West Brom 2-0 Tottenham: Unhappy return for Jol

We missed King's authority in defence. He is said to be out until late Jan 06.

Are we going to suffer more??

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two Kanu goals earned West Brom a 2-0 win at home to Tottenham and three valuable points.

On a bitterly cold night, with the pitchside temperature dipping to minus four before kick-off, Kanu brought a warm glow to manager Bryan Robson and the Baggies fans with a goal either side of the break.

Albion have now taken 10 points from their last four home games, all without conceding a goal, to ease their relegation fears.

Martin Jol's Spurs side never appeared as if they would stretch their unbeaten run to seven matches as they floundered in defence, while they were also easily snuffed out in attack.

Instead, it was Robson who was left beaming as his plan of playing three in attack - Kanu and Diomansy Kamara recalled to partner Nathan Ellington - worked a treat.

It was Kanu and Kamara who scythed through the visitors as early as the fourth minute, sparking a swift counter attack after fit-again captain Neil Clement had blocked a sidefoot shot from Jermain Defoe.

But with Albion the more creative, Robson's side duly grabbed the lead midway through the half, with Kanu scoring his fourth goal of the season.

Kamara and Ellington both played their part in the build up, although it was by good fortune the final pass sprung off Michael Carrick into Kanu's path.

The Nigerian first shook off the attentions of Dawson before coolly rounding the advancing Robinson and slipping a sidefoot shot into an empty net.

Jol's side barely raised the temperature of their own football above freezing point, and seven minutes after the break West Brom doubled their lead, with Kanu again finishing with quality.

Jol made changes, bringing on Robbie Keane and Mido who started on the bench as he rotated his squad, but Kuszczak was barely troubled.

West Brom boss Bryan Robson hailed the performance of match-winner Kanu as the Baggies continued their Hawthorns hot streak.

Kanu scored a goal in either half to sink visiting Tottenham 2-0, with Albion now having taken 10 points from their last four home matches without conceding a goal.

For the Nigerian, it was the first time he had scored two in a game since October 6, 2002, while with former club Arsenal.

Equally as remarkably, Kanu's tally is now five for this season, in comparison to a total of six for the previous two campaigns.

Both goals, in the 23rd and 52nd minutes, were courtesy of poor defending by Spurs, but there was no doubt about the quality of the crisp finishing.

Robson said: 'I had a chat with him in the summer and I told him he needed to add more goals to his game.

'There is no doubt he is an outstanding footballer and he works harder than people give him credit for.

'His build-up play in games has been good, and now he is getting the rewards as his goal return is also good.

'When he is playing like this he is someone who can make the difference between us staying up or going down this season.'

Overall, Albion were also defensively strong, comfortably snuffing out the threat of strikers Jermain Defoe and Grzegorz Rasiak.

Spurs boss Martin Jol brought in the duo as part of his rotation due the Christmas fixture list congestion, dropping Robbie Keane and Mido to the bench.

The duo were brought on in the second half as Tottenham chased the game, but they had little impact, with the visitors' six-match unbeaten run coming to an end.

'I think the last two home games are as good as we have played,' added Robson, whose side previously held Manchester City to a goalless draw.

'The results are being good because of the sides we have been up against, but more or less all of our general play has been excellent.

'Defensively we have looked solid as a unit, while up front we have attacked well and hard.

'The main thing is we have now taken 19 points from 19 games and we are on course for the target we set ourselves of having more points than games played for the start of the new year.'

The defeat is a real set-back for Spurs' Champions League ambitions.

Jol recognised the mistakes made by his team were uncharacteristic as he said: 'Kanu gave us a bit of a problem.

'But I don't think that was decisive, the only decisive situation occurred when we gave the ball away.

'I can't recall Paul Robinson making any great saves because although they had more ambition in the first half, I then felt in the second we did okay.

'But if you give away cheap goals, as we did, then it is very difficult to win games.'

Tottenham 2-0 Birmingham

Birmingham found no Christmas cheer at White Hart Lane as Tottenham ground out a 2-0 Boxing Day victory that keeps the Blues rooted in relegation trouble.

Robbie Keane's second-half penalty and a rifled effort from Jermain Defoe in stoppage time settled the points for Tottenham, whose Champions League charge remains on track.

To compound Birmingham's eighth defeat in 10 Premiership games, Muzzy Izzet was sent off for two bookable offences - the second a blatant dive in search of a penalty.

The fare on offer was desperate, though, and the atmosphere similarly muted. Tottenham's creative edge, which has brought nine goals in their last three games, was dulled.

Jiri Jarosik forced the first of two excellent saves from Paul Robinson, when he stole in to get a touch at the near post and the England keeper turned the ball behind for a corner.

Maik Taylor then matched Robinson's early effort with an excellent point-blank save from a thundering Ledley King drive.

Fortunately, things livened up considerably after the interval. Robinson pulled off another superb reflex stop to deny Julian Gray and Mido then deflected Matthew Upson's powerful header over the bar.

Tottenham survived Birmingham's quick start and then found their breakthrough. Upson was penalised for holding back Keane in the box and the Irishman stepped up to calmly side-foot his spot-kick past Taylor, who dived the wrong way.

Birmingham were reduced to 10 men when Izzet, in desperate search of a penalty, was booked for diving in the Tottenham area and given his marching orders.

Spurs dealt comfortably as Birmingham heaved balls into the box - and then hit them brutally on the counter-attack in injury time.

Jenas sent Defoe clear into the Birmingham half. He raced into the area and fired his shot past Taylor and into the roof of the net.

Birmingham boss Steve Bruce described referee Phil Dowd's decision to send off Muzzy Izzet in the Blues' 2-0 Barclays Premiership defeat at White Hart Lane as 'pathetic'.

Izzett was booked in the first half and then given his marching orders for a second yellow card after 65 minutes when referee Dowd judged he had dived in search of a penalty.

It was the second crucial penalty decision of the game to have gone against Birmingham, who turned in a determined display but remain rooted in the relegation zone.

Bruce felt his side had enjoyed the better of the game until Robbie Keane put Tottenham ahead from the penalty spot after referee Dowd ruled he had been impeded by Matthew Upson.

Seven minutes later Izzet was dismissed and as Birmingham chased the game with 10 men, Jermain Defoe struck on the counter-attack to seal the victory for Spurs.

'To say I was disappointed in the decisions is an understatement. Muzzy was booked in the first half for absolutely nothing. Then he was sent off for a so-called dive - but if anybody made a meal of getting a penalty today it was Robbie Keane,' said Bruce.

'I usually have the utmost respect for that referee but today he was poor. He couldn't wait to get the red card out of his pocket.

'Muzzy Izzet is one of the best professionals I have worked with. He has gone over but he hasn't looked for a penalty, he hasn't thrown himself away.

'We think there is contact there. Muzzy felt there was contact, but he doesn't know if he did it himself.

'I can't say too much because you know what happens. I'd love to sit here and tell you the way I have seen it, but I can't. I am skint at the minute and you know what will happen if I do. I have not had many bonuses lately and I don't want to be paying any fines.'

Birmingham battled hard and in a poor game created enough chances to have won. Paul Robinson pulled off excellent saves from Jiri Jarosik and Julian Gray while Emile Heskey planted a header wide.

Bruce was heartened by his side's performance but was once again left to rue their profligacy in front of goal.

'That was as good as we played for a long, long time. You can't come to Tottenham and not take your chances,' he said.

'But up until that penalty decision we were the better team by far. I thought we were positive. Paul Robinson pulled off two excellent saves. You must take your chances at this level.'

Tottenham boss Martin Jol left immediately after the game because he was not feeling well and the performance of his side was not one to settle the stomach.

Spurs lacked their usual fluidity, partly due to Birmingham's battling approach, but assistant boss Chris Hughton was delighted with the application his men showed.

'The pleasing thing for us is that we know we can play better but we came out winning the game,' he said.

'We expected a difficult game from them. They made quite a few changes and came looking to get something from the game.'

Hughton said he had not had a chance to review the controversial decisions on video but judging by the players' reactions he felt Keane deserved his penalty.

'Sometimes you look for reactions and we had enough players around who felt it was a penalty,' he said.

Ledley King pulled up with a slight groin strain and was replaced swiftly but immediate indications are that it is 'not too bad'.

Middlesbrough 3-3 Tottenham

A serious-looking injury to James Morrison threatened to mar a richly entertaining draw between Middlesbrough and Tottenham at the Riverside Stadium.

The young winger required lengthy treatment on the pitch by medics after being knocked unconscious by an accidental 85th-minute kick in the head by Robbie Keane in the visitors' box.

However, by the time Morrison had been carried off on a stretcher and reached the dressing room he had regained consciousness.

Spurs had come back from the brink of defeat to snatch a point thanks to an 83rd-minute header from Egyptian striker Mido.

Boro, who had led at half-time courtesy of a double from Nigerian striker Aiyegbeni Yakubu, looked set for victory when Franck Queudrue crashed a 69th-minute header home off the underside of Paul Robinson's crossbar.

But it was Spurs left rueing the best chance of victory with Jermain Defoe springing the Boro offside trap in the 88th minute only to shoot straight at advancing keeper Mark Schwarzer.

The early stages indicated little of the drama which was to follow with what passed for decent action spoiled by the constant interruptions of referee Howard Webb.

Three men had been booked in a first 20 minutes devoid of chances before Boro entered into the festive spirit and gifted the visitors their opener.

A deep 25th-minute cross from the left by Young-Pyo Lee was fumbled by keeper Schwarzer under pressure from Mido.

Keane pounced to poke the loose ball just inside Schwarzer's right-hand post and give his side the lead with their first shot of the match.

But Boro were level four minutes later after a brilliant finish by Yakubu eight yards from goal in the Spurs box.

The Nigerian pounced after Southgate flicked on a Queudrue cross to crash a first-time volley past Robinson into the bottom corner of the net.

Viduka tried his luck five minutes later with a fierce long-range effort from the right flank which Robinson did well to hold.

Boro grabbed the lead two minutes from the break when Morrison cut in from the right and launched a scorching effort which deflected off Yakubu and flew into the net.

After a quiet start to the second period it was no surprise to see Spurs striker Defoe starting to warm up on the sidelines.

But before the England striker could make an impact Yakubu came agonising close to sealing his hat-trick with a 56th-minute header.

The Nigerian got on the end of Morrison's deep right-wing cross only to see his powerful effort brilliantly tipped over by Robinson.

Ehiogu came close from Queudrue's resulting corner but could not connect properly when the ball fell to him in the box.

Moments after Defoe's introduction in place of Reid Spurs found themselves with a clear chance to equalise at the other end.

Keane's right-wing cross was palmed by Schwarzer into the path of Mido but the Egyptian striker swivelled and fired his effort way over.

Spurs were level in the 63rd minute after Jermaine Jenas took advantage of his side's second free-kick in succession on the edge of the Boro box.

The midfielder curled a delicious right-foot shot around the wall and past Schwarzer into the bottom corner of the bottom left-hand corner of the net.

Morrison forced a save from Robinson straight after the re-start as the game increased its intensity and had referee Webb working overtime.

Boro regained their lead in the 69th minute when Queudrue connected with Fabio Rochemback's corner and his header hit the crossbar and bounced down just over the line.

Spurs equalised once again in the 83rd minute from a Mido header before Morrison required the attention of medics during a worrying period late in the game.

Defoe then charged clear after the restart only to shoot straight at Schwarzer as a tumultuous affair rightly ended with honours even.

Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren revealed the injury sustained by winger James Morrison during the 3-3 draw with Tottenham is not as bad as was first feared.

Morrison required lengthy attention on the pitch from medics after being knocked unconscious in an accidental collision with Robbie Keane in the Spurs penalty area.

But McClaren said Morrison regained consciousness in the dressing room prior to the final whistle and is not expected to require hospital treatment.

McClaren said: 'When we first went into the dressing room he had a smile on his face and a black eye, and it is not as bad as we thought.

'It looked very serious on the field and well done to the medics and physios for getting on and dealing with it quickly.

'It is concussion so we will have to assess it over the next 24 hours and see how bad it was.'

McClaren admitted his frustration after once again seeing his side's fine attacking display eroded by individual mistakes which cost them dear at the back.

McClaren added: 'We keep shooting ourselves in the foot because individuals not doing their jobs has cost us.

'We are not far away and if we can eradicate them and start keeping clean sheets then we will win matches because we are scoring goals.

'It is very frustrating and I am very angry with the outcome that possibly our performances are not deserving.'

Tottenham boss Martin Jol is likely to be without striker Jermain Defoe for the festive programme after the striker limped off with an injured ankle.

Defoe appeared as a second-half substitute and almost made the difference after racing clear to fire a late effort at Mark Schwarzer.

But moments later he hobbled off the pitch and now faces an anxious wait to find out the extent of his injury.

Jol admitted: 'Jermain will probably be out for two weeks.'

The Spurs manager also faces the loss in the new year of Mido to the African Nations Cup so it comes as little surprise he is urging his midfielders to continue improving their scoring records.

Jol said: 'Jermaine Jenas scored like he scored against Manchester United and that is what we need - more goals from midfield other than scoring from the strikers.

'If we are a bit cleverer we can win these sorts of games. Last year we could not do it and I think we have improved in certain areas and it showed.'

Jol was particularly pleased with his side's fighting qualities in twice hitting back from a goal behind to grab a point.

He added: 'This is the sixth time this season we have had to come back from behind and today we did that twice, and Jermain Defoe could have nicked it late on.

'I think we have got a great team spirit, physical strength and character but still it is disappointing to concede three goals.

'On the other hand if you score three then hopefully next time it will be four or five.

'We have a winning mentality now and we are getting better and better. Our target now is to keep winning and get into Europe.'

Tottenham 3-1 Portsmouth

Tottenham's late show ended Harry Redknapp's first game back at the helm for Portsmouth in anguish.

Egyptian striker Mido converted a harshly-awarded late penalty after referee Uriah Rennie gave handball against Gary O'Neil seven minutes from time, and substitute Jermain Defoe finished his own barren scoring run in the dying seconds.

Redknapp now knows the full extent of his task to steer Pompey, second from bottom, out of the Premiership relegation zone.

But he knows for sure he has players who will fight to the finish for him.

He picked nine survivors from his first reign, which ended a year ago, and somehow they survived a near non-stop grilling by Tottenham for more than 80 minutes.

But after shocking their hosts with a goal after four blanks in previous matches, Pompey were denied a famous victory in Harry's homecoming.

Redknapp, who lost 5-1 with Southampton at Tottenham in his first away match with them a year ago, looked the miracle worker as Lomana LuaLua's spectacular 24th-minute strike put Portsmouth ahead.

And such was the grit and determination of their defending that it was not until 12 minutes into the second half that Spurs skipper Ledley King headed an equaliser from Michael Carrick's corner.

It was largely a one-sided, ill-balanced game with Spurs making almost all the running, but long before the end they were tossing long balls into the penalty area aimed at Mido and were forced to bring on Defoe for Robbie Keane in the last 20 minutes, hoping the England striker would end his goal drought which had lasted since September.

When Andy Reid also came on as a substitute for another one, Wayne Routledge, his first touch was a free-kick which seemed to strike O'Neil on the hand, but Rennie felt the contact was deliberate and pointed to the spot and Mido drove home.

Defoe celebrated his first goal in three months right at the end but the end result was flattering to Spurs, who lacked creativity against a side imbued most with effort and spirit.

LuaLua's finish was stunning, but England number one Paul Robinson should have saved it. And what surprised most was that fourth-placed Tottenham were not well in control by that 24th minute. He made amends with a marvellous save from Matt Taylor at 1-1 in the second half.

Spurs should have been ahead in three minutes but Keane's effort was tame and straight at goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown after the Portsmouth defence virtually ushered the Irishman, still preferred to Defoe, through a malfunctioning offside trap.

It became a siege as Pompey, just two previous wins all season, employed only the willing Vincent Pericard, back early from loan at Sheffield United, as a designated striker and dropped back in numbers to guard the edge of their own penalty area.

There was no stopping a lovely run by Edgar Davids in the 11th minute, though. The Dutchman tricked his way past two opponents to feed Mido, whose shot was well held by Ashdown.

Portsmouth's luck was in again when Davids won the ball and set up Keane, whose shot was too near the goalkeeper to cause real anxiety six minutes later.

Little was seen of Pompey as an attacking force in the first 24 minutes but their defenders and midfielders tackled like demons.

Amazingly they went in front with a spectacular strike by LuaLua, who drilled in a shot from O'Neil's crossfield pass from 25 yards. It flew past Robinson in the 24th minute and the DR Congo star did his trademark treble flip to celebrate this most unpredictable turn of events.

It should have been 2-0 a few minutes later but Pericard fatally delayed his shot and was crowded out as he penetrated the penalty area.

Spurs took a deep breath and tried to hit back but Keane's header was way off target after he lost his marker and Mido poked just wide in a scramble before the half-time whistle, following two half-hearted penalty claims when the Egyptian went down under challenge by first Linvoy Primus and then Dejan Stefanovic.

Few thought they would have had to wait until so late after King's unstoppable equaliser to close out the game, but there was certainly a touch of fortune about the decisive penalty.

Harry Redknapp's second coming at Portsmouth ended in a furious first night after he rapped referee Uriah Rennie for the penalty award which enabled Tottenham to take the lead against his relegation fighters seven minutes from time.

Pompey opened the scoring through Lomana LuaLua's spectacular 24th-minute strike and though Ledley King equalised (57) were on course for a point until Andy Reid's free-kick struck Gary O'Neil in Pompey's defensive wall, and Rennie awarded a spot-kick for handball.

'(Rennie) has made three wrong decisions and it has cost us a point,' fumed Redknapp after the 3-1 defeat at White Hart Lane.

'First he has given a free-kick against us down at our own end which was not a foul and then a soft free-kick when Jermain Defoe went down. And when the free-kick hit Gary O'Neil on the arm he has pointed for a penalty, even though he swears he never raised his arm.'

Redknapp lost his temper over the side's late collapse.

Defoe came on as a substitute to end his own goal drought in the closing seconds with a first strike since September 26 after dominant Spurs had taken until 11 minutes into the second half to level LuaLua's special through skipper King.

Egyptian striker Mido notched his sixth goal from the spot - following Robbie Keane's miss against Sunderland - and Spurs put daylight between themselves and Bolton in fourth place in the Premiership.

But while Pompey stayed second bottom, Redknapp said he was delighted with the spirit and work-rate his team showed.

'We have been robbed of a point tonight but if they keep playing like that, for me we will have a chance to stay up. It is hard isn't it? I've inherited a team that is in relegation trouble and I've only promised to do my best to keep us up.

'They were fantastic. They worked their socks off. We had a chance to go 2-1 up when the Spurs `keeper (Paul Robinson) made a world-class save from Matt Taylor and Lomana LuaLua accidentally kicked one off their line from Dejan Stefanovic's header.

'But I thought Spurs had run out of ideas before they got the penalty.'

Martin Jol, the Tottenham head coach, said however: 'I think it would have been harsh had (Rennie) not given the penalty. The ball hit him on the arm but there were two previous incidents when I thought we should have had penalties.

'And I thought the team showed a lot of character to come from behind and win for a second week running. We deserved to win the game and I'm not surprised with where we are in the table.

'I don't know if we can go any higher. Chelsea are one on their own and Liverpool don't concede goals any more. There are good sides around like Arsenal and a few others to contend with.'
But Jol was happy to see Defoe back on the goal standard.

He said: 'He showed he wants to be back scoring and he just managed to squeeze one in right at the end.'

Reid, whose free-kick led to the penalty controversy, had replaced winger Wayne Routledge, who had himself earlier taken over from injured Teemu Tainio after sustaining a stress fracture of a foot in the first game of the campaign - at Pompey.

'It was just lucky that I chose the right sub,' said Jol.

'Wayne was getting nowhere against their big defenders but at least he showed he was fit and ready to play.'

Tottenham 3-2 Sunderland

Michael Carrick's first goal for Tottenham killed off Sunderland's determined challenge at White Hart Lane and condemned the relegation-bound visitors to a ninth straight defeat.

Tottenham, 3-2 winners, should have had the game wrapped up long before Teemu Tainio picked out Carrick with a sublime ball over his shoulder for the England midfielder to slide his shot from an acute angle inside the far post.

After Spurs had wasted three excellent chances in the first 15 minutes, Michael Dawson conceded a free-kick near his own box and Dean Whitehead curled home the set-piece to give Sunderland the lead.

Spurs equalised before the interval after Robbie Keane picked out Mido and then moved into the lead just after half-time when the Irish international profited from a defensive mix-up.

But Sunderland hit back almost immediately through Anthony Le Tallec and it was only after Black Cats keeper Ben Alnwick had brilliantly saved Keane's penalty that Spurs finally secured the win with Carrick's cool strike 10 minutes from time.

It was almost constant Tottenham pressure and when Tainio turned in space on the edge of the Sunderland box he fired a vicious 20-yard drive which forced Alnwick into an acrobatic save.
Edgar Davids almost scored close to half-time with a header which whistled just over the bar, while Mido curled a left-foot effort wide.

Tainio had a great chance for Tottenham, but his effort rattled the post and rebounded clear.
Tottenham were preparing for Jermain Defoe's introduction when Keane clipped the ball into the Sunderland box and Gary Breen was penalised for hand-ball.

The Sunderland bench were furious as the referee pointed to the spot - but Alnwick produced a stunning save from Keane's penalty.

The clincher came when Tainio played a ball over his shoulder and Carrick cut into the box and slid his shot inside the far post.

Tottenham boss Martin Jol hailed the performance of Michael Carrick after the England midfielder scored the winner as Spurs condemned Sunderland to a ninth straight defeat.

'His goal was unbelievable,' Jol said. 'His first touch was directly to goal and his second touch everybody thought he would pull it back and he saw a little hole. He saw the possibility to score.
'He mastered the midfield today.'

Spurs are back up into the top four after making their best start in six years - but Jol insists his men cannot yet be considered a genuine Champions League contenders.

'We have to be realistic. If you look at the league you still see teams (like Arsenal) with games in hand. Last week you look at the table and all the top sides were above us. Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool - they are all great teams.

'We have to look at teams like Bolton. But we will never say no and if we can get the points on the board and stay there in the top four it will be terrific.

'I still think there are a couple of months to go before we can get the right balance to kill off teams like Sunderland.

'But everyone can see the team getting better and better. We are building a new and exciting squad but we have to work hard to keep improving our game.'

Jol said: 'I don't think we made it hard on ourselves. Their first goal was their first shot on goal - it was an unbelievable free-kick and that can happen - and their second goal was probably from their third shot.

'So all credit to them. It was a great game for the crowd - maybe not for me.
'If you play at home and score three goals you want an easy win but we knew before the game that teams like Sunderland would fight for their lives.'

Jol once again decided to keep Jermain Defoe on the bench and start with Mido and Keane together up front.

Wigan 1-2 Tottenham: Davids off the mark

It would appear the Wigan bandwagon is beginning to grind to a halt as Robbie Keane and Edgar Davids ended Tottenham's four-match winless run by scoring the goals in a 2-1 success.

Keane scored his first for almost eight weeks, while Davids finally opened his account in English football following his free transfer arrival from Inter Milan in the summer to inflict upon Wigan back-to-back defeats following last Saturday's 3-2 loss to Arsenal, both coming at the JJB Stadium.

There was a late consolation from Lee McCulloch, but despite four minutes of injury time, there was no overall reprieve for a Latics side who have now shipped five goals in their last two games after previously conceding the same number in their opening 11 fixtures.

Crucially for Wigan boss Paul Jewell, after previously seeing his side look unflappable and virtually infallible, mistakes are now beginning to undermine the Latics' astonishing season.
Prior to the visit of the Gunners, Jewell's side had proudly boasted a stout, rock-solid defence, the foundation for all their hard work and enterprise.

But then came a 12th-minute error from goalkeeper John Filan against Arsenal, gifting them the opener in what was an enthralling encounter.

Australian Filan, who had also looked slow and ponderous when Thierry Henry struck the visitors' third via a free-kick, paid the price for his performance in being dropped to the bench for this game.

Mike Pollitt, who had started the first five matches of the season in the absence of the injured Filan, returned for his first league game since September 18.

The #250,000 summer buy from Rotherham could not have envisaged picking the ball out of his net after just eight minutes, least of all after seeing captain Arjan de Zeeuw produce an amazing blunder.

The Dutch centre-back has been the inspirational presence behind Wigan's emergence as a top-flight team to be respected following their promotion from the Coca-Cola Championship in May.
But for a split second his awareness and intuition went AWOL as he failed to either control or clear a simple long ball played from wide left inside the Spurs half by Teemu Tainio.

Keane was the man to capitalise on de Zeeuw's gaffe, the Republic of Ireland striker comfortably rounding Pollitt, who had rushed out of his area, before rolling the ball into an empty net for only his third goal of the season, and his first since October 1.

Remarkably, Pollitt was never troubled again for the remainder of the opening 45 minutes, further testament to those in front of him.

Wigan dominated in terms of possession, but Pollitt's opposite number in England goalkeeper Paul Robinson never had a save to make.

The home side came closest to an equaliser five minutes after Keane's opener, with McCulloch arriving onto a Jimmy Bullard corner with a powerful header from six yards that shaved the crossbar.

Wigan's other efforts boiled down to a trio of cracking long-range drives from midfielder Graham Kavanagh, all of which finished the wrong side of the woodwork from Wigan's point of view.

There was also an intricately-taken free-kick that involved Bullard and Kavanagh deceiving the Spurs defence and teeing up right-back Leighton Baines, but again Robinson was able to watch the ball fly past his post.

Despite Tottenham's paucity of opportunities, but for a stronger referee they could have taken a 2-0 lead into the break.

Keane was left fuming at Mike Riley for failing to award a penalty after being wrestled off the ball by Stephane Henchoz, a challenge some officials have given in the past.

The interval resulted in Wigan then losing their impetus as defences dominated the second period in front of a sometimes tetchy midfield battle, with the forwards from both sides bordering on the anonymous.

The opportunity-starved fans had to wait until the 65th minute for the first chance of the second half, culminating in a fine fingertip save from Pollitt.

Michael Carrick picked out an all-alone Tainio just inside the area with a right-wing cross, and after a touch to control, the Finland international let fly with a half volley Pollitt tipped past the post.

In an effort to get something out of the game, Jewell brought on striker David Connolly for midfielder Damien Francis in the 67th minute, switching to three in attack.

But it proved in vain because five minutes later came the game-breaking goal courtesy of Holland international Davids.

Picking the ball up 10 yards inside his own half, Davids first beat Henchoz and then sent de Zeeuw the wrong way before firing a crisp 15-yard, angled drive underneath Pollitt.

McCulloch grabbed Wigan's goal 90 seconds from time, tapping home at the far post after Robinson had pushed a driven cross from Henri Camara into his path, but it was all to no avail.

Wigan manager Paul Jewell has urged his stars to cut out the mistakes if they are to maintain their high-flying start to the season.

Dejected Wigan boss Jewell said: 'We started brightly enough, but again we make a mistake and when you do that you get punished at this level.

'We gifted them a goal and from 1-0 down we are left chasing the game.

'We have made mistakes in the last two matches now. They happen, but we have to cut them out.

'It's still a learning curve for us at this level.

'People have been saying nice things about us up until now, and I know what they are going to be saying after this .

'The whole team has been outstanding, but now we have lost to Tottenham and Arsenal I bet they are going to be saying that we're in crisis.

'But I bet a lot of teams in this league would swap places with us right
now. 'We are still third in the table and if you had offered us that before the start of the season then I would have taken it - I would be doing cartwheels down Wigan high- street.'

Jewell recognises, though, his side lacked punch in attack and England goalkeeper Paul Robinson was never tested.

'I felt we did okay, but their keeper hasn't had a save to make for all the possession we have had in the final third,' added Jewell.

'We lacked the quality on the day to hurt them, and that is something we must improve on, we have to make our pressure count.

'But I cannot be critical of the player's effort, because we kept going all the way to the end.'

Spurs manager Martin Jol was happy enough, in particular with the contribution of Davids, whose goal started from a run 10 yards inside his own half before beating Stephane Henchoz and De Zeeuw, before dispatching a crisp drive underneath Pollitt.

'He is 32, but he has great stamina,' said Jol.

'When you think he is tiring, he always comes up with that sort of thing, but I knew that anyway.

'He loves to play for this club and I think it is showing.'

Jol felt the win was merited, adding: 'This is a place that is not easy to win at.

'But in the first half we took the initiative, and then we had the quality combined with maximum effort to get a result.'

Tottenham 1 - 1 West Ham

West Ham defender Anton Ferdinand headed a stoppage-time equaliser as Tottenham paid a high price for a sloppy second-half performance.

The England Under-21 centre-back levelled up for the visitors at White Hart Lane with time fast running out.

Tottenham were nowhere near their best in the London derby but Egyptian striker Mido's fourth goal of the season in the 16th minute looked enough to clinch all three points - until Ferdinand's late rescue act earned a 1-1 draw.

Tottenham put their neighbours through a nervous opening with Edgar Davids striking a deflected drive from 25 yards just wide, before a fine pass by Michael Carrick was helped on by Jermaine Jenas to Robbie Keane whose low cross was cut out by Shaka Hislop.

But in West Ham's first serious attack after 10 minutes, Hayden Mullins was just off target with a shot from the edge of the area which appeared to beat Paul Robinson's dive.

And, a matter of seconds later, Yossi Benayoun's whipped attempt on goal curved past the left post with the England goalkeeper again struggling to make up ground.

West Ham went behind when Michael Dawson lobbed a long pass from his own half to the edge of the area where Mido nipped in between two defenders and lofted his header over a stranded Hislop.

After 19-year-old Mark Noble, replacing injured skipper Nigel Reo-Coker in the West Ham midfield, had a goal disallowed for offside, Carrick curled a free-kick just over at the other end.

Hislop made a stunning block to deny Keane from a corner eight minutes after the break.

Not even that save could compare, however, with Robinson's reaction stop to frustrate Sheringham in the 68th minute.

Jermaine Jenas could have clinched it but shot wide after pouncing on a wretched clearance.
And that opened the door for Ferdinand's heroic late contribution.

Anton Ferdinand admitted he was 'buzzing' after his injury-time goal earned West Ham a 1-1 draw with Tottenham at White Hart Lane.

Mido gave Spurs a first-half lead but Ferdinand headed home a Paul Konchesky corner in injury-time to earn Alan Pardew's Barclays Premiership side a point.

And Ferdinand said afterwards: 'I'm just buzzing that I got the goal and we got the point.
'The rivalry makes the atmosphere better - the fans did not want to lose this game and you saw the way they reacted.'

He added on Sky Sports News: 'I wasn't in the position I was meant to be in.
'But I thought to myself `I'll get in the mixer and the ball might come to me' - and luckily enough I got the nod.'

Hammers boss Alan Pardew said of the England Under-21 international: 'He was terrific - he did his job at the back and came up with a great finish.'

Tottenham boss Martin Jol acknowledged his team paid for not getting the all-important second goal of the game.

He explained: 'If you don't kill a side off this can always happen - and I think in the second half we didn't kill them off.

'But they (West Ham) were very ambitious. You always had a feeling it could happen - but for it to happen like this is a bit harsh.

'We have to learn from this - normally we'd have got this victory but today wasn't our day.
'But we've got a point. Everyone is very disappointed but I think they (West Ham) probably deserved something from this game.'