
To The Lane And Back
·4 January 2024
‘My biggest mistake’… Heurelho Gomes says he really regrets one thing he did at Tottenham

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Yahoo sportsTo The Lane And Back
·4 January 2024
Former Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes has opened up about his fallout with former boss Harry Redknapp.
Heurelho Gomes was Tottenham’s No.1 goalkeeper for a total of three seasons before Brad Friedel arrived in 2011.
The Brazilian was originally snapped up by Juande Ramos from PSV in 2008. But after the Spaniard’s dismissal, he became an important part of Harry Redknapp’s side.
Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images
Indeed, Gomes was the man between the sticks during Redknapp’s best spell as Spurs boss. He was part of the Spurs side that qualified for the Champions League for the first time in the 2009-10 campaign.
But it’s fair to say that Gomes didn’t take being dropped from the starting XI too well and he has admitted it led to a fallout with Redknapp.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Gomes admitted that he told Redknapp he never wanted to play for him again after being dropped for Friedel in the 2011-12 campaign.
“I was with him in a charity game and I apologised to him,” the former Spurs goalkeeper said. “He put me on the bench. One day, he said to be ‘Come here big man, I want to talk to you.’
“Brad [Friedel], I think he played against QPR, he didn’t have a good game. He [Redknapp] came to me the next day and said ‘Now I realise you’re the best goalkeeper at the club’.
“I was upset with him, of course. I said to Harry ‘I don’t want to play for you anymore’. I made my biggest mistake in football, it was that.”
He added: “Yeah, because he dropped me before and he was going to give me another chance and I said that to him.
“I went to a charity game for Tottenham another day and he was there. I went to him and I said ‘I want to apologise to you, Harry, because I did that in that time. Forgive me please’.
“Sometimes you have to think before you say something and I didn’t think about that.”
“That was the last time I played. I regret that. Harry’s a great man and that’s why I wanted to go to him and apologise.”
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
Gomes didn’t make a single Premier League appearance for Tottenham between 2011 and 2014, before eventually joining Watford.
Of course, Hugo Lloris also arrived at the club in 2012, which ultimately led to Gomes becoming the third-choice keeper at the club.
The Brazilian will largely be remembered by Tottenham fans as a keeper who could produce the most exceptional saves, and then proceed to let a more simple stop slip through his palms.
Nevertheless, he played an important part in Spurs’ ascent to Europe’s most prestigious competition under Redknapp. It’s a shame his stint at Tottenham ended on a sour note due to a fallout with his former boss.