Tottenham Hotspur 1 - 1 Portsmouth
Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe silenced the jeers of the travelling Portsmouth fans after scoring a vital equaliser against his old club in a 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane here Sunday.
The point moved Spurs off the bottom of the English Premier League table and out of the relegation zone on goal difference. Spurs manager Harry Redknapp, facing Pompey for the first time since his October switch to London, would have been disappointed after seeing his side miss a host of chances. Both teams stretched their winless league run to six games but remain firmly involved in the relegation dogfight.
Defoe, booed relentlessly by the Portsmouth fans, spurned a golden opportunity to put one over his old club but screwed his finish wide after being put in the clear by Pompey midfielder Sean Davis's wayward pass. Pompey's attacks were fleeting but they came close to breaking the deadlock in the 11th minute after poor goalkeeping from Spurs's Heurelho Gomes. The Brazilian could only parry Glen Johnson's weak long-range shot but made amends by flicking the ball away when it appeared England striker Peter Crouch was certain to score.
The match continued at breakneck pace as the home team continued to press but they could not force the ball into the goal, Defoe the guilty party twice in quick succession. First he got in the way of Roman Pavlyuchenko's goalbound header and then Defoe, given a free-header himself, could only direct it at James although the ex-Liverpool keeper still had to pull off an acrobatic save. Gomes made up for his nervy start when he denied David Nugent but the England forward should have given him no chance after being sent clear by Croatia midfielder Niko Kranjcar. Spurs came close again shortly before the hour mark but James was again on top form to keep out Lennon's deflected effort.
The significance of the save was magnified a minute later when Nugent atoned for his earlier miss with his first Premier League goal for Pompey. French midfielder Armand Traore made a typically forceful run which was cut short by Corluka's tackle. The loose ball fell to Nugent on the edge of the penalty area and his low shot, aided by a slight deflection off Gareth Bale, gave Gomez no chance.
The visiting fans wasted no time in reminding Redknapp, who guided Pompey to the FA Cup last season, of the score. But their cheers were soon cut short when Defoe scored his first goal since returning to White Hart Lane. Midfielder Didier Zakora passed to Croatia playmaker Luka Modric and his lay-off found the former West Ham striker who planted a low left-foot shot beyond James's despairing dive. Spurs substitute Darren Bent had a glorious opportunity to win the game with 10 minutes left but directed his free header wide of the target.
West Ham United 3 - 1 Fulham
At Upton Park, Hammers boss Gianfranco Zola left Bellamy out of his squad for the clash against Fulham after the former Liverpool star stormed out of training on Friday following the club's decision to deny him permission to speak to Tottenham.Bellamy is determined to leave the east London team and could seal a move to Manchester City instead later this week, but Zola and company won't need to shed too many tears judging by this emphatic victory. David Di Michele was drafted into the side as Bellamy's replacement and scored West Ham's opener before making their third goal for Carlton Cole.
Mark Noble's penalty had put the hosts 2-1 in front following Paul Konchesky's stunning equaliser for Fulham as the Hammers extended their unbeaten run to five matches and moved up to.
Full results;
January 17
Blackburn Rovers 3 - 0 Newcastle United
Bolton 0 - 1 Manchester United
Chelsea 2 - 1 Stoke City
Manchester City 1 - 0 Wigan Athletic
Sunderland 1 - 2 Aston Villa
West Bromwich Albion 3 - 0 Middlesbrough
Hull City 1 - 3 Arsenal
January 18
West Ham United 3 - 1 Fulham
Tottenham Hotspur 1 - 1 Portsmouth
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