Yakubu trumps Tottenham with fifth goal of season

Portsmouth 1, Tottenham 0

The Nigerian’s header was only the second against Spurs on their travels this season and it came after Pompey manager Harry Redknapp gambled on fielding three strikers at Fratton Park.

He moved Lomana LuaLua out to the right wing to accommodate substitute Ricardo Fuller as Yakubu’s sidekick in the middle.

And the former Newcastle player’s cross paved the way for the goal with Yakubu out-jumping the big Spurs defenders.

Tottenham would have climbed to fourth in the table with a win but their functional style did not provide enough scoring chances until the closing minutes when they in tossed Fredi Kanoute and Michael Carrick into the mix.

For Pompey it was their third win of the campaign, having taken just one point from the previous three games, and their greater sense of adventure merited victory.

Spurs were calmly in control early on when the lively Pedro Mendes shot over from 20 yards after setting up

Simon Davies to strike a low shot that Shaka Hislop comfortably saved. Then Davies made a clever run to meet a Mendes chip forward and headed not far over the bar under pressure but it was Portsmouth who carved out the best chances before the break.

England goalkeeper Paul Robinson made a brave save to deny Yakubu after Patrik Berger’s pass put the Nigerian through in the 11th minute although the striker should have done better with his shot.

Robinson pushed it far enough away to make a follow-up chance difficult and Eyal Berkovic blazed it over the top.

Yakubu had another opportunity 10 minutes later when Anthony Gardner, filling in for injured Erik Edman, was caught out at left-back and LuaLua slipped the ball through, but under challenge from Noe Pamarot the striker tripped over his own feet.

It was not until a minute before the break that Spurs created a real chance when England striker Jermain Defoe took a fresh-air shot at Robbie Keane’s pass eight yards out.

The irony for Santini’s side was that they came unstuck after upping the tempo at the start of the second half.

In the 62nd minute LuaLua, despite his admitted dislike for a wide role, provided the perfect cross for Yakubu to out-jump the big Tottenham defenders and head home his fifth goal of the season.

PORTSMOUTH: Hislop, Griffin, Primus, Stefanovic, Unsworth, Faye (Cisse 85), Quashie, Berger, Berkovic (Fuller 55), Yakubu (Kamara 75), LuaLua.

TOTTENHAM: Robinson, Pamarot, Naybet, King, Gardner (Kanoute 72), Davies, Brown (Carrick 72), Pedro Mendes, Atouba (Jackson 80), Keane, Defoe.

Referee: U Rennie (S Yorkshire).