Tottenham 2 – 0: Spurs secure fourth straight win to deny Villains

Aston Villa’s shaky start to the season continued yesterday afternoon with a comfortable 2-0 loss to Tottenham.

Spurs were the better team from the beginning and could easily as gone ahead early. 

Instead they were forced to wait until the 58^th minute when Jermain Defoe’s wide shot deflected in off Steven Caulker, with the latter knowing little about it but claiming the goal nonetheless.

Ten minutes later Aaron Lennon doubled their lead with a smart individual effort to secure the three points. 

This was not before new Villa signing Benteke managed to miss a sitter of a header on a week where he yet again started ahead of ex-captain Darren Bent.

Gareth Bale also managed to add to his growing resume of dives, going to ground when at least a foot away from Brad Guzan in the Villa goal.

Hugo Lloris got the nod to start his first Premier League game, ending Brad Friedel’s record 310 consecutive league starts. Is the end nigh for Friedel?

Darren Bent will also be asking himself the same question and he may seek a move in January to secure first team football with clubs like Liverpool searching for strikers.

Aaron Lennon will have much to celebrate, with his first league goal since January coinciding with his re-introduction to the England squad.

Emmanuel Adebayor had a different sort of re-introduction, playing his first minutes since recovering from his injury.

Andre Villas Boas decided to play Clint Dempsey off Defoe, and whilst the American largely went missing, it will take time for him to get used to a slightly more fluid system than he would have played at Fulham.

Spurs look well-set at the moment with four straight wins acting as a good foundation for them to build on and placing them joint 5^th with West Brom and Everton.

This form will help them for their next game, Chelsea at home, which will be a clash of  two in- form teams in what is usually a sternly contested game.

After the game Spurs’ centre-back Steven Caulker spoke about the faith and confidence Villas Boas has instilled in him since his arrival: “When I came back (from loan) he said I was in his plans, so I have to trust that and be patient and so far it has worked well. I have played in a few games now and my confidence is up.”

Adam Appleton, Football correspondent