Queens Park Rangers manager Harry Redknapp lost at sea one year after being nation's favourite for England job Past experience in this role with Portsmouth, then at Spurs after the Juande Ramos debacle, has taught him not to be too optimistic. Redknapp is desperate to augment the QPR squad - Ryan Nelsen, for example, was brought in as a fourth-choice centre-back, and has latterly been forced to play every game - but remains pessimistic about the prospects. "Dealing with some of these chairmen, you know they are going to want their pound of flesh," he said on Tuesday. They see the position you are in. Not many clubs let players go at this stage and in our situation, they will look to hold you to ransom anyway. No one helps you in this game. Outwardly bluff, Redknapp is a figure of acute sensitivities. The ignominy of QPR's first 25 minutes against Liverpool, when Luis Suárez rounded Clint Hill like a whippet passing a funeral horse, wounded the manager deeply. His teams have traditionally demonstrated, if nothing else, a certain pride through their resilience, so it was no surprise to hear him talk of Wednesday's visit to Chelsea as a chance to regain a measure of self-respect. "We have to go and get a little bit of pride back, whatever else we do," he said. We need to make sure we're in the game. He could not conceal a slight grimace, though, about facing an attack of Juan Mata, Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres. Open yourselves up and you can get ripped apart, can't you? Just like Villa did. One can understand Redknapp's desire to conclude his career with a rousing encore. He never wanted his final act in management to be an undignified sacking by Daniel Levy, but it is doubtful whether his attempt to revive QPR's collection of misfits and malcontents is the surest way to buttress his reputation. While Jose Bosingwa is accused of laziness, and Shaun Wright-Phillips displays a level of toothlessness to disgrace a one-time England regular, Redknapp heads to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday with a covetous eye on former protege, Frank Lampard. For Lampard, his nephew, exemplifies every quality that he seeks from his charges, and that has perhaps been lost on Roman Abramovich: discipline, perfectionism, plus a quite ferocious work ethic. "When all the other kids had gone home, Frank would be practising every day," Redknapp said of their days working together at West Ham's academy. He would spend hours out there, going through his sprints, his shooting, hitting shots with his right foot, his left foot, volleying, you name it. He's the best trainer I've ever seen. Nobody else comes close. And for the first time, Redknapp's furrowed features softened into a smile, as if he had suddenly remembered better days.