Bolton Wanderers 3 Tottenham 2: IT WAS difficult, among Harry Redknapp's post-match comments, not to identify a manager getting in his excuses early and loud.

The quality of the Tottenham defending, if not the manner in which they recovered from a two-goal deficit, had relegation writ large all over it.

“I don’t know,” said Redknapp when asked if he has enough talent to retain Spurs’ Premier League status. “We weren’t that far up the table when I arrived. I have brought two players in as well as (Jermain) Defoe and we have lost him, so it is pretty much the same group really that has been struggling for the last two years, in all honesty.”In short, relegation would be the fault of Redknapp’s predecessor Juande Ramos.

Redknapp insisted he was mystified how his team had fallen two goals behind and even more so how his team had not gone on to win after substitute Darren Bent had superbly scored two second-half goals in as many minutes. But Redknapp’s analysis fails to factor in the quite appalling defending that allowed Bolton their first home goals, and first victory, since December 20th.

Just after the half-hour, the defender Sebastien Puygrenier was unmarked to glance in Mark Davies’ free-kick from six yards, and the Bolton captain, Kevin Davies, was similarly ignored as he lashed in a Matt Taylor free-kick after 64 minutes.

However, the half-time introductions of Jermaine Jenas and Darren Bent, followed by Chimbonda’s later arrival, shifted momentum drastically. A superb, flowing move ended with Bent steering in a brilliant finish, before the forward struck after Jussi Jaaskelainen could only parry a Wilson Palacios shot.

But Tottenham’s set-piece defending was, yet again, their undoing, as Taylor’s corner four minutes from time found Kevin Davies for a near-post headed finish.

Guardian Service