Portsmouth manager Redknapp quits
 |  Redknapp's Portsmouth defied the sceptics by staying in the Premiership |
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LONDON, Nov 24 (Reuters) -- Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp resigned on Wednesday, saying he needed to take a complete break from the game after 22 years as a coach.
The 57-year-old led Portsmouth to promotion to the Premier League in his first full season in charge in 2002-2003 and defied the sceptics by keeping the south coast club in the top flight last season.
Redknapp said his decision had not been influenced by the controversial appointment of Croat Velimir Zajec to the club's board earlier this month.
Portsmouth, 12th in the 20-strong league, said Zajec would take charge of the team for the match against Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.
"I've been thinking about it (resigning) for some time," Redknapp, Premier League manager of the month for October, told a news conference.
"I made it without any pressure from the chairman or the board.
"I'm leaving the club in great shape on the football field. It is nice to be in a position where you can say 'I have done a great job' ... and let the club push on.
"I want to walk away while things are good."
Redknapp, fearing he was being undermined, had voiced concern at Zajec's appointment saying he could not work with a director of football.
Portsmouth, in a bid to reassure Redknapp, publicly stated last week that Zajec, a friend of chairman Milan Mandaric, had been handed the title of executive director and would not interfere in first team affairs.
"I won't lie. I was disappointed by the way it was all handled," Redknapp said on Wednesday.
"I picked up the newspapers ... and did not know where I was heading. But I have not been pushed out."
Despite an uneasy relationship with Mandaric, Redknapp signed a one-year contract extension this year to keep him in the job to 2006.
The former West Ham manager is the sixth Premier League manager to depart since the start of the season.
Mandaric said that Redknapp's departure had nothing to do with the appointment of Zajec.
"He spoke about maybe wanting to recharge his batteries after an exhausting period where he has helped transform the club from first division strugglers to Premier League survivors," said Mandaric.
