Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko believes he has proved to
Harry Redknapp that he is worthy of a place in Spurs' first team.
The 28-year-old scored two goals as a second-half substitute
at Wigan on Sunday in a 3-0 victory.
The Russian international has been mostly overlooked by the
Spurs boss this season; however his brace at the DW stadium has
given the striker reason to believe he can play a big part in
Spurs' push for fourth place in the Premier League.
"Many people here and at home have 'buried' me as a
footballer," he said.
"They said my career was all but over. That's why I wanted to
score on Sunday like never before."
Pavlyuchenko also expressed his surprise at Redknapp's
positive comments about his efforts in training in the previous
week, which had previously come in for some criticism from the
Spurs coach.
"Before the game, I worked so hard in training that even
Redknapp praised me, which hasn't happened for quite a while," he
said.
"But despite being in the perfect mood today, I do realise
one good game still doesn't mean much."
It appears however that Redknapp will give the striker
another chance to impress, after the player revealed he will start
against Bolton in Spurs' FA Cup fifth-round replay at White Hart
Lane on Wednesday.
