George Graham ended his first week in charge on a high. Not only has he lifted morale, he has raised the sick from their beds. He even fleshed out two Tottenham phantoms in white shirts.
Graham is not one to get carried away but that slightly self-satisfied smile told of the manager's delight at hardworking victory over Newcastle on Saturday at Whie Hart Lane. The only thing spoiling Graham's day was the 85th-minute sending-off of Colin Calderwood, deployed here in midfield, for his second bookable offence.
The game revealed insights as to the shape - and faces - of Tottenham's future. Steffen Iversen and John Scales - injured for so long - now robustly contributed to the new cause. "When you set certain rules, it's surprising how much quieter and emptier that medical room becomes," said the manager.
If it is a case of kill or cure, then Tottenham responded vigorously to this stark choice, assisted greatly by the manager's own surgery.
Graham decided he could not risk Ramon Vega against Alan Shearer, ushering in Scales' return after almost a year. Iversen, meanwhile, was to profit from Les Ferdinand's latest injury misfortune early on.
Fortune played a part in both the young Norwegian's goals, precipitated by defensive mistakes. But the calmness with which Iversen accepted the opportunities reinforced Graham's assessment of the striker as an "outstanding prospect" when he watched him two years ago as a 19-year-old Rosenborg player terrorising Milan's defence in the Champions League. Iversen appears to welcome the challenge laid down by a manager who is "strict and very fair and wants to work us very hard in training."
Graham himself is as tired of the "disciplinarian" tag as Ruud Gullit is of "sexy football". Nevertheless, Tottenham's manager is concerned with psychological as well as physical effort.
"I want a very strong mental attitude and, if I've got good technical players with that, then I'm on the right track," said Graham, before returning to a more familiar refrain. "I want us to play nice football that has an endproduct. Nice football that hurts the opposition."
For Gullit, defeat changed little as his quest for new players continues. "The key factor," he said, "was that Spurs won every ball up front; we couldn't win one header. We knew the difficulty would be in the air - we're not a tall team."
Without the aerial power of the suspended Nikos Dabizas, Gullit had a point, but all three were lost in other areas. Chris Armstrong's header that panicked Stuart Pearce into mis-clearing straight to Iversen was scarcely shoulder high; and Andrew Griffin's curious pass across his own penalty area presented the Norwegian with another ground-based chance.
Save for two shots Shearer seldom escaped the attentions of Scales and Sol Campbell. The England captain appears more truculent by the day, a mood perhaps shaped by fresh speculation at the weekend that he, too, is expendable - albeit at £18 million - in Gullit's scheme of things.
Tottenham Hotspur: Baardsen, Carr, Calderwood, Nielsen, Anderton, Ferdinand (Iversen 19), Armstrong, Edinburgh, Ginola (Clemence 88), Scales, Campbell. Subs not used: Walker, Fox, Vega. Sent Off: Calderwood (86). Booked: Calderwood, Scales, Nielsen, Ginola. Goals: Iversen 40, 76.
Newcastle United: Given, Griffin, Pearce, Charvet, Serrant, Lee, Solano, Batty, Glass (Speed 56), Shearer, Dalglish (Guivarc'h 56). Subs not used: Perez, Barton, Hughes. Booked: Dalglish, Lee.
Referee: G Barber (Pyrford).
