Spurs out to prove Real deal

THERE must be something in the water in Madrid. How else to explain the fact that Harry Redknapp joined Jose Mourinho in an outbreak of honesty yesterday, forgetting the phoney war and ditching the mind games?

Both managers had spent the past week ruling most of their key players out of this mighty clash between Real Madrid and Tottenham at the Bernabeu, so that at one stage it looked like it was going to resemble a reserve team fixture rather than a Champions League quarter-final.

But on the eve of the game, shortly after Mourinho had shown his hand and revealed all his aces — Ronaldo, Marcelo, Angel di Maria — would be fit to face Spurs, Redknapp threw in his best hand too. Gareth Bale — check. William Gallas — check. Rafael Van der Vaart — of course he would play, returning on a mission of vengeance to the club that let him go far too cheaply to Tottenham last summer.