Thanks to their 3-1 victory over Blackburn and one point only for Man. City, Spurs maintained their hold on the fourth Champions League spot. The win was achieved comfortably enough against a Blackburn side that has an appalling record away from Ewood Park, although in truth Spurs were not required to be at their best. Gareth Bale was undoubtedly the star man on the day, and arguably Dawson and Palacios were the only other Spurs players who performed at anything like their peak.

Given that he scored twice - taking his total to seven goals in his last five games - it may seem strange to omit Pavlyuchenko from that list. Yet the striker fluffed a number of very presentable chances, particularly in the first half. Even his second goal followed on from another missed opportunity a few seconds earlier. That miss illustrated why Blackburn must be one of the worst sides defensively to have appeared at White Hart Lane this season. Only two Spurs players - Crouch and Pavlyuchenko - lined up in the box for Bale’s free kick. When the ball was delivered, Crouch was surrounded by no less than five defenders, while Pavlyuchenko was completely unmarked. Fortunately the Russian got a second chance after his initial attempt, tapping in ahead of the sleeping Pascal Chimbonda. Having bought, sold, rebought and resold Chimbonda, let's hope that Spurs have finally ended their association with the inept French full back.

Sam Allardyce naturally pointed to his team's defensive frailties after the match. Bizarrely, he also opined that "it really was disappointing because overall we had a lion's share of the play". The semantic difference between "a lion's share" and "the lion's share" is an interesting one to ponder, but either way Allardyce must have been referring to quite a small lion - perhaps a stuffed one. He should stick to his more customary blunt approach, such as his recent statement that he doesn't like Rafa Benitez. That is not only more straightforward and to the point, but also provides the valuable service of winding up the manager of one of Spurs' rivals for fourth place.

That goal remains an achievable but difficult one. Harry Redknapp confirmed this week that Woodgate is out for the rest of the season. It looks as if that might also be the prognosis for Aaron Lennon, with the manager complaining that "we just can't get him right". Add Ledley King to the mix and Spurs are missing three huge influences on the field. With other players also in the treatment room, keeping the ones who featured against Blackburn fit is going to be vital if Spurs are to maintain their push for Champions League football.