ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE Reading 1 Tottenham 3:ANDRE VILLAS-BOAS declared himself "extremely happy" after recording his first victory as Tottenham manager over a lacklustre Reading side.

Having begun his reign at White Hart Lane with a defeat and two draws, Villas-Boas admitted that he and his squad had begun to feel anxious – but that such worry had been “kicked out” following this deserved win that takes Spurs to 10th in the Premier League.

“I am extremely happy, also because the players put tremendous commitment into the game and took responsibility and showed concentration,” said the Portuguese after seeing Jermain Defoe score twice either side of a goal from Gareth Bale.

“The way they came into the game with that focus and wanting to put things into place is very, very pleasing to see. Hopefully this can be the build-up for the future. It takes out the anxiety of winning for the first time.

“The team in the end performed so well they kicked out the anxiety. They played so confidently and concentrated so well that they were able to express their balance and have fun in the game, which is the most important thing.”

Villas-Boas came into this match with rumours circulating that the Spurs chairman, Daniel Levy, had given the 34-year-old three games to save his job after a less than satisfying start to his time at the club, with the former Chelsea manager’s position put under even more scrutiny after his predecessor at White Hart Lane, Harry Redknapp, appeared to deride his modern style of management in a weekend interview, claiming that “these days you are getting [from managers] 70-page dossiers on this and that. Bullshit can baffle brains at times.”

Villa-Boas said “he didn’t feel any pressure” from Levy and, asked to respond to Redknapp’s criticism, intentionally shifted the focus to another Portuguese manager who has worked in London, saying: “It is not about the manager, it is about the players. It is the players that take us to success and different managers have different leadership styles and the ways they go about their business. I am not sure if Harry was mentioning that about Jose Mourinho but, if he is, I find it strange.”

The Spurs manager was understandably more keen to focus on his side’s display here and, in particular, the contribution of Defoe who, having appeared close to leaving the club in the summer, has now scored three goals in four Premier League appearances.

“I am extremely happy for him,” said Villas-Boas. “He is such a prolific striker for club and country. He is amazing at sniffing goalscoring opportunities. Not only that, he makes the most of the small opportunities he has and makes a lot of opportunities for himself.

“I know there were questions being raised about him being played up front on his own, and it being difficult for him. But on his own or with Ade [Emmanuel Adebayor] by his side I think Jermain can continue to produce attacking opportunities.”

Defoe backed his manager, saying: “New managers come into football clubs and sometimes it takes time. People just think instantly they’re going to be unbelievable but sometimes it takes time.

“I’m sure today the fans are happy and everyone that’s been doubting us, they can hopefully look at us and see that we can do well this season. Our season will start now.”

There was a fluidity to Tottenham’s play throughout this game.

The outcome might have been worse for Reading had Tottenham not been denied a goal with the score at 1-0.

It looked as if the ball might have crossed the line before Republic of Ireland centre half Alex Pearce blocked it and it is a measure of Tottenham’s performance that such an episode was only a minor detail in a game where they were mainly in the ascendant.

Reading scored through the substitute Hal Robson-Kanu in added time but solace must have been limited. This fixture was hard on Reading. They had gone 25 days without a Premier League match following the downpour that washed away their game at Sunderland.

The team could have been deemed rested or, if all went badly, stale but they were so ineffective for so long that they forfeited any right to an excuse.

Guardian Service