It never rains but it pours on Tyneside, and so it proved tonight as a brace from Emmanuel Adebayor helped send Newcastle to a fourth straight defeat on a wet night in the North East. The North London side continued their march toward a Champions League place as Paulinho notched between two Adebayor goals taking his tally to nine in twelve games and a screamer from Nacer Chadli completed the rout. The visitors started as they meant to go on in the fifth minute as Kyle Naughton cut a ball across the box to Adebayor, who dragged his effort across goal and wide. And Newcastle were caught on the back foot again a minute later as Paulinho cut into the box and fired off a powerful effort which stung Tim Krul's hands at the near post. The hosts threatened two minutes after Steven Taylor rose to meet Davide Santon's lofted box delivery and headed to Papiss Cisse, but the returning Senegalese struck Hugo Lloris from point-blank range. Yet Tottenham struck first through Adebayor on 18 minutes the Togolese tapped home after Nabil Bentaleb's awkward low cross forced Krul to palm poorly to the striker on the goal-line. Newcastle still threatened offensively and could've equalised after 26 minutes when Sammy Ameobi's lofted through-ball found the onrushing Cisse, whose shot went over Lloris and out. The hosts spurned another opportunity on 38 minutes when Yoann Gouffran powered down the flank, cut into the box and smashed his low driven effort past the near post and into the advertising boards. And there was another chance a minute later Moussa Sissoko played a one-two with Luuk de Jong on the edge of the box, but blasted into the crowd after the Dutchman teed him up. The last chance of the half fell to Davide Santon with a minute left the Italian controlled a deflection from the edge of the box and snapped off a shot, forcing Lloris to get down low to smother it, Tottenham doubled their lead eight minutes after half-time through a Paulinho tap-in the Brazillian inventively back-heeled to Adebayor, whose powerful shot was saved by Krul before his team-mate pounced on the follow-up. Yet the hosts attempted the fightback, first when Paul Dummett flashed a shot across the goal in the 65th minute and eight minutes later when Lloris was tested by Gouffran's rising right-footed piledriver. And Lloris pulled out the save of the match when Hatem Ben Arfa's cross found Mathieu Debuchy's head the leaping Frenchman whipped out a hand and jumped to stop his compatriot's effort going in. Tottenham took their third eight minutes before time with Adebayor's second goal saving from Andros Townsend's high shot, Krul deflected the ball into the path of the Togolese who volleyed into the floor and over the keeper. And Nacer Chadli put gloss on the result six minutes later with the pick of the goals, a howitzer from distance which sailed past a despairing Krul and into the net. Having conceded ten goals in three games the Magpies will host Aston Villa on February 23rd desperate to stop the rot, while Spurs will travel to the Ukraine to face FC Dnipro before taking on Norwich at Carrow Road.
Durham University graduate and qualified sports journalist. Very good at sitting down and watching things. Can multi-task this with playing computer games. Football Manager addict who has taken Shrewsbury Town to the summit of the Premier League.
You can follow me at @Ed_OwenUK, if you like ramblings about Newcastle United and A Place in the Sun. If you don't, I don't know what I can do for you.
