Redknapp supports Keane on City claim

SOCCER:TOTTENHAM BOSS Harry Redknapp took a swipe at Birmingham City yesterday over their treatment of Robbie Keane, with the manager supporting the striker's claim, denied by the west midlands outfit, there had never been a serious attempt to sign him.

“There was never a deal with Birmingham,” said Redknapp, “and he never asked Birmingham for money. He never got around to discussing a deal with them so when they said they couldn’t meet his wage demands, that was totally unfair on Robbie because he never made any demands. He never even spoke to them.

“I don’t see how the deal could’ve fallen down on wage demands when he didn’t make any, so it’s strange one,” he concluded before moving on to talk about new signing Steven Pienaar, the South African who opted for Spurs ahead of Chelsea last week.

The former Everton player said he had made his decision after meeting with Carlo Ancelotti who, he said, had seemed uninterested during their conversation. When Pienaar’s comments were put to the Chelsea manager yesterday he said: “I’ve never met Steven Pienaar in my life. I didn’t search (for) Steven Pienaar to come here to play for Chelsea. We don’t need a midfielder.”

Everton boss David Moyes has said he was delighted to be able to reward Séamus Coleman with a new contract for the progress he has made at the club over the first half of the season.

“What Everton do, if players do well, is renew them (contracts), up their money and look after them,” he said. “Séamus deserved that for his performances. The boy’s development, the way he has come on, is terrific.”

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew has confirmed he has been trying to persuade owner Mike Ashley to fund a couple of major signings, with Stephen Ireland and Shaun Wright-Phillips apparently topping his shopping list after other targets, including Keane, either proved unaffordable or went elsewhere.

“I’ve got to have these battles with the board, absolutely,” said Pardew. “I’d be very surprised and disappointed if we did not bring anyone in. I am a little worried about not getting anyone so far and I need to keep mentioning it.”

Darren O’Dea claims the mood at Ipswich has lightened a little since the arrival of Paul Jewell as Roy Keane’s successor.

“Perhaps we were trying too hard before,” he says. “We were putting too much effort into matches – we were running more than we needed to. It’s exactly what happens when you are not winning games. Instead of pushing forward anxiety creeps in and you sit back. It is asking for trouble to do that.

“But there is a good feeling around the place now and we feel we are moving in the right direction. The new management team has already put forward a lot of ideas, and it’s up to us to put them into practice, starting tomorrow.”

Former Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Nicky Colgan has signed for Huddersfield Town until the end of the season. The 37-year-old, who had a spell at the club on loan earlier in the season, parted company with Grimsby earlier in the month.