Fulham 0 Tottenham 4: Deadly Defoe doubles up for rampant Spurs
PUBLISHED:
16:54 GMT, 1 December 2012
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UPDATED:
17:17 GMT, 1 December 2012
Jermain Defoe upstaged Dimitar Berbatov by scoring twice to sink Fulham and move Tottenham in to fourth place in the Barclays Premier League.
The London derby had been billed as a chance for Berbatov to shine against his former club after such a wonderful start to his career in west London, but it was the man who so often lived in the Bulgarian's shadow at White Hart Lane who stole the show today by bagging his 11th and 12th goals of the current campaign.
Make mine a double: Jermain Defoe fired a brace for Tottenham
Match facts
FULHAM: Schwarzer, Riether (Kelly 28), Senderos, Hughes, Riise, Frei (Duff 61), Diarra, Sidwell, Dejagah, Berbatov, Petric (Rodallega 78). Subs not used: Etheridge, Baird, Karagounis, Richardson.
TOTTENHAM: Lloris, Naughton, Dawson (Gallas 16), Caulker, Vertonghen, Lennon, Dembele (Carroll 83), Sandro, Bale (Sigurdsson 61), Defoe, Dempsey. Subs not used: Friedel, Falque, Walker, Livermore.
Goals: Sandro 55, Defoe 72, 77
Booked: Bale, Gallas
Referee: Chris Foy
Att: 25,426
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The England striker this week spoke
about how working under Andre Villas-Boas had breathed life into his
flagging career, and the 30-year-old delivered once again for his
manager by killing off the game with Tottenham's final two goals.
Berbatov showed flashes of brilliance
in a good first half for Martin Jol's men, but Sandro put Spurs ahead
after the break with a 35-yard drive – his second goal for the club.
Defoe then stepped up to the plate
to seal the match, converting Gylfi Sigurdsson's pass to make it 2-0
before adding a second five minutes later from Clint Dempsey's pass.
The win – Tottenham's third on the
bounce, now means Villas-Boas' team are level with third-place Chelsea
in the table, and given current form, it seems only a matter of time
before the Portuguese moves ahead of the club who sacked him in March.
The only worry for Villas-Boas is
that Gareth Bale and Michael Dawson both hobbled off with injuries.
Berbatov looked determined to make an impression from the start and it
took little time for him to turn on the class.
Going nowhere: Gareth Bale (right) is held back by Fulham's Ashkan Dejagah
The Bulgarian, who enjoyed two
prolific seasons at Spurs before leaving for Manchester United, produced
a deft touch to skip past Dawson and carve open the Spurs defence, but
Hugo Lloris charged off his lane to collect the ball before Steve
Sidwell had a chance to shoot.
Up the other end Dempsey showed a
moment of brilliance to turn Aaron Hughes and glide past Philippe
Senderos but he shot well wide.
Dempsey, mocked by the home support
throughout the match, was then clattered by Mahamadou Diarra, who was
lucky to escape without a booking.
Sliding in: Tottenham's Kyle Naughton (right) challenges Fulham's Kerim Frei
Stunner: Sandro celebrates his long-range opener
Berbatov's class then shone through
once again as he released Ashkan Dejagah with a sublime back heel but
Kerim Frei could only put the winger's deflected cross over the bar.
Villas-Boas was forced into an early change when Dawson suffered an injury while clearing a cross in the 15th minute.
William Gallas came on in his place.
Bale was booked for diving eight minutes later, although replays showed
Sidwell caught the Welshman's trailing leg.
Heading up: Clint Dempsey (right) beats Mahamadou Diarra in the air
Rolling Bale: Fulham's Ashkan Dejagah looks for the ball after colliding with Gareth Bale
Berbatov's class then shone through
once again as he released Ashkan Dejagah with a sublime back heel but
Kerim Frei could only put the winger's deflected cross over the bar.
Villas-Boas was forced into an early change when Dawson suffered an injury while clearing a cross in the 15th minute.
William Gallas came on in his place.
Bale was booked for diving eight minutes later, although replays showed
Sidwell caught the Welshman's trailing leg.
Losing out: Bale is tackled by Fulham's Dejagah
The winger, who was booked for the
same offence on Wednesday, was lucky not to see red after sarcastically
applauding Chris Foy's decision.
The game slowed down from its
frenetic opening. Dempsey and Malden Petric both had half chances and
Mark Schwarzer sprinted off his line to deny Defoe.
Berbatov nutmegged Aaron Lennon with
an exquisite piece of skill, but the England winger soon collected the
ball and found Bale, but he skied his finish.
Petric muscled Sandro off the ball
and found Sidwell as Fulham pushed for an opener just after the break,
but he dragged his shot wide.
Bald truth: Martin Jol's (left) side were second best, as Steven Sidwell (above, left) is beaten by Sandro
On the rise: Andre Villas-Boas saw his side record their third victory in seven days
Berbatov prowled on the edge of the box, probing at the Spurs defence, but he could not find a way through.
The away side then took the lead out
of nowhere. Sandro capitalised picked up Mousa Dembele's pass five yards
inside the Fulham half and carried the ball forward before unleashing a
powerful drive that flew in off a post past Schwarzer.
Spurs looked to kill the game off
moments later through Bale, who galloped down the left after picking up
Defoe's pass, but Schwarzer saved well.
That proved to be Bale's last contribution to the game as he hobbled off with what looked like a hamstring problem.
Huddle up: Sandro (not seen) is mobbed after his goal out of nothing
Fulham struggled to get back on the
ball and Defoe took full advantage of Spurs' dominance. The striker
broke down the middle to meet the pass of Sigurdsson, who had turned
Senderos inside out, and he made no mistake from close range.
Five minutes later and it was game
over. Dempsey threaded a perfect through ball past Senderos, Defoe
galloped through and slotted beyond Schwarzer.
Spurs took their foot off the accelerator and eased to a morale-boosting victory.
Going over: Clint Dempsey is fouled by Mahamadou Diarra
On a run: Fulham's Frei beats Kyle Naughton to the ball
