Redknapp a special manager, says Adebayor

Emmanuel Adebayor scores his spectacular first goal against Aston Villa last night (Reuters)

Tottenham striker Emmanuel Adebayor feels like Harry Redknapp has given him his life back following his loan switch to north London.

Adebayor scored his fourth and fifth goals since signing on a season-long loan from Manchester City as Tottenham moved up to third in the Barclays Premier League with a comfortable 2-0 win over Aston Villa.

The Togo striker has seamlessly fitted in to the Spurs starting line-up, forming a sound understanding with strike partner Rafael van der Vaart to help the club turn around their season with a nine-match unbeaten run.

Despite missing two gilt-edged opportunities to score a hat-trick, the 27-year-old wore a broad smile last night as he left the pitch, a smile that was nowhere to be seen when he re-joined his parent club this summer following a loan spell at Real Madrid.

The former Arsenal striker's broken relationship with City manager Roberto Mancini meant Adebayor was forced to train with the youth squad in pre-season - something which he admits was hard to take after playing alongside the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo in a packed Bernabeu just a couple of months earlier.

But after making a solid start to his career at Tottenham, Adebayor is displaying the kind of childlike enthusiasm on the pitch which he showed when he first arrived in England five years ago - and he puts his rejuvenation down to one man - Redknapp.

"For me it's always special to have a manager like him," Adebayor said.

"He has given me confidence, has given me my life back. He tells me before every game: 'Adebayor - go out there, you know what you can do, just enjoy your football. If you can score goals, score goals, make assists, keep doing your thing,' and that's it.

"I don't have any pressure on my head telling myself I have to score to keep my place now. I just have to do the job and I think at the moment I am doing it very well."

After making a successful return to the dugout following minor heart surgery, Redknapp lavished praise on his players, with particular focus being on Luka Modric, who starred in midfield.

Redknapp urged Daniel Levy to give the Croatian a new contract, but he is also keen for the Spurs chairman to sign Adebayor on a permanent basis.

Adebayor's wages - thought to be around £170,000 a week - are likely to be a sticking point as he wants to continue giving a large portion of his earnings charities in Africa, but still hopes a permanent deal can be struck.

"We all play football to gain money," Adebayor said.

"I am from Africa and I have to give something back to my community. I have been doing a lot of charity stuff.

"I am using my wages to do it and I will keep doing it until the end of my career so for me I will leave that (negotiations) to Harry Redknapp, chairman (Daniel) Levy, and (City chairman) Khaldoon (Al Mubarak) to find a solution between themselves."

Given that he spent three years with bitter rivals Arsenal, many had expected the Spurs fans to reject Adebayor, but the striker now thinks the club's supporters have taken him to their hearts.

"I think they accept me because they have seen that I am working hard for the team," he said.

"If you are a Tottenham fan you will definitely love me because I am doing the job. It's not only about scoring goals, it's about what you put in.

"If fans see a player who is being a little bit lazy they will not like him.

"We all like players who want to show that you are not just here to take the money, you want to see players who will work for the team and that's what I am showing at the moment. That's why they love me and I am very glad for them, for myself."

PA