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Andros Townsend has backed Emmanuel Adebayor to revive his Tottenham career after he received another mixed reception from the home supporters.
On his first start since November, Adebayor — one of Spurs’s two vice-captains — was given the armband by Mauricio Pochettino in the absence of Younes Kaboul and Hugo Lloris.
Just as he was when he came on as a substitute against Sunderland last Saturday, Adebayor was jeered by some in the Spurs section when he was replaced by Roberto Soldado against Sheffield United last night. Following a home defeat by Stoke last November, Adebayor spoke frankly about the need for fans to offer greater support to the team, comments that were generally badly received by supporters.
Adebayor, 30, showed in the second half of last season that he can be very effective when he hits form.
He was frozen out under Andre Villas-Boas but struck 14 times in 24 games when restored to the side by Tim Sherwood. Now Townsend, whose penalty secured victory for Spurs last night, believes Adebayor can repeat the trick.
Player Ratings: Tottenham v Sheffield United
“Everyone knows what Manny can offer,” said the England winger. “He scored loads of goals last season. He has had a few off-the-field problems this season but he has got his head right and he has got himself fit. He has had a few niggles but he is now 100 per cent fit, so hopefully we will see the Emmanuel Adebayor of last season and he can start scoring goals for us.
“In his first game back on Saturday, he was fantastic and worked really hard. It was the same last night. Hopefully he’ll get another game on Saturday against Leicester in the FA Cup and he can get a goal. He worked hard last night and hopefully the fans can see that.”
The result gives Tottenham the edge as they try to reach a Wembley final for the first time in six years. But it is unlikely to be easy at Bramall Lane on Wednesday, against a side who have had five wins over Premier League clubs in cup football since the start of last season.
Townsend’s spot-kick was his fourth successful effort in four attempts this term and he revealed that even touchline instructions from the United coaching staff did not change his mind.
“I saw the goalkeeper [Mark Howard] looking at the bench, so I turned around and saw one of their coaches telling him which way to dive,” he said. “But I still believed that if I hit it with enough power, he wouldn’t get it.”
