Redknapp won't sell Keane despite party row

Republic of Ireland captain Robbie Keane expressed his thanks Tuesday to the thousands of Celtic fans who welcomed the Spurs striker to the club on a loan deal till the end of the season.Keane, who had fallen down the strikers' pecking order at Tottenham, said he was thrilled at the chance to play for the club he supported as a boy."The club is massive," said Keane. "I am a Celtic fan and did not have to ask much about it. I always wanted to play for Celtic and it works for all parties.

Tottenham missed a chance to move into the top four as Fulham dominated Saturday's 0-0 draw between the London rivals at Craven Cottage.Harry Redknapp's side would have gone above fourth-placed Aston Villa with a victory, but were forced to settle for a point that left them in fifth.Redknapp opted to drop England striker Jermain Defoe to the bench as captain Robbie Keane partnered Peter Crouch in attack, while Ledley King and Luka Modric were among the Spurs substitutes after recovering from injury.

Robbie Keane was at the centre of another transfer deadline day of drama as the Ireland captain completed a late loan move from Tottenham to Celtic.A year after returning to Spurs from Liverpool, Keane, who had fallen behind Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe in the White Hart Lane pecking order, moved north in search of first-team football with the decision made easier for him by Tottenham's decision to sign Eidur Gudjohnsen, a similar style of player, on loan from Monaco, earlier this week.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp said it would be "a funny old day" after his team set up a Wembley FA Cup semi-final with former club Portsmouth.But Redknapp urged his players, who face Portsmouth in the Premier League on Saturday, to keep focused on their run-in as they bid for a place in next season's Champions League.Tottenham came from behind against London rivals Fulham in Wednesday's quarter-final replay to win 3-1 at White Hart Lane, setting up a Wembley showdown with Pompey on April 11."It'll be a funny old day," Redknapp said.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp has rejected criticisms of his side as a "long ball" team as "rubbish".With Peter Crouch up front, Spurs have often been accused of going 'route one' in a bid to find the head of their tall England striker, for all their history as a passing team.But Redknapp insisted on Tuesday there was a difference between aimless long balls and precise long passes."We pass the ball to death and hit Crouchy in the right areas.

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp on Friday confirmed the signing of striker Eidur Gudjohnsen on loan from Monaco until the end of the season.The former Barcelona and Chelsea forward had been expected to join West Ham, where he had a medical earlier this week, but has instead opted to join Tottenham's push for a top four finish and a place in next season's Champions League.

Harry Redknapp has dismissed the Tottenham supporters who jeered his side during their midweek FA Cup win against Fulham as "idiots".Redknapp was unhappy to hear Tottenham's players booed off by a section of the White Hart Lane crowd when they trailed 1-0 to Fulham at half-time on Wednesday.Spurs ignored the jeers to score three times in the second half and clinch a 3-1 win that set up a semi-final against Portsmouth next month.

Tony Mowbray's hopes that his new look Celtic could revive their Scottish Premier League title challenge lay in ruins here on Tuesday after they were beaten 1-0 by relegation-threatened Kilmarnock.Defeat leaves Celtic trailing bitter-rivals Rangers by 10 points.The Celtic manager grabbed the headlines on transfer deadline day with the loan signings of Diomansy Kamara and Tottenham Hotspurs captain Robbie Keane and the pair started the game in a line-up bereft of any Scots.