Tottenham - 4 Portsmouth - 3 Life below stairs in the Premiership may be fraught with anxieties about relegation, administration and liquidation but it can still be fun to watch. At White Hart Lane on Saturday it was difficult to tell a butler from a bootblack as Portsmouth drew level with Tottenham three times, only to be foiled at the last by Gustavo Poyet's right knee.
David Pleat felt his team's 4-3 victory had exorcised the ghosts of their 4-3 defeat by Manchester City in the FA Cup three nights earlier, when Spurs had led 3-0 at half-time. Brought them back for an encore more like, given the flabby defending which augmented the strength of Portsmouth's recovery in the second half much as it had encouraged City's revival.
Reports that Raddy Antic, at present in charge of Celta Vigo, will be managing Tottenham next season, allowing Pleat to go back to being director of football, are more plausible than the possibility of Giovanni Trapattoni taking over, if still unlikely.
Antic and Pleat have been kindred spirits ever since the Yugoslav kept Pleat's Luton Town team up, and sent Manchester City down, with a late goal at Maine Road on the last day of the 1982-83 season.
After ending the old year in the bottom three, Tottenham have now put 10 points between themselves and trouble. Saturday's win was their fourth in five Premiership games and owed much to the extra sharpness in front of goal which was the difference between the teams.
Jermain Defoe struck up an instant understanding with Robbie Keane, and when the new arrival from West Ham was substituted nine minutes from the end he merely made way for the eventual match-winner, Poyet.
Since beating Leeds United 6-1, Portsmouth have taken just eight points from 12 matches. Saturday's performance, particularly after half-time, set them apart from the bottom three in terms of attacking quality, but defensively they were flawed and only able to keep the scores level for three, six and five minutes respectively.
Nevertheless, they were entitled to feel they should have gained something from the afternoon.
"People keep talking about the fact we haven't won away," said Harry Redknapp, "but we have battered teams and have not got the breaks. Maybe we need to play rubbish but get a win."
There was nothing bin-worthy about the way Portsmouth attacked Tottenham, first from the ability of Eyal Berkovic to thread passes through narrowing gaps and later from the additional power and pace that Ivica Mornar, the burly Croatian recently signed from Anderlecht, brought to the flanks.
Mornar replaced a peripheral Teddy Sheringham for the second half and when Lomana Lua-Lua, on loan from Newcastle United, came on just past the hour the Spurs defence was stretched even further. Still lacking Mauricio Taricco and with another recent casualty, Gary Doherty, staying on the bench, Tottenham's back four struggled.
Spurs were saved by Keane's predatory instincts and the ease with which he teamed up with Defoe. Keane's was the pass from which Defoe's acutely angled, well-struck shot put Tottenham in front just before the quarter-hour. Defoe's was the decoy run which helped Keane restore their lead, following a feint and a sharp turn, in the 42nd minute. Berkovic had headed the scores level in the 39th after Yakubu Aiyegbeni's low centre spun up off Stephen Carr's foot.
The metronome swung on as Lua-Lua evaded a hesitant Dean Richards to make it 2-2 after 73 minutes, only for Keane to bustle through after 79 and take a rebound off John Curtis before beating Shaka Hislop.
With six minutes remaining Mornar slid in another centre from the persevering Aiyegbeni, but as stoppage time approached Richards headed down a corner and Poyet's patella did the rest.
