Keller alarm at Spurs search for new keeper

Kasey Keller today voiced his frustration at Tottenham's public quest to find a new goalkeeper.

The American international, preparing for tonight's Carling Cup quarter-final against Middlesbrough at White Hart Lane, has once again been in outstanding form during a troubled season.

And though Keller knows he has no divine right to the No1 jersey, he still finds it odd that the club continue to make it known they are in the hunt for a new goalkeeper when they have just given a new two-year contract to his first-team understudy, Rob Burch.

Spurs have also been heavily linked with a move for Leeds United's Paul Robinson when the transfer window opens next month. The England keeper wants to quit Elland Road and Spurs are favourites to land him. The Londoners enquired about Robinson's availability during the summer and have since taken numerous goalkeepers on trial. These have included Brentford's Paul Smith along with a number of others from overseas.

But Keller declared: "I have a lot of respect for Rob Burch and fellow keeper Lars Hirschfeld and you are always under pressure regardless of what people think.

"If you are playing well or not, people are always looking but it seems a little strange to me that it is so public all the time at Spurs. If they are proposing to replace me what can I do about that? I don't pick myself.

"I've seen Lars play some great games for Canada and Rob has great potential. I know that when I arrived at Spurs if I had not broken into the first team when I did, I wouldn't be here now. I would not have been happy sitting on the bench."

Keller still has just one year left on his contract but Spurs will not discuss a new deal until the end of the season.