I owe it all to Harry, says happy Defoe

JERMAIN DEFOE puts his new-found confidence down to loving life at Portsmouth.

England coach Fabio Capello may have been startled by Harry Redknapp’s critical comments in the wake of last month’s draw with the Czech Republic at Wembley, but as far as Defoe is concerned, the Pompey boss can do no wrong.

It was Redknapp who rescued Defoe from his misery at Tottenham in January, offering the striker an opportunity to re-ignite his career.

Defoe has responded in exactly the manner Redknapp wanted.

And Capello is getting the spin-off.

“I have benefited from moving to Portsmouth and I am so glad I made that decision,” said the 25-year-old.

“I was at Spurs for three-and-a-half years and most of the time I was really happy.

“But towards the end, it started to get difficult. There comes a time when you need to move on, play football and be happy again.

“That is what happened to me.”

Generally players would resist the notion that confidence is an over-riding factor in their performance, preferring instead to cultivate an image that sees them able to counter any problem through ability alone.

Defoe is happy to say the opposite is true. During the dark days he endured under Martin Jol at White Hart Lane, it is difficult to imagine Defoe attempting the audacious chip that rattled the bar at Everton on Saturday, which could yet see him credited with a goal Peter Crouch is trying to claim.

“I think most people would describe themselves as confidence players,” he argued.

“When you are playing well, you feel confident and believe you are going to do well in games. That is the kind of form you want to take into international matches.”

If, as expected, Capello trusts Defoe’s fledgling partnership with Wayne Rooney to produce goals for England when they open their World Cup qualifying campaign against Andorra in Barcelona on Saturday, it would represent the former West Ham man’s fourth successive start for his country, a personal best.

Previously, Defoe has been used mainly as a substitute, as he was the last time England headed to Montjuic for the horrible night when 15,000 visiting fans turned on their team after a goalless first-half against the part-timers.

Defoe was introduced as a second-half substitute for Wayne Rooney and felt the reaction was unnecessary.

“The atmosphere was difficult that night,” he said.

“No game is easy and that was a frustrating one.

“But I didn’t think 0-0 at half-time was so bad.

“The problem is Andorra get a lot of men behind the ball, so it really helps to get an early goal.”

Yet Defoe accepts, in theory at least, Andorra offer the kind of scoring opportunities strikers relish.

“You have to believe you will get chances in games like this; it is down to us to take them,” he said.

“As a forward it is a game you want to play in. But you also have to recognise it is a massive game in terms of qualification and a win is really all that matters, irrespective of the score.”