Tottenham eased the pressure on Nuno Espirito Santo as Matt Targett’s decisive own goal capped an improved display in their 2-1 home win against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Nuno’s side had lost their last three Premier League games and were wobbling again when Ollie Watkins cancelled out Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s opener.
Another frustrating result would have piled extra scrutiny on Nuno heading into the international break, but Targett’s own goal lifted the tension at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Painfully tame defeats against bitter London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea in their previous two league matches had raised questions about Nuno just a few months into his reign.
The former Wolves boss was far from first choice to replace Jose Mourinho in the close-season and there have already been reports that Tottenham’s players are bored of his rigid training methods.