Portsmouth 2 Aston Villa 0: Defoe leaves fumbling Carson with nowhere to hide

There were nine England contenders in these two starting line-ups at Fratton Park, which made it a relatively busy afternoon for the watching Fabio Capello. Of those, Jermain Defoe and David James improved their chances but Scott Carson is unlikely to feature prominently on the Italian's goalkeeping list.

He was at fault for both goals in a display that recalled his rotten night against Croatia which nudged Capello's predecessor, Steve McClaren, through Soho Square's exit. Perhaps the sight of Niko Kranjcar in Pompey blue unsettled him.

This time Kranjcar's role was peripheral. More pleasing for Capello was that Defoe was Carson's nemesis. The Portsmouth striker scored his sixth in as many games following his January move from Tottenham when, in the 12th minute, he latched on to Glen Johnson's pass from deep, got in between two defenders and lifted the ball expertly over Carson and into the net.

Martin Laursen, who had found himself on the wrong side of Defoe, was furious with Carson, who was hopelessly positioned, but the striker's pace, touch and cool finishing deserved recognition. Carson compounded his misery when he again raced out of goal seven minutes before half-time as Defoe closed in, smashing his clearance into Nigel Reo-Coker, who became the unwitting scorer of a 25-yard own goal.

At the other end James produced a master-class, the pick of his saves coming in the first half when he kept out Ashley Young's free-kick after John Carew had got the slightest of touches close to goal.

Villa manager Martin O'Neill described the second goal as a "fluke" and added: "David James has a lot of experience and mistakes don't faze him as much."

Asked if they fazed Carson, O'Neill, unusually, rather stumbled over his words. "I'm hoping not but, well, tonight's not the night for me to be making comparisons. I've got Scott Carson here for a year from Liverpool and overall I've been pleased with him."

His opposite number, Harry Redknapp, believes the fact James has been such a pain in the neck has played a big role in his development. "We conceded a goal the other day from a set-play and he said, 'We haven't worked on them enough in training, so what do you expect?' But that's how he is. He's got strong opinions, plenty to say.

"A lot of goalkeeping coaches have probably said he's difficult to work with over the years because he has strong opinions about what you should do and how to do it. David Coles is the one I've got with me here, he's a terrific goalkeeping coach and he can work as well with him as anyone can."

Redknapp is a long-time admirer of Defoe, who had overcome a stomach bug to play. "He's got that knack, that goalscorer's instinct," he said. "He's had it since he was 15 when I first signed him. He's always scored goals. I loaned him out to Bournemouth [from West Ham] and they didn't know who he was. I told Mel Machin and Sean O'Driscoll to take him. He was 17 and they said, 'This a man's league, it's not for boys'. I told them this boy's different class. He went there and scored in 10 consecutive games." Redknapp should not have to have that conversation with Capello ahead of this month's friendly against France.

Goals: Defoe (11) 1-0; Reo-Coker og (38) 2-0.

Portsmouth (4-4-2): James; Johnson, Hreidarsson, Distin, Lauren; Diop, Diarra, Muntari, Kranjcar; Baros (Kanu, 83), Defoe (Utaka, 81). Substitutes not used: Ashdown (gk), Aubey, Pedro Mendes.

Aston Villa (4-4-2): Carson; Mellberg, Laursen, Knight, Bouma (Salifou, 79); Maloney (Harewood, 57), Reo-Coker, Barry, Young; Carew, Agbonlahor. Substitutes not used: Taylor (gk), Petrov, Osbourne.

Referee: C Foy (Merseyside).

Booked: Portsmouth Muntari, Lauren, Diop; Aston Villa Mellberg.

Sent off: Portsmouth Muntari (81); Aston Villa Mellberg (89).

Man of the match: James.

Attendance: 20,388.

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