Jermain Defoe was unveiled as Spurs' new £7million signing this morning . . . but the former Hammers striker at least had a parting word of thanks for West Ham fans.

"The West Ham fans have been good to me, I had no problems with them," Defoe told a news conference after completing the move which sees fellow striker Bobby Zamora join West Ham, the club he supported as a boy.

Defoe admitted that he had not withdrawn the transfer request he slapped in with such insensitivity the day after West Ham were relegated at Birmingham last May.

The England under-21 international also repeated his recent comment in the club's official Hammers News Magazine that he was "sorry" about the timing of his transfer request and the furore it caused. "I am very young, I regret what happened but I still gave 100 per cent every time I played for the club. I think the fans could see that.

"This move came as a shock to me, I couldn't see anything happening before the transfer window closed. I first heard about the possibility of going to Tottenham on Sunday night. I sat down and discussed it with my family and my agent and now I can't wait to play my first match for Spurs.

"It wasn't a case of wanting to stay in London. Spurs are a big club with some great players and I'm looking foreard to playing with Fredi Kanoute again."

Asked why he thought the Hammers were relegated despite possessing a squad of undoubted talent, Defoe added: ³You can't put your finger on why we went down. Fredi was missing for a lot of games and, with Paolo Di Canio also out for a spell, I found myself playing up front alone in a number of games. I'm not the biggest, so it wasn't ideal."

Defoe added that he believes a return to the Premiership will boost his chances of claiming a place in Sven-Goran Eriksson's England squad for the finals of Euro 2004. "I've got more chance of going to Portugal now I'm with Tottenham," he said.

Although the 21-year-old Defoe is not cup-tied, he was not signed in time to gain clearance to play against David James and Manchester City in tomorrow's FA Cup fourth round replay at White Hart Lane. He is now likely to make his Spurs debut against Harry Redknapp's Portsmouth on Saturday.