10 fascinating facts about the 2008-09 Premier League season

#8 Spurs saw three familiar faces return in January

Defoe was re-signed by Spurs after a year away.

Tottenham Hotspur did quite a lot of business in the 2008 summer transfer window, signing the likes of Luka Modric and Roman Pavlyuchenko in an attempt to make a charge towards Europe. Unfortunately, they suffered a horrible start to the season under Juande Ramos.

Spurs only got two points from their opening eight games before Ramos got sacked. Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp stepped in and took over the managerial duties at White Hart Lane. He steadied the ship well and took Spurs to the League Cup Final. But fans saw a familiar face show up during the semi-final.

Jermain Defoe was presented as a Tottenham player to the fans on the same night they beat Burnley 3-0 in the first leg of the League Cup semi-final. The striker returned to Spurs one year after he left for Portsmouth, linking up with Redknapp once again. He was not the only familiar face to return to Tottenham that month.

Pascal Chimbonda re-joined Spurs after half a season at Sunderland, while Robbie Keane made the move from Liverpool after his dream move to Anfield did not really work out. The old boys were back together and played a part in securing a top-half finish for Spurs before lightning struck the following season, sending them to the Champions League.

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