Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has thanked Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp for rescuing his football career.

Johnson was out of the first team completely at Chelsea when Redknapp swooped in to bring him to Portsmouth, a move that rejuvenated the full-back to the point that he was called up to the England squad.

“It’s fair to say that Harry rescued my career. I wasn’t getting in the team at Chelsea. I asked to leave because I needed to play football regularly again,” Johnson said in the News of the World ahead of today’s clash with Spurs at White Hart Lane.

“Harry gave me a chance at Portsmouth when it was going wrong for me. He was the one that came to the table. He gave me an opportunity to rebuild my career and reputation at Portsmouth and I will always owe him something for the faith he showed in me.”

“I have known Harry since I was a 10 year old at West Ham and of course Portsmouth. He is a fantastic man and a great manager so I will always be grateful to him.”

“He was the one who saw things in me. He knew that if I was playing regular first-team football then I would continue to get better as a player,” added the former West Ham youth product.

Many were quick to rule Johnson off as unfulfilled potential as he rotted in the Chelsea reserves, but his unexpected rebirth at Fratton Park caused many a pundit to pull a mulligan at the end of last season.

However, Johnson knows he has to prove his critics wrong again in this campaign as he looks to fight for a place in the Liverpool first eleven.

“I guess I’ve proved a few critics wrong, but I am not at the stage yet where I think that I have made the grade just because I’ve signed for Liverpool,” he said.

“I want to kick on again and keep improving.”

“When I was a young boy I always dreamed about playing for a club like Liverpool.”

“I’m not going to put pressure on myself by saying what I’m going to do now because I am a laid-back lad, but I have come here to win things.”

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp believes Portsmouth want ‘in excess of US$29 million’ for England striker Jermain Defoe.

Defoe wants to leave Fratton Park but Spurs chairman Daniel Levy could not agree a fee with Pompey chairman Peter Storrie when the pair met yesterday.

Redknapp, when asked how much Pompey would want, said: “I think it’s in excess of US$29 million probably.

“The two clubs are miles apart in their valuation of the player so I think we’ll have to move on.”

Pompey manager Tony Adams insists he will have the final say over whether Defoe leaves the club.

Defoe may miss today’s FA Cup visit of Bristol City as he was absent from training after phoning in sick and Adams revealed the club sent a doctor to the striker’s Hertfordshire home to assess his condition.

Adams said: “Peter Storrie had a meeting with him last Wednesday, which I sat in on, and Jermain expressed a desire to leave.

“I think Peter is talking to a few clubs about him but the final decision will be mine and I have a price in mind of what I think he is worth.

“He is a superb player and a great goalscorer but I have not yet made up my mind whether or not I am going to sell him.

“I have to make a call on that like I had to with Lassana Diarra when Real Madrid came knocking.

“If I wanted to play him against Bristol City I could because he is still a Portsmouth player but it looks as if his illness has taken that out of my hands.”

A review of Saturday’s action in the Premier League. Tottenham clinched a massive upset over Liverpool with a 2-1 win.

Roman Pavlyuchenko pounced on the stroke of full-time to lift Tottenham off the foot of Barclays Premier League as they came from behind to beat former leaders Liverpool 2-1.

The Reds took the lead with just two minutes on the clock through a magnificent finish by Dirk Kuyt that saw Heurelho Gomes exposed yet again.

Jamie Carragher’s own goal levelled the scores and, with injury-time approaching, Pavlyuchenko tucked home a Darren Bent pass to inflict a first defeat of the season on the Reds, continuing Spurs’ good form since Harry Redknapp took over.

With the Reds failing to take even a point, Chelsea are back on top as Nicolas Anelka grabbed to inspire a 5-0 win over Sunderland.

Deco had already hit the post when Alex pounced from close range for the opener after 27 minutes. Anelka then nipped in ahead of Alex to add a second moments later and the Frenchman tapped in to make it 3-0 at half-time.

Lampard’s 100th league goal made it four before Anelka completed his hat-trick from close range.

Sunderland boss Roy Keane spent the second half watching from the stands after being sent from the bench for protesting about Anelka’s first goal, for which the striker appeared offside.

Elsewhere, Arsenal failed to deal with Rory Delap’s long throws as they crashed to a 2-1 defeat at Stoke.

Delap’s dangerous deliveries caused problems for the 10-man Gunners throughout the game at the Britannia Stadium and the visitors were punished as Ricardo Fuller and Seyi Olofinjana pounced.

Arsenal’s misery was compounded when substitute Robin van Persie was sent off for barging into goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen, while Emmanuel Adebayor and Theo Walcott left the pitch in considerable pain - the latter with his left arm in a sling. Gael Clichy scored a late consolation for the Gunners.

Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice as Manchester United saw off brave Hull 4-3 at Old Trafford.

The Portuguese drilled the opener after three minutes before Hull showed more of the spirit which has served them well this term as Daniel Cousin glanced in an Andy Dawson free-kick to level.

Michael Carrick finished off a sweeping move to restore United’s lead and Ronaldo’s deflected header gave them a third before the break.

Nemanja Vidic turned in a fourth from a corner after 57 minutes but Bernard Mendy pulled one back with a fine lob and a Geovanni penalty made the closing moments difficult for the hosts.

Keith Andrews scored a late equaliser as 10-man Blackburn drew 2-2 at West Brom.

The Baggies had battled back to lead through Roman Bednar and Ishmael Miller in the second half after Benni McCarthy’s penalty had put Rovers ahead.

McCarthy struck in the 13th minute but was then sent off after earning a second yellow card for handball.

Everton left it late for the second time this week as Louis Saha opened his Toffees account with an 87th-minute winner against Fulham at Goodison Park.

Both sides hit the woodwork, Marouane Fellaini for the hosts and Bobby Zamora for Fulham, but there was little to excite until Saha came off the bench to head home Leon Osman’s cross.

The goal secured back-to-back victories for David Moyes’ side after their last-gasp midweek win over Bolton.

Emile Heskey also struck late as Wigan claimed a dramatic 2-1 win at Tony Adams’ Portsmouth.

Pompey looked to have salvaged a deserved point when Niko Kranjcar rewarded them for their second-half dominance with an 82nd-minute equaliser.

Wigan had taken the lead with Amr Zaki’s penalty but Pompey had the better of the chances with Peter Crouch, twice, and Sylvain Distin hitting the bar.

Mido’s equaliser saw Middlesbrough claim a 1-1 draw at home to West Ham.

The Egyptian drilled in a low free-kick on 83 minutes to cancel out Hayden Mullins’ 21st-minute strike.

Mullins initially fluffed his shot but got lucky as the ball spun behind him and he made no mistake with a powerful drive into the roof of the net.

Liverpool will face a resurgent Tottenham on Saturday. A week ago, Spurs were adrift at the foot of the table and defender Jonathan Woodgate had described them as “rudderless” under the management of Juande Ramos.

But all that changed when Ramos was shown the door last Saturday night, with Redknapp quitting Portsmouth to take over. Since then, they have beaten Bolton at home for their first win of the season, and on Wednesday night they scored twice in the final minutes to snatch a 4-4 draw at arch-rivals Arsenal.

That will make them a much tougher proposition than they might have been for Rafael Benitez’s Liverpool, who are three points clear of Chelsea at the top after beating Redknapp’s old club Portsmouth 1-0 on Wednesday.

Saturday’s game will also mark the return to North London of Robbie Keane, whose £20 million switch to Liverpool in the summer was one of the two key deals that seemed to undermine the Ramos regime by ridding him of his main source of goals - the other being the sale of Dimitar Berbatov to Manchester United.

If Liverpool slip up at the Lane, Chelsea will be looking to capitalise as they host Sunderland at Stamford Bridge.

Last weekend, Liverpool ended the Blues’ proud 86-match unbeaten league run at the Bridge, and Luiz Felipe Scolari will be eager to begin a new one to follow up their midweek victory at Hull.

Arsenal were stung by Spurs’ late equalisers at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday, as it cost them not only North London pride but two valuable points as they bid to stay in touch with the leaders.

They go into Saturday’s trip to Stoke four points behind Liverpool, and will be eager to quiet Potters fans energised by Wednesday’s 1-0 win over Sunderland.

Hull’s fairytale season suffered a blip with the loss to Chelsea, and there could be another one this weekend as they face a daunting trip to face Manchester United at Old Trafford.

The winner will be get to overhaul fourth-placed Aston Villa, at least temporarily, as the Villains do not play until Monday night’s trip to Newcastle.

Like Spurs, the Magpies are in the process of recovering from a dire start to the season, and they moved out of the relegation zone with Tuesday night’s 2-0 win over West Brom.

While Tottenham have been grabbing all the headlines with their capture of Redknapp, it is Portsmouth who are left to pick up the pieces.

Redknapp’s former assistant Tony Adams has stepped into the breach but always faced a tough task at Liverpool on Wednesday night.

However, if he is to convince fans he can maintain standards at the club, he will be under pressure to win on Saturday as lowly Wigan visit Fratton Park.

On Sunday, inconsistent Manchester City visit local rivals Bolton.

The high-spending Blues have scored the most goals of any club in the Premier League this season, but find themselves in eighth place on the back of Wednesday’s 2-0 loss to Middlesbrough.

Also this weekend, Everton host Fulham, Blackburn go to West Brom and West Ham travel to Middlesbrough.

Harry Redknapp is out to succeed where many previous Spurs managers have failed and close the gap on rivals Arsenal.

Spurs have not beaten their neighbours in a league match since 1999 and Arsene Wenger’s men have had bragging rights in north London despite going without a trophy for three years, particularly with Redknapp inheriting a team at the bottom of the Barclays Premier League.

Wenger’s cosmopolitan squad is in contrast to Redknapp’s plans of getting the best out of the England players at White Hart Lane.

“We’d like to,” said Redknapp, ahead of the clash at the Emirates Stadium. “If you can produce your own players, it’s fantastic, but finding them is a different matter.

“In the short term, when you are at the bottom of the league, you can’t really be thinking too much about two or three years down the line.

“Long term the goal is to get Tottenham up there challenging for a top-four position but the first goal is to make sure we stay in the Premier League.”

Redknapp no longer has thoughts of being England manager - but he wants his players to give Fabio Capello a selection headache.

Redknapp was among the candidates for the national job before Capello took the reigns and put the country on the road to the 2010 World Cup.

Spurs’ slump to the bottom of the table meant none of their players were in the matchday squads for the recent wins over Kazakhstan and Belarus - and their results led to Redknapp taking over from Juande Ramos.

“I’m just here now,” Redknapp said. “England have a got a fantastic manager anyway in Capello, whose record speaks for itself, and they are looking in good shape, which is great for us all.

“I have a big job on my hands at Tottenham and it is a big job, a great job.”

Jermaine Jenas was in Capello’s last 23-man squad but turning Spurs’ season around would put David Bentley, Jonathan Woodgate and Aaron Lennon back in the frame.

“If you look at David Bentley, four months ago he was David Beckham’s successor,” Redknapp said. “Now he’s had a little dicky spell and found himself out of the England team. We know what a player he is and we’ve got to get him playing like he was at Blackburn.

“We’ve got to do the same with some of the others. Jenas is an international player. We’ve got to get them back to what they should be.”

Redknapp also rates skipper Ledley King as an international player, while Tom Huddlestone has been in England squads and Darren Bent has been capped.

Wayne Rooney says he will improve as a player thanks to the presence of fellow Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov.

The England international has welcomed the arrival of Berbatov from Tottenham, but even though he believes the Bulgarian’s experience can help him reach greater heights, Rooney is adamant that he cannot now take his place in the starting eleven for granted.

“The mere fact he is at Old Trafford should take me onto a different level,” Rooney told United’s official website.

“I am not guaranteed my place in the side anymore.”

With Argentina star Carlos Tevez also vying for an attacking berth, Rooney went on to explain that with Berbatov leading the line he is looking to prosper even further with the Red Devils.

“More than anything I like playing just off a front man,” said Rooney.

“It’s probably because I get on the ball more. I don’t like to be out of the game too long.

“Some centre-forwards can stay up front, not touch the ball and just look to score goals. I don’t really enjoy doing that.

“I like to be involved in the game. Mainly at United I have been used in different roles but maybe the fact Dimitar has arrived will bring some continuity to my game.”

Having been criticised in some quarters for a slow start to his season, Rooney has hit back by scoring in his last three outings for United.

It’s a challenge the 22-year-old has been relishing.

“I like to play under pressure,” he explained.

“The other week when the manager left me out against Bolton, I was disappointed. I just wanted to get on the pitch as quickly as I could and show him what I could do.

“I like to prove people wrong if I can.”