[Jourdan]

Derby 0-3 Tottenham
By Jourdan Rhule

Second half strikes from Robbie Keane, Younes Kaboul and Dimitar Berbatov earned Tottenham only their second away win in the Premier League this season, at the expense of relegation threatened Derby.

The first half saw the Rams hold their own against Spurs, who had the luxury of leaving star striker Dimitar Berbatov on the bench. Darren Bent started in his place and came close to scoring minutes into his return from injury. The England international seized on Aaron Lennon’s pass before charging into the box and drilling a right foot shot towards goal, only to see it parried away by County keeper Roy Carroll. Bent’s strike partner Robbie Keane was next to force Carroll into a save as the ex Manchester United keeper tipped Spurs’ leading scorer’s left foot strike from 10 yards round the post. Injuries to central defenders Darren Moore and Michael Dawson led to early substitutions for both sides, with Andy Todd coming on for Moore and Younes Kaboul replacing Dawson.

Giles Barnes, often linked with a move to White Hart Lane in the past, was a whisker away from opening the scoring midway through the half. He raced onto Stephen Pearson’s defence-splitting pass from midfield but could only poke his shot past Radek Cerny’s right hand post as the keeper closed in on the youngster. Shortly after, Tottenham had a penalty appeal waved away as Lennon eyed up a shot on the edge of the area, only to be robbed by Rams substitute Todd. Spurs were not deterred and responded by creating another opportunity as defender Kaboul’s close range effort from Lennon’s right wing cross almost sneaked past Carroll only for the former Northern Ireland international to pluck it out of harm’s way with an agile save down to his left.

After riding their luck at times in the first half, the Rams turned the tables on the visitors with a dominant start to the second half with Kenny Miller and Craig Fagan both going close before Barnes misjudged his 20 yard volley and steered it wide of Cerny’s left hand post to the dismay of the Pride Park crowd. The miss coupled with Dimitar Berbatov coming off the bench minutes before seemed to drain confidence from the Rams players as Tottenham edged ahead on 67 minutes. Steed Malbranque muscled his way into the box from the left before curling a right foot shot towards goal that was palmed away by Carroll into the path of Keane who side-footed the rebound into the empty net for his 19th goal in all competitions this season.

Derby had their keeper Carroll was to thank for denying Spurs a second as he showed wonderful reflexes to first prevent Jermaine Jenas then substitute Dimitar Berbatov from putting the game beyond doubt. Rams manager Paul Jewell handed a debut to Australian Mile Sterjovski as he replaced the injured Robbie Savage before David Jones made his long-awaited return to first team action coming on for Marc Edworthy. But neither Sterjovski nor Jones could conjure up an equaliser as Spurs doubled their lead with 10 minutes remaining as Pascal Chimbonda nodded Lennon’s left wing corner into space for Kaboul who shrugged off an approaching Derby defender before slamming a left foot shot into the top left hand corner of the net. And Spurs were gifted their third moments before full time as Alan Stubbs was harshly adjudged to have handled Malbranque’s right wing cross to the anguish of the home support. As the Rams fans voiced their discontent at the decision, substitute Berbatov was calm and cool as he stroked the penalty low into the left hand corner of Carroll’s net sending the keeper diving the wrong way and sealing victory in the process.

Player Ratings

Carroll – 8 – MOTM – Pulled off a string of fantastic saves to keep Derby in the game and keep the score line respectable.

Leacock – 6 – Sound performance playing as a makeshift right-back.

Stubbs – 6 – Handled the Spurs strikers commendably.

Moore – 5 – Did ok up until going off with an injury.

Edworthy – 6 – Tidy display in which he held firm up against Lennon.

Fagan – 5 – 100% endeavour, zero end product. Just doesn’t have the quality to make the most of the ball when he has in the opposition’s half.

Savage – 5 – Nearing match fitness but not nearing his best.

Barnes – 6 – Constant threat from midfield but failed to put away two massive chances.

Pearson – 7 – Worked tirelessly and looked a big danger from midfield, particularly in the first half.

Miller – 6 – Can’t fault his effort, but neither chances nor luck seem to be in his favour.

Villa – 6 - Made a nuisance of himself but didn't have too many opportunities to thrive on.

Subs.:

Todd – 6 – Solid – he seems to have put the Preston game behind him.

Sterjovski – 6 – Looked eager to impress and showed a lot of effort, but couldn’t turn around Derby’s fortunes.

Jones – 4 – Didn’t really see much of the ball in open play but delivered a few dangerous crosses from set-pieces.