Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has revealed how close he came to signing Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick for Portsmouth.

In his column for The Sun, Redknapp wrote: "A few years ago I was very close to signing Michael Carrick for Portsmouth. We had agreed a £2.5m fee with West Ham.

"He was on the M27 virtually at Portsmouth when Arsenal called and expressed interest. He said 'Gaffer what can I do?' I told him I totally understood because it was Arsenal but that we would still be around if it never came off.

"It didn't ... but in the meantime Tottenham got wind and bought him up. That's business. But he hardly got a game here with Spurs because the manager then, Jacques Santini, didn't know him. I think it was the chairman who bought Michael.

"I believe he is a fantastic player. He is like a quarterback - he sees every pass. When he gets here with United today we will have to get after him. He is so good on the ball you can't afford to give him time to make those passes.

"Portsmouth played Manchester United in the Cup last year. We were in the game and holding our own. Suddenly Michael came on and then they just took control."