Pompey accept Spurs bid for Defoe

Portsmouth have accepted a bid from Tottenham to sign England striker Jermain Defoe on a five-year contract.

The deal, which is expected to be worth about £15m, would mean Defoe returning to the club he left under a year ago.

Harry Redknapp originally lured Defoe, 26, from White Hart Lane to Pompey for about £7.5m in 2008 when the Spurs manager was in charge at Fratton Park.

"Portsmouth can confirm a fee has been agreed with Tottenham for Jermain Defoe," read a statement from Pompey.

Defoe scored 17 goals in 36 games for Portsmouth, comprising eight in his first seven matches and nine more this season.

Any deal for the forward, who has scored six goals in 32 appearances for England, will also take into account monies owed to Tottenham by Portsmouth in deals for Younes Kaboul and Pedro Mendes.

The frontman, who is set to undergo a medical at Tottenham's training ground at Chigwell in Essex on Tuesday, had also been linked with Manchester City and Aston Villa.

But he will be paraded in front of Tottenham fans before their Carling Cup semi-final first leg against Burnley at White Hart Lane on Tuesday and former Spurs defender Gary Stevens is tipping the forward to be a big hit on his return to the club.

"Defoe is a proven goalscorer with a terrific strike record and if you play him on a regular basis and give him the ammunition, he will get you goals, it is what he was born to do," he told BBC Sport.

"I'm sure when he moved to Portsmouth last January he didn't for one moment envisage going back to Spurs within a year.

"But I believe he never wanted to leave the club in the first place really and it appears that he always had a great affection for Tottenham. It's a win-win for the club and the player."

It will be the third time Defoe has played under Redknapp as the duo were also together at West Ham about the turn of the century.

And that will also be key, said Stevens: "Relationships do develop in football and Harry will know exactly what he's getting from Defoe - and how to get the best out of him.

"First things first, Jermain needs to get the goals that will help Spurs pull away from the drop zone. But, Spurs are still in three cup competitions and they say football is all about timing - maybe Jermain's arrival is just in time for him to make a cup final appearance."

Redknapp is also keen to sign a left-sided midfielder in the January transfer window but Middlesbrough have already rejected two bids from the Londoners for Stewart Downing.