Roman Pavlyuchenko feels as though he is the most in-form striker in the country. Wayne Rooney and followers of Manchester United would surely disagree but Pavlyuchenko can, at least, use goalscoring statistics to support his case. The Russian has plundered eight goals in his last six matches for Tottenham Hotspur and would appear to not only be the player to spearhead the club's push for the Champions League finish they so covet but the one to carry them forward in the longer term. Yet Pavlyuchenko's efforts seem to have put him as much in the shop window as the six-yard box and the supporters' affections.

"I don't know, I don't know, really, what ..." said the manager, Harry Redknapp, not finishing his sentence, when asked about Pavlyuchenko's prospects at Tottenham beyond the end of the season. "He hasn't done himself any harm, that's for sure, with the goals. Everybody must be looking at him and thinking, well ..."

Many Tottenham fans might wonder why Redknapp is not looking at the 28-year-old and doing something similar. Super Pav is one of their favourites, a player of great natural ability. He may not run the channels as hard as some, track back or appear to give the proverbial 110% but denizens of White Hart Lane have long preferred style to substance. Even at Pavlyuchenko's low ebbs, they have been hugely supportive of him.

Redknapp, however, has spent much of the season being vexed by Pavlyuchenko's laid-back attitude. And, frankly, that is a kind way of putting it. One memory involves him giving Pavlyuchenko a rare chance from the start against Everton in the Carling Cup fourth round in October and spending much of the game yelling at him from the touchline to work harder. Pavlyuchenko wanted out in January and Redknapp seemed happy to fly him personally to Russia, where a clutch of clubs had expressed an interest.

But the transfer window closed with none of them, or any of the English clubs who had been linked with a move, such as Birmingham City, having been prepared to meet Tottenham's £13m valuation and Redknapp feels it is no coincidence that Pavlyuchenko's form has subsequently picked up. Although he scored against Leeds United in the FA Cup fourth round on 23 January, after which he immediately felt his groin in training, his hot streak was ignited by his two goals at Wigan Athletic on 21 February.

"Technically, he is a fantastic player," said Redknapp, "but he's got the appetite for the game. I think the transfer window came and went and he realised he wasn't going back to Russia and he's knuckled down. I think he's been wanting to go back to Russia ... you know, the way he was playing and training and everything else, to be honest with you. That's the feeling I had, that was the messages that his agents kept giving but we didn't want to sell him in the end. And he's got his chance now. He's given me a nice problem."

Redknapp was asked whether he felt Pavlyuchenko's attitude had improved. "He's working harder, without a doubt," he replied. "He is getting across defenders and he is doing a little bit when we haven't got the ball, and working for us. That's all I've ever asked him to do. Just put a shift in."

The Pavlyuchenko story carries echoes of that of Heurelho Gomes, the goalkeeper, who was in shaky form when Redknapp arrived at the club. Redknapp simply could not see a future for the Brazilian in his team and he was critical of him. But Gomes knuckled down, turned the corner and he is now a first-team fixture. Redknapp can be stubborn but he remains open to powerful persuasion.

Pavlyuchenko is the only established striker on the club's books not signed by Redknapp. The manager put his money and his faith behind Jermain Defoe, Robbie Keane, who has since been loaned to Celtic, Peter Crouch and Eidur Gudjohnsen. The irony that Pavlyuchenko, the apparent outsider, might be the central figure as Tottenham enter the business end of the season is lost on no one. Could he yet beat a retreat from the shop window, as well?

This article was amended on Friday 19 March. It originally said Roman Pavlyuchenko had scored eight goals in Tottenham's last six games. This has been changed in the online version.