Red card can´t sour Spurs win for Harry

Despite Jermain Defoe’s red card, Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp was delighted with his side’s 2-1 win at Villa Park on Sunday.

Bargain off-season signing Rafael van der Vaart continued his superb start to his Tottenham career with a well-taken double which saw Spurs move to fifth.

The win came despite Jermain Defoe’s dismissal, with the striker handed a straight red card after he caught Villa defender James Collins with a leading arm to the face just before the half-hour mark.

But Redknapp remained upbeat and was pleased with his side’s display of counter-attacking football.

“It was an excellent performance,” Redknapp told Sky Sports.

“Losing Jermain Defoe made it difficult but we kept the ball well first half. It was more difficult second half to keep hold of the ball.”

“But at half-time I said let’s hit them on the break because we have pace with Aaron (Lennon) and Gareth Bale and I felt we would get opportunities to catch them on the break.”

“It was a fantastic second goal, the movement from Gareth Bale to Aaron and the finish from Rafa was top class.”

Redknapp did not point the finger at referee Martin Atkinson for Defoe’s dismissal, but said he got several decisions wrong – including a decision to disallow a Tottenham goal after the ball was adjudged to have crossed the line before defender Alan Hutton pulled back for Younes Kaboul to rifle home.

“I haven’t seen it (Defoe’s dismissal) since, but at the time I didn’t have any arguments,” he said.

“I certainly wouldn’t say I think he (Defoe) would go at the player intentionally though. Maybe it was just a little centre-forward’s challenge. The boys don’t think he took his eye off the ball.”

“The referee is a good referee, but he had a bad night tonight.”

Villa boss Gerard Houllier was disappointed with the defeat, but admitted his side should have been smarter – especially in the second half with a numerical advantage.

“Once they went down to 10 men we knew they would play in their half and play on the break, which they did very well,” Houllier said.

“The second half was better but we should not have conceded the second goal, we knew that was vital.”

Houllier sung the praises of Van der Vaart after another brilliant performance, with the Frenchman admitted he had tried – and failed – to sign him more than once.

“When I was Liverpool, I tried to sign him, but he was too expensive. And then when I was at Lyon I tried to sign him, he was at Hamburg,” he said.

“So of course when we meet, it is very funny – we nearly hug each other. But twice he scored twice against us.”

“He is a fantastic player because he can play a different position up front. What he likes is to play off the striker but he is disciplined to play on the right or the left. He makes the difference.”

The match also marked the comeback of promising young midfielder Fabian Delph, who returned from a cruciate ligament injury after a lay-off that lasted longer than eight months.

The former Leeds player impressed Houllier, who said he grew ‘better and better as the game went on.’