Roman Pavlyuchenko: Tottenham Hotspur Centre-Forward Can Still Make the Grade

Following quotes attributed to Roman Pavlyuchenko this week, there is a groundswell of opinion that Pavlyuchenko's time at Tottenham Hotspur is nearing its end.

Rumours swirling around the Internet suggest that his relationship with Spurs manager Harry Redknapp has deteriorated into lies and mistrust, and that the Russian wants out of the club in the January transfer window.

"I don't believe I can fight my way into the Tottenham starting line-up. Players can feel what the manager thinks about them, and I know that the manager doesn't count on me these days," he said. "I don't know whether Redknapp is telling the truth when he says he doesn't want to lose me. I guess he is not telling the truth. Redknapp says I'm not playing because my pre-season wasn't good. I can't understand that."

To offer up some explanation as to why Pavlyuchenko is not getting the game time he craves, he really just hasn't put in the performances consistently. Spurs fans have grown to love "Super Pav" over the course of his stay at the club, but their loyalty is beginning to wear thin as his on-field efforts weaken. It's hard to argue against Redknapp's position when he has Emmanuel Adebayor, Jermain Defoe and Rafael van der Vaart to choose from, all of whom have already demonstrated good goal-scoring form this season.

Pavlyuchenko's stance is similarly understandable, as he goes on to explain. "Something must change. I must play in order not to miss Euro 2012. You don't get into the national squad on past achievements. I will be 30 in December, and it could be my last big tournament."

So what is the solution? There are three reasons why Tottenham won't want to part with the Russian in January:

1. It is a high-risk strategy in the short term to go into the second half of a season with (potentially) three fronts to battle on, with only three strikers, and that would include auxiliary forward van der Vaart, whose fitness is inconsistent at best.

Spurs fans reading this may, at this point, cry out for the club to sell him and sign Leandro Damiao as his replacement, but that too represents a risk if Spurs want to clinch fourth place in the Premier League. There are not many examples of South American players settling into the English league straight away, particularly in the middle of the British winter.

2. Tottenham Chairman Daniel Levy will not sell Pavlyuchenko on the cheap. Any club that wants him will have to part with upwards of £10 million for a player who has not been in good form for a considerable amount of time.

The queue of clubs willing to do that halfway through the season will be a short one. A loan could be an option if Tottenham can line up a replacement, but that again carries the risk of relying on a new signing to settle in quickly.

3. On form and in the mood, Pavlyuchenko is a very good striker. Harry Redknapp knows this and, even if he hasn't shown it recently, if the manager can cajole a few performances out of Pavlyuchenko, it could make the difference between watching the reserves play in the far reaches of eastern Europe on a Thursday next season and watching Messi, Xavi, Iniesta and Co. rolling up at the Lane.

But even after all this, there is a very simple answer to this conundrum. When he gets his chance against Rubin Kazan next week, Pavlyuchenko should roll up his sleeves and show Redknapp, Levy and the Spurs faithful that he is still the striker Spurs paid for, and that Adebayor, Defoe and Van Der Vaart have got a battle on their hands for a place in the starting 11.

Another goal or two in the Europa League, as well as three points and a place in the knockout rounds, must convince Redknapp that Pavlyuchenko is worth consideration for the Premier League.

Pavlyuchenko has the ability to decide his own fate, and the right kind of performances will ensure that Redknapp can ignore him no longer.

What better way could there be to force his way into the reckoning for the Russian national team for Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine than firing Tottenham Hotspur into the top four of the Premier League and into next season's Champions League?