© EuroFootball.com
Two goals in the last five minutes allowed Tottenham Hotspurs to celebrate victory against Portsmouth in the only Monday English Premier League match.
The visitors unexpectedly surged ahead in the 24th minute, when Portsmouth forward Lomana LuaLua sent the ball into Paulo Robinson's goal from about 25 meters. This was the first goal from the Democratic Republic of Congo forward since September, when L.LuaLua recovered from malaria.
The Spurs, who dominated a large portion of the match, equalized in the 58th minute: defender Ledley King scored with a header after a corner kick by Michael Carrick.
Although it seemed like both teams would share a point in this match, the hosts scored twice in five minutes and secured their third consecutive victory. In the 85th minute, Egyptian Mido successfully converted a penalty kick from eleven meters, awarded for handball by a Portsmouth player, and in the final minute of the match, Jermain Defoe sealed the victory after a superb individual run into the penalty area.
These were the first matches for Portsmouth, fighting for survival in the league, under the guidance of Harry Redknapp, who returned to the position of head coach after a year.
This was already the fifth consecutive defeat for Portsmouth and they only trail Sunderland in the league standings.
Monday's statistics
3 - 1
24` [0 - 1] Lomana Lua-Lua
58` [1 - 1] Ledley King
85` [2 - 1] Mido (pen. 11m)
90` [3 - 1] Jermaine Defoe
