'Tempted to Celebrate Winning Goal,' Says Redknapp on Arsenal's Loss

Relegation-threatened QPR had at least one supporter apart from their regular fans and well-wishers on Saturday night, when they turned in what could well become a season-defining performance to beat Arsenal 2-1, at home.

According to a report in The Sun, Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp admitted he was truly ecstatic when QPR's Samba Diakite scored his club's second of the evening, condemning the Gunners to their first league defeat in eight games.

The defeat means Arsenal, who are now third in the league, will have to wait for the outcome of Spurs' game against Swansea to see if they retain that final automatic Champions League spot going into the next round of games.

"I was very tempted to celebrate QPR's winning goal! That was a big result for them today and a setback for Arsenal. You'd have fancied them to win at Loftus Road but it wasn't to be. And obviously Chelsea won so it's going to be close between the three of us. You enjoy it when results go your way. Arsenal losing, Chelsea getting pulled back to 2-2 with 10 minutes to go, I'm thinking 'this could be a really great day.' And then Chelsea came back to beat Aston Villa - it's exciting," Redknapp admitted.

The Gunners went into the game against QPR oozing confidence, on the back of a sensational run of seven straight league wins and with the advantage over London rivals Tottenham and Chelsea, in the race for third in the league.

However, this defeat could just negate all of the hard work Arsene Wenger's side have put in over the last few weeks; particularly since Chelsea managed an emphatic 4-2 win over Aston Villa in their game. Of particular interest to Blues fans will be the fact that hitherto misfiring Spanish striker Fernando Torres seems to be slowly but surely turning the corner. The £50m Spaniard scored the Blues' fourth goal of the game.

Meanwhile, back in the Spurs camp, Redknapp has been quick to warn his squad, who have not exactly had the best of times themselves recently, that beating Swansea will not be an easy task. Spurs have only two points from their last five games.

"We need to beat Swansea to make use of Arsenal's result. They are a good side and it will be a difficult game. We've been playing well enough but have had a couple of setbacks. We played well in the defeats against Manchester United and at Everton and I thought we played well when we drew against Chelsea last week. We've not been on a downer as far as the form goes but it just shows you how difficult it is to win games when you look at Arsenal's result," Redknapp cautioned.

Spurs play Swansea at White Hart Lane on Sunday evening. A win for Redknapp's boys means they will draw level with Arsenal (on 58 points apiece) in third; a big enough win - by four goals or more - will mean they overtake the Gunners, on goal difference. Chelsea, meanwhile, are still in fifth, with 53 points.

Arsenal will next play league title contenders Manchester City, in what could be an epic game at the Emirates, on 8 April. Chelsea's next immediate opponents are Portuguese side Benfica, on 4 April, in the second leg of the two teams' Champions League quarter-final tie; Chelsea won the first leg 1-0. The Blues' next league game will be Wigan Athletic, at home, on 7 April.

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