Jamie Redknapp has the last laugh after being mocked over Man Utd claim

Former Liverpool captain Jamie Redknapp was vindicated after the Reds' Premier League defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday, having made a bold claim earlier this month

Jamie Redknapp came up trumps after he was mocked following his Manchester United claim(Image: Sky Sports)

Jamie Redknapp had the last laugh after Liverpool's defeat to Bournemouth following mocking aimed at him due to his praise of Andoni Iraola.

Redknapp's former sides clashed at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday and it was the Cherries who earned all three points thanks to Amine Adli's last-minute winner in a 3-2 victory. The win was Bournemouth's second in 14 Premier League games as the club has suffered with a lengthy injury list.

It was before Bournemouth's 3-2 win over Tottenham earlier this month that the club was on an 11-match winless streak, but that didn't stop Redknapp from showering the Cherries boss Iraola with praise.

He claimed that the Spaniard should be targeted by Manchester United, but did so with a Sky Sports graphic that illustrated his club's dire run of form.

Redknapp said: "Adoni Iraola, I’m such a big fan of his. I’ve got no doubt, he’s one of the best, most elite managers in world football.

"Manchester United are talking about getting Ole Gunnar Solskjaer back as an interim.

"I don’t understand why they wouldn’t try and get him; it absolutely baffles me. Why not now? Bournemouth’s my former club. I don’t want to see him leave Bournemouth because he’s done such a good job.

Andoni Iraola has been hailed as an "elite manager" by Jamie Redknapp(Image: AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images)

"He was second in the league earlier this season, lost three out of his back four, they’ve had a really difficult run with injuries. He’s an elite manager that I cannot understand why Manchester United wouldn’t go for him.

"Because if he was second, they’d go all out for him. But because he’s had this run, it’s probably cost him a big opportunity at Manchester United, but they should look beyond that."

Redknapp's comments saw him come in for ridicule on social media. But following the Reds' defeat on Saturday, he called out those who mocked him and reiterated his belief that Iraola ranks as one of the "elite" managers in football.

The former footballer said: "I said he should be up for the Man United job, a few people laughed at that, 'how could you be up for the Man United job and you've lost so many games', people [who] don't understand football, that's the sort of thing they would say.

Liverpool fell to a 3-2 defeat at Bournemouth on Saturday(Image: Getty Images)

"Because when you're doing as well as he's done over the years at Bournemouth, continually improving players, [their] style of play, they never give up [and] they run, any kind of club should be looking at him.

"But because he's had a bad run, people quickly judge you and go, 'He's not a good manager anymore' - this is an elite manager.

"I've watched Bournemouth closer than any team over the last three or four years, and if people can't see that, they don't know what they're talking about.

"I don't know what his future brings at the end of the season. We're going to have a massive manager merry-go-round, it's going to be one of the biggest in years.

"It'll be interesting to see what Bournemouth do, but in terms of people questioning him because he's been on a bad run, they don't understand football because he is an amazing manager."