More fire shown by Spurs

The incident involving Alan Shearer on Saturday was followed by another disappointing reverse for Newcastle at White Hart Lane last night. Losing 1-0 at home to Aston Villa is not the best way to kick off a season but Ruud Gullit restricted himself to two team changes in consequence, preferring to blame the defeat on the dismissal rather than the performance.

With Marcelino, their £5.8m signing from Real Mallorca, apparently injured, in came Aaron Hughes at the back, and Kieron Dyer, their £6m summer signing from Ipswich, was drafted in on the right wing for his first start for the club.

It was Nolberto Solano, a compact Peruvian playing wide left, who put Newcastle ahead with a cracking goal o 16 minutes. Picking up Shearer's nod-on just to the left of the Tottenham area, he cut inside to the midway point of the 18-yard line and, with John Scales holding off from a tackle, he fired a shot back the other way which sped past Ian Walker's right-hand.

However, any side managed by George Graham is not going to lie down, especially with Saturday's 1-0 defeat at West Ham to atone for. An injury to Sol Campbell plus a hernia operation for Chris Armstrong precluded those two players from starting, though Les Ferdinand returned up front after his ankle problems and Oyvind Leonhardsen, newly signed from Liverpool, made his first start in a Tottenham shirt.

Steffen Iversen brought Spurs level on 28 minutes. Anderton swung over a corner and Iversen, rising high and positioning himself in front of the defender, headed the ball powerfully past Steve Harper from six yards.

Tottenham mixed tight tackling with tasty passing as they pursued another goal and a minute into first-half injury-time it arrived. A clever move down the left ended with the full-back Mauricio Taricco's cross finding Ferdinand in space between two defenders on the front edge of the six-yard box. The former England striker smartly glanced the ball past Harper for his first home goal since December 28th.

But that was it for Ferdinand as he failed to appear for the second half, possible a victim of a first-half collision with the Newcastle goalkeeper.

The home side were quick to reestablish their grip on an absorbing game, however. It was little surprise when the Londonders extended their lead on 61 minutes. Alain Goma fouled Iversen on the left and Anderton whipped in a free-kick which eluded two defenders and found the head of Steve Sherwood, Tottenham's captain for the night. He took the goal well but once again Newcastle's marking was a shambles.

TOTTENHAM: Walker, Carr, Perry, Scales, Taricco (Young 90), Anderton (Dominguez 46), Anderton (Freund 78), Sherwood, Leonhardsen, Ginola, Ferdinand, Iversen. Subs not used: Baardsen, Fox. Goals: Iversen 29, Ferdinand 45, Sherwood 61.

Newcastle: Harper, Barton, Goma, Hughes (Maric 67), Domi, Solano, Dumas (Robinson 73), Speed, Dyer, Ketsbaia, Shearer. Subs not used: Perez, Serrant, Caldwell. Booked: Solano, Speed, Goma, Barton, Ketsbaia. Goal: Solano 16.

Referee: R Harris (Oxford).