Harry Redknapp has revealed that he once tried to seal a move for Eden Hazard before the Belgian international joined Chelsea.

The Queens Park Rangers boss is likely to come up against the midfielder when the Hoops face local rivals Chelsea on Saturday afternoon.

However, the R's supremo has insisted that he was close to securing a deal to take Hazard to Tottenham Hotspur and even spent four hours in a Paris airport hotel trying to convince the former Lille star to join.

Redknapp told The Telegraph: "I think he was dead keen to come at that time. Joe Cole said he thought he was the best player he ever played with. He's a fantastic talent and a great player. We pushed on for him. We just couldn't get it over the line."

QPR are looking to build on their 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Monday, which lifted them off the bottom of the Premier League table.