Portsmouth want to extend O'Hara stay

Mike McGrath,Pa
Thursday 03 December 2009 16:42 GMT
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O'Hara has impressed at Wolves whilst on loan from Tottenham
O'Hara has impressed at Wolves whilst on loan from Tottenham (GETTY IMAGES)

Portsmouth boss Avram Grant has asked Harry Redknapp if he can keep Jamie O'Hara until the end of the season to help the club's Barclays Premier League survival bid.

O'Hara, 23, was loaned from Tottenham at the start of the campaign until January and has performed well despite the club being bottom of the table.

The former England Under-21 international also wants to stay for the whole season.

"I spoke to Avram and he said he'd like to keep him if he can," said Spurs boss Redknapp. "I said let's see how it goes and see what happens between now and January.

"He's due to come back in January but there's an option for him to stay - although it's our decision."

Redknapp is short of a central midfield player like O'Hara to support Wilson Palacios, Tom Huddlestone and Jermaine Jenas, although he is also interested in Brazilian prospect Sandro from Internacional, who have a strategic partnership with Spurs.

O'Hara can also play on the left flank, the position Niko Kranjcar has taken up in recent weeks after his arrival from Pompey.

"In the Wigan game Niko was sensational," Redknapp said. "He came on against Sunderland before that and turned the game around and at the weekend against Villa I thought he was terrific again."

Kranjcar is set to feature in the clash at Everton on Sunday.

"I'm full of confidence that we have the players, the team and the form to go there and beat Everton," said the Croatian.

"They are having a tough time at the moment in the league but that won't help us because they will do everything to try and win the game.

"We know they will be hurt by losing to Liverpool and we know exactly what to expect when we go to Goodison Park. We have to focus and rely on our capabilities and qualities to go there and show we're a better team.

"As I said, I'm so confident in the team and the players around me and the form we're in that we can go up there and go for the three points."

Centre-back Ledley King is set to miss the trip with his hamstring problem, while Jonathan Woodgate will need his groin assessed after having an injection to try to solve his problem. Luka Modric and Carlo Cudicini are long-term absentees.

Meanwhile, Roman Pavlyuchenko, an unused substitute in the Carling Cup defeat to Manchester United on Tuesday, has been linked with a move to Roma but reports suggest the Italian side will not agree to a straight cash deal.

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