Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has revealed that the club decided to release Jonathan Woodgate in the summer due to the large insurance figure they would have needed to pay for the injury prone player to be allowed to train.
The former England centre-half was plagued by injuries during his time at White Hart Lane, and the London outfit chose to release him on a free transfer when his contact ran out in June.
However, financial reasons were part of the club’s considerations according to Redknapp.
“There were problems with insurance; he [Woodgate] wasn’t insured to train with us,” Redknapp told The Guardian.
“It was tough [to let Woodgate go] because I knew that if he could get fit, and he was convinced he could, that we had a top-class centre-half, one of the best in the world.
“I wanted to keep him but I could understand it from the club’s point of view. They had paid his wages for the last two years and he’d hardly played. So it wasn’t easy.
“Full credit to Stoke. They’ve got him fit and he looks in good shape. He’s a fantastic boy, and I just hope it goes great for him now,” he concluded.
Spurs and Stoke go head-to-head in the Carling Cup on Tuesday night, with Woodgate in line to face his former employers.
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