IN the crazy world of football management it seems Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric has adopted a new approach to finding a suitable candidate to fill the Fratton Park hot-seat.

Unlike so many of his Premiership counterparts, who tend to try to keep their top targets a secret, Mandaric is quite happy to openly list every name that enters his head when he goes to sleep at night.

Every morning there seems to be a new ideal replacement for the departed Alain Perrin, the Frenchman who was sacked prior to last week's defeat by Chelsea.

On Wednesday it was Neil Warnock, on Thursday Iain Dowie, and yesterday Harry Redknapp - the man who left Pompey after a series of disagreements with the man at the top - emerged as the number one target. Further evidence football is crazy.

A year and a week ago Redknapp left Portsmouth after Mandaric appointed Croat Velimir Zajec as executive director who, as the cockney feared, eventually became the club's manager.

After a brief break, Portsmouth's fierce south coast rivals Southampton persuaded Redknapp to take charge and now Mandaric wants him to go back. It's like Sir Bobby Robson taking over at Sunderland for 12 months before being reinstated as Newcastle boss. Like I said, crazy.

Nevertheless, Mandaric is confident in the whole situation working. The fans who have vilified him for taking over at St Mary's can worship him again, or so the Serb-American millionaire says.

There's an old adage in football that you should never go back and, certainly in this instance, Mandaric should accept this and work his way through the rest of the list he has been quite happy to air in public.

As well as the fact adequate compensation - believed to be around £250,000 - will have to be paid to Southampton for Redknapp's services, there are also many other names in the frame that should be more than capable of doing a suitable job.

Even if the likes of Brian Kerr and Lawrie Sanchez, who have proven only that they possess an inability to transform the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, respectively, into international forces, are wrongly being considered, there are still those around more than capable.

And if Dowie wants to stay at Crystal Palace and Warnock sticks to his word and remains at Sheffield United, then why not give Sir Bobby a short-term deal.

Robson, who has apparently knocked back the chance to join but could still be appointed in some sort of director of football capacity, insists that he still wants one more manager's job despite being 72.

It may be a long way from home but surely the chance to take charge of a another Premiership club, even if they do look destined for relegation, is too good an opportunity to pass him by.

If he did there is sure to be fireworks. Working alongside Laurent Robert and Lomana LuaLua again is sure to create a few sparks.

And, let's face it, having Robson at Portsmouth would be a damn sight better than having Redknapp there.

After all if Redknapp did return to Fratton Park, Southampton could actually appoint former World Cup-winning England rugby union coach Sir Clive Woodward as his replacement - and surely nobody wants that.