Johnson deal a coup for Pompey

At last, some news to lift the gloom that has engulfed Pompey in recent weeks.

England full-back Glen Johnson has signed a new four-and-a-half year deal to stay at Fratton Park.

Cynics will (with some justification) argue contracts mean little in modern-day football.

But by my reckoning, Johnson's deal is a real coup for Tony Adams.

Even at this early stage in the month, I would suggest it's the best bit of business he's likely to do in the transfer window.

Pompey fans have seen Johnson mature and develop into a true international-class full-back. The errors that littered his Chelsea days have gradually been ironed out at Fratton Park.

If he keeps up his progress, the England right-back spot is his for the taking.

To be honest, I thought his head would be turned by the transfer vultures.

When reports of him being sighted at Liverpool's training ground surfaced it seemed sadly believable.

However, those stories were whole-heartedly rubbished and, perhaps aware of the difficulties he encountered the last time he joined a top-four club, he's decided to stay put.

He knows he'll be a fixture in the team and he knows the spotlight will not be so intense, allowing him to continue his impressive development. He is just 24 after all.

While Jermain Defoe chased the cash, Johnson's decision should be celebrated.

Fans constantly demand loyalty and commitment.

This time, for a change, they've got it.

Why Defoe's not Jermain man

Sadly, the least surprising transfer in Pompey's recent history looks done and dusted.

From the minute Harry Redknapp hurriedly headed for Spurs, Jermain Defoe's interest in Pompey vanished.

Clearly, he feels no love for the club who rescued him from the White Hart Lane subs' bench and catapulted him back into the England set-up.

Clearly, his loyalty lies with Redknapp and, more galling for Pompey fans, himself.

We all appreciate a professional player's career is short.
But they are privileged and, therefore, commitment is the minimum fans expect. And rightly so.

The minute a route back to Spurs looked on, Defoe stamped his feet, shrugged his shoulders and showed a complete lack of respect to Pompey.

When one of your best players acts that way it leaves a bitter taste. Pompey now join Charlton and West Ham in being burned by the striker.

The manner of Redknapp's departure and his pursuit of Defoe since then lacked class.

Maybe they deserve each other.

Sol refuses to rise to Spurs abuse

Sol Campbell is one of football’s genuinely interesting people.

He’s interesting because, to many, he’s a mystery.

An imposing, physical presence at centre-back, he is also more sensitive and thoughtful than the average footballer.

The youngest of 12 children, Campbell is an introvert - some have preferred self-absorbed - who has received bad press for his unwillingness to enjoy the celebrity culture.

His half-time walk-out at Arsenal pointed to inner demons or at the very least a crisis of confidence.

He doesn’t fit the stereotype. He doesn’t go out on the town with the latest Big Brother reject and he loves fashion (he helped design Pompey’s FA Cup suit).

That makes him an easy target - especially for Spurs, the club he turned his back on to join their biggest rivals Arsenal in 2001.

It was an incredible Bosman move which saw him become a figure of hate.

He could not have expected anything less, although it was a move he, in principle, had a right to make.

He was, and is, an ambitious individual. Look at the interviews he gave when Pompey were building the current side and he was crystal clear the club’s ambition had to match his own.

Emerging from Fratton Park after the Spurs victory on Sunday he refused to talk to our writers.
Unlike a lot of modern players, in Campbell’s case this was pretty unusual.

He is intensely private, but he’s also a considerate and thoughtful interviewee.

On the pre-FA Cup final press-day frenzy, he was the model pro.

Along with David James, he made his way down the queue of TV, radio and newspaper hacks with a smile, making sure everyone had what they needed ahead of the big match.

Glen Johnson and Sulley Muntari refused everybody. They could learn a lot from the Pompey skipper.

Being the character he is, Spurs’ racist and homophobic taunts will not have simply been shrugged off by Campbell.

Its ferocity will have reminded him of the abuse he got when he left White Hart Lane all those years ago.

The irony is, those dishing out this personal attack support a club with strong Jewish links, the most discriminated of all minorities. Go figure.

But Campbell stood tall amid the filthy verbals and led Pompey to a comfortable victory. He willl have relished that.

I suspect, though, the abuse does not simply bounce off Campbell. He will have thought about it deeply.

It’s not the first time he’s heard it, of course, but it will have hurt. He had made his point in the best way - on the field.

With the win secure, having to talk about why the opposition fans chanted he had HIV probably did not appeal.

I think he can be forgiven for that.