1-0: Kevin Davies
breaks the deadlock at the Reebok
Tottenham, conquerors
of Champions League holders Inter Milan in midweek, had to settle for second best at
the Reebok Stadium despite a rousing comeback.
Trailing 3-0 they scored twice
in the last 11 minutes thanks to Alan Hutton and substitute Roman
Pavlyuchenko.
However Martin Petrov stepped
off the bench to seal Bolton's victory in stoppage time with a fine solo
effort.
Tottenham have never achieved
a league victory at the ground and manager Harry Redknapp will
wonder how they failed to build on their famous win in
midweek.
Certainly they missed Rafael
van der Vaart and Aaron Lennon, who are both suffering from
hamstring injuries.
But Bolton were good value for their victory with Kevin
Davies scoring twice, once from the penalty spot, with Gretar
Steinsson also on target.
They could have taken the lead
inside the first minute when Lee Chung-yong picked out Matt Taylor.
He was left unmarked in the penalty area but failed to test
Heurelho Gomes, sending his effort high and wide.
Gareth Bale, outstanding
against Inter, then nutmegged Steinsson but Lee provided back-up
and made the clearance.
The Welsh international was
seeing plenty of ball and got on the end of a good pass from Luka
Modric after 10 minutes. However Bale made a mess of the cross from
the left, sending it high over the bar.
Back came Bolton and they made the breakthrough two minutes
later, with Tottenham shooting themselves in the foot.
In full flight: Gareth Bale breezes past Fabrice
Muamba
Sandro carelessly lost possession to Fabrice
Muamba, who played the ball on to Taylor. He then slipped it through to Davies, whose
shot was too strong for Gomes and found the bottom
corner.
The visitors hit back and
William Gallas tested goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen from distance
in the 39th minute after being set up by Modric.
Tottenham were beginning to
get into their stride and Younes Kaboul found himself in space
following a corner from Bale. But he failed to take advantage of
the situation and shot high over the bar.
Redknapp decided to boost his
attacking options at half-time and brought on Pavlyuchenko for
Wilson Palacios.
Tottenham almost drew level in
the 52nd minute following a superb free-kick from Bale which shaved
the outside of Jaaskelainen's post.
Bolton hit back immediately and Johan Elmander saw
his effort booted clear by Gomes with Paul Robinson and Taylor also
playing their part in a flowing move.
Tottenham again found
themselves on the back foot when Gary Cahill strode forward but he
sent his effort wide of the target.
Hot shot: Alan Hutton (left) scores Tottenham's first
goal
Bolton
extended their lead in the 56th
minute thanks to Steinsson's first goal of the season. The
Icelandic full-back, charged with the task of shadowing Bale, broke
clear to get on the end of a cutback from Elmander to fire a shot
beyond Gomes and give his side some breathing
space.
Tottenham were stung but
Hutton sent a fine ball into the area only to see Sandro fail to
get a decent touch.
Bolton were looking to build on their lead and
Elmander came close in the 68th minute, finding the
side-netting.
However, the hosts made it 3-0
after 75 minutes with Davies' second goal of the game, which came
from the penalty spot.
Benoit Assou-Ekotto was
punished for tripping Lee and Davies calmly slotted the ball
home.
The goal came after a spell of
pressure from Bolton with Taylor seeing his shot come back off the post and
Muamba firing wide from close range.
Tottenham were left reeling
but pulled a goal back in the 79th minute thanks to a magnificent
solo effort from Alan Hutton.
They were given real hope when
Pavlyuchenko grabbed a second with a superb volley nine minutes
later - only for substitute Petrov to wrap things up.
