Reid shines in Spurs rout
Tottenham boosted their Uefa Cup hopes with a 5-1 drubbing of Aston Villa.
Tottenham Hotspur boosted their Uefa Cup hopes with a 5-1 drubbing of European rivals Aston Villa at White Hart Lane.
A first half double from Frederic Kanoute, which sandwiched Ledley King's close-range strike, gave Spurs a cushion before Gareth Barry blasted in a penalty on the cusp of half time.
Andy Reid scored his first goal for Martin Jol's outfit since his winter move from Nottingham Forest in the second half before Stephen Kelly lifted Spurs into seventh with a last minute strike.
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Just over 60 seconds into the contest, Nolberto Solano clipped a fine ball over the Spurs defence for Steven Davis to run onto but he struck a tame shot which Paul Robinson saved low down.
The hosts responded with Reid whipping in a corner which was met by King but his header was beaten out by Stefan Postma, who had replaced the ill Thomas Sorensen between the posts.
Spurs took the lead on six minutes, immediately after Villa had vociferous claims for a penalty dismissed after Mark Delaney fell too easily under a token challenge from Erik Edman.
Robinson picked up the ball, launched it down field and onto the chest of Kanoute. He steadied himself before placing his shot into the back of the net via Postma and the post.
Villa were reeling at the failure to be awarded a penalty, and conceding the goal, and their defence was at sixes and sevens for the rest of the first half.
A poor Postma throw-out allowed Sean Davis to shoot wide while Kanoute missed Simon Davies' cross after a rapid break before more woeful defending gifted the hosts a second goal on 19 minutes.
Reid's volley from a Michael Carrick corner evaded everyone, most notably Robbie Keane, before rebounding off the post. Villa failed to clear the loose ball and King was on hand to prod it over the line.
Another corner proved to be Villa's undoing for the third goal on 27 minutes, after Postma had produced a fine reaction save to thwart Davis' diving header from Kanoute's cross.
Solano's attempted headed clearance only dropped into the box as Keane looked to wriggle free of the defence. He was rashly brought down by Juan Pablo Angel but referee Mark Clattenburg wisely played the advantage and that enabled Kanoute to lash home his second of the game.
Villa were gifted a lifeline on the stroke of half time as Angel's powerful shot struck the arm of Michael Dawson and Barry rammed home the resulting spot kick.
After surviving an early second half scare, when Reid drifted a shot just wide, Villa bucked their ideas up and almost grabbed a second goal after a delightful move on 51 minutes.
Barry flicked a pass onto Darius Vassell, who unleashed a searing volley which was excellently pushed over the bar by Robinson.
But the Spurs keeper was forced off just past the hour mark after he was injured in a collision with Vassell as the two came to meet Solano's slide-rule pass.
Robinson's exit provided Radek Cerny with his Spurs debut and within minutes of his introduction he watched another January signing - Reid - score his first goal for the North London side.
Spurs broke from the edge of their own area with Davies feeding Davis, who in turn played the ball to Reid. The Republic of Ireland international advanced menacingly towards goal before letting fly with a thumping drive from 25 yards which crashed off the underside of the bar, leaving Postma helpless.
Slack defending once more from Villa almost presented Spurs with a fifth goal but Keane, having eluded the offside trap, headed straight at Postma.
Jermain Defoe had been left on the bench after signing a new contract on Friday but, after replacing Keane, he almost celebrated the deal with a goal as his shot from the edge of the area deflected off Liam Ridgewell and onto the crossbar.
Defoe was then denied by Postma's legs before Kelly's perseverance, after latching on to Davis' flick, brought a fifth goal for the hosts.
The youngster's first goal at White Hart Lane enabled Spurs to leapfrog Middlesbrough into seventh place, with the two teams to meet at The Riverside Stadium next weekend.
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| Tottenham Hotspur | Team Statistics | Aston Villa |
| 5 | Goals | 1 |
| 3 | 1st Half Goals | 1 |
| 10 | Shots on Target | 3 |
| 7 | Shots off Target | 3 |
| 4 | Blocked Shots | 0 |
| 9 | Corners | 3 |
| 14 | Fouls | 16 |
| 3 | Offsides | 8 |
| 1 | Yellow Cards | 2 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 68.4 | Passing Success | 74.7 |
| 37 | Tackles | 45 |
| 67.6 | Tackles Success | 37.8 |
| 51.2 | Possession | 48.8 |
| 48.2 | Territorial Advantage | 51.8 |
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