Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp says former Arsenal captain William Gallas is just the player he needs.
Gallas arrives at White Hart Lane with a reputation for causing trouble and was stripped of the captaincy at the Emirates for criticising his team-mates.
Yet Redknapp is sure any flashes of temperament - like when he sat on the Birmingham pitch in February 2008 and refused all handshakes at the end of a 2-2 draw - are down to passion.
Redknapp said: "A manager can either do things or sit back and do nothing. The easy thing was for me to think 'Oh some fans might not like him, I am not going to do that and we will keep plodding along.'
"I don't think he is a bad influence. I remember the time at Birmingham, he could have just walked off the pitch and asked the lads 'Where are we going tonight . . . Tramps or somewhere?'
"But he didn't, did he? He was distraught at the result, he cares. You need people like him.
"If he has got a temperament, then he just gets the hump with players who are not as professional as he is."
Another criticism of the Gallas signing is his age. But Redknapp added: "People can talk about kids all they want but at Man United the other night it was Scholes giving the ball to Giggs and Giggs volleying the ball into the net.
"Man United have men like Ferdinand, Vidic, Neville. Chelsea have John Terry, Drogba, Lampard - all these people are winners - they are men.
"At Inter MilanJose Mourinho won the Champions League with men. They were all experienced players, not kids - look at the age of his team.
"They have gone out to win, they want to win. I am not saying you need all older players but you need people who know how to win matches and you only gain experience with age."
