Addressing the 72-year-old ex-Tottenham boss being branded “dodgy”, Piers Morgan, 54, said his guest reacted angrily to the unfair label when the topic came up filming Life Stories. “Harry’s a very open book, but not the cuddly guy everyone assumes he is,” the presenter told this week’s TV Times. “He’s survived in the pressure cauldron of management for a long time. You don’t get to do that by being a soft touch, and he fell out with people.”
Recalling Harry Redknapp’s response to claims he was “dodgy”, Piers continued: “He gets angry about that categorisation of him being dodgy, and has good reason because he was cleared.
“I think his win on I’m A Celebrity has gone a long way to getting rid of that but, but when he defends himself in the interview he gets angry and you see a real passion,” he added.
In 2012, Harry was cleared of tax evasion, having previously denied accepting untaxed bonus payments from Milan Mandaric, who was the chairman at Portsmouth while he was manager there.
At the time, he appeared emotional at the verdict, telling press outside Southwark Crown Court: “It’s been a nightmare, it’s been five years, it’s a case that should never have come to court.
“I’m looking forward to going home and getting on with my life.”
