknapp will be wanting to add more to his squad before the season opener at home to Hull City on August 16.
“We’ll get them in, we know that,” he said.
“I’m not making it up. A couple of boys are training with us who are not with us and we have Adel (Taarabt), who looks like he’s going to go.
“I’ve got a couple of kids playing with us to make up the numbers. We’ve got around 12, with a couple to come back. We’ll be a maximum of 13 or 14.”
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Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
Keep it fun and engaging
Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.
“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.
His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.
He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Kill%20
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Company%20Profile
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Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FIXTURES
All kick-off times 10.45pm UAE ( 4 GMT) unless stated
Tuesday
Sevilla v Maribor
Spartak Moscow v Liverpool
Manchester City v Shakhtar Donetsk
Napoli v Feyenoord
Besiktas v RB Leipzig
Monaco v Porto
Apoel Nicosia v Tottenham Hotspur
Borussia Dortmund v Real Madrid
Wednesday
Basel v Benfica
CSKA Moscow Manchester United
Paris Saint-Germain v Bayern Munich
Anderlecht v Celtic
Qarabag v Roma (8pm)
Atletico Madrid v Chelsea
Juventus v Olympiakos
Sporting Lisbon v Barcelona
Dunbar
Edward St Aubyn
Hogarth
'My Son'
Director: Christian Carion
Starring: James McAvoy, Claire Foy, Tom Cullen, Gary Lewis
Rating: 2/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
