Jol remains 'committed to cause'

Martin Jol has admitted his "surprise" at speculation he wants to quit as Tottenham boss while the club have denied they have held an emergency board meeting.

Manager Jol described any suggestion that he is on the verge of quitting as "a load of rubbish."

He insisted: "Everybody is committed to the cause of getting higher up the league and making a success of the season. This is dominating my thoughts at the moment and so you can imagine how surprised I was to hear that one newspaper was suggesting that I was on the verge of quitting my job today. What a load of rubbish."

Tottenham remain in the Barclays Premier League bottom three after the 1-1 weekend draw at Bolton, which followed a healthy 6-1 win over Anorthosis Famagusta in the UEFA Cup last Thursday.

A Tottenham spokesman said no plans for a meeting exist even though speculation over the Dutchman's role as head coach has been rife for weeks. Such rumours increased after weekend speculation that Spurs are interested in the services of former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho.

But Jol is still publicly insisting he has the backing of chairman Levy after being asked about the Mourinho reports.

He said: "Daniel Levy called me to tell me that it's all rubbish and that he wants me here next year. He's always good to me and has always backed me."

Jol was also quizzed about striker Jermain Defoe who has allegedly been told to sign a new contract or look for a new club.

The England forward was again left out of the squad at Bolton despite scoring twice against Cypriots Famagusta in the UEFA Cup as a substitute in midweek but Jol explained: "Robbie Keane has a great record for scoring away goals and did it again."

Jermain scored twice in the UEFA Cup game and is pushing for a place again. So that is good."