Defoe keen on Robbie link-up

SPURS striker Jermain Defoe has insisted he can form an effective attacking partnership with Robbie Keane, and revealed that his mates are gob-smacked to learn the Republic of Ireland striker is still only 25.

The pair dovetailed beautifully on Sunday to grab Spurs' goal in the 1-1 draw with Sunderland, Defoe putting in the cross from the right and Keane supplying the simple finish but only after leaving Gary Breen marking thin air with some quicksilver movement in the box.

Following on from their 3-1 victory over Charlton, it offered further evidence that the Anglo-Irish co-production could hit the jackpot for a Spurs side with their sights set on the Champions' League.

Speaking in Munich at the launch of the new Adidas football boot the +50 TUNIT, Defoe said: "A lot of people have said that Robbie and I can't play together for some reason.

"I don't know why, because when I first signed for the club I was playing with Robbie. It's gone OK, we're scoring goals and it's been good. At Charlton, we played together and won.

"Against Sunderland, we were unfortunate not to win."

Defoe concedes that at the season's outset, it seemed to be the case that the two players were competing for one place at White Hart Lane, with manager Martin Jol apparently not a subscriber to the theory that small is beautiful. But paired together, Defoe believes they enhance Spurs' style.

"For the first 30 games of the season, I was basically playing with Mido," he says. "The manager has said that he likes a big man and small man up front. But Robbie and I have played together for the last two games and it's been really good.

"We have got to pass the ball when the two of us play together. That's our strength, really. When we pass the ball, we look so much better.

"When we play a big man, it does give you a different option to go long. It was difficult to pass well against Sunderland because of the conditions but we passed the ball really well against Charlton. Against Aston Villa at home, we also passed it really well, and I think the manager said that it was the best he had seen us play.

"Because Robbie is a good player, we link up well. But, obviously, it takes time to get the partnership working. Robbie is dropping a little bit deeper and I am standing a little higher up the pitch and playing off the shoulder."

Defoe was amazed to learn that Keane's performances in the green shirt were the subject of criticism towards the end of Ireland's World Cup campaign.

"I didn't realise that, I think that's unbelievable," he says. "Robbie is Ireland's record scorer and is still only young.

"To get the record at his age is great because it's not easy to score goals at international level. What he has done for his country has been brilliant. For me, Robbie is up there with the best in the Premiership. A lot of my friends can't believe he is 25 because he has so much experience."

While on the subject of the Irish at the Lane, Defoe offered encouragement for Andy Reid, out of action and Steve Staunton's squad for the game against Sweden with injury.

"It has been frustrating for him because he worked so hard to get back after he had done his knee in," Defoe said. "He got back in against Fulham but you could see the frustration when he got that knock.

"He was playing well.

"I don't know how long he is out for but it was a massive blow for him because he had also been doing really well in training. He is a great player. He is important to us because he can get crosses in the box."

Although disappointed not to have taken three points against basement side Sunderland, 23-year-old Defoe is more than happy with Spurs' form in a season which has taken them to fourth in the Premiership.

"We have done well, maybe better than people expected," he observes. "That's because of what has been created at the club. There is a great bunch of lads who all want to achieve something this year. We have got a young squad and people are hungry to do well."

And even if a certain other London club continues to lord it over all the rest, for Spurs there is still the thrilling prospect of ending the season as qualifiers for the Champions' League.

"It would be massive," says Defoe. "I always see those games and you get goose-pimples when you see the players coming out of the tunnel to the music. To play in the Champions League would be very important for me. If you can score goals at that level, it is another step in your career."