Aston Villa took another huge step towards Premier League survival by seeing off Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 at White Hart Lane.
Christian Benteke's goal after 35 minutes proved the difference between the sides, with chances proving to be few and far between in North London.
Villa came closest to finding the game's second goal shortly before the half-time interval when Gabriel Agbonlahor struck the post, but in the end it mattered little as Tim Sherwood came back to haunt his former suitors.
Relive how the 90 minutes of action unfolded with Sports Mole's live text coverage below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Premier League meeting between Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa at White Hart Lane.
Both sides are in desperate need of a win to keep their respective targets alive heading into the closing stages of the season, having suffered disappointing draws last time out. Villa had to settle for a 3-3 thriller against Queens Park Rangers to remain just three points above the drop zone, while Spurs saw their Champions League qualification hopes take a dent, with a goalless draw at Burnley.
Kickoff in North London is now under an hour away, so let's get straight into things by checking out some team news...
TEAM NEWS!
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR XI: Vorm, Chiriches, Dier, Fazio, Rose, Bentaleb, Mason, Townsend, Eriksen, Chadli, Kane
ASTON VILLA XI: Guzan, Bacuna, Vlaar, Clark, Richardson, Cleverley, Delph, Sanchez, Grealish, Agbonlahor, Benteke
The big news as far as the home side are concerned is that Federico Fazio has been handed his first Premier League start in more than two months. He fills in at the back alongside Vlad Chiriches, Eric Dier and Danny Rose, with Kyle Walker out injured and Jan Vertonghen suffering from illness.
There is also a first home Premier League start for Michele Vorm, who is given the nod once again between the sticks due to Hugo Lloris's prolonged absence. Further up the field, the man of the moment Harry Kane is unsurprisingly selected up top, with Nacer Chadli and Christian Eriksen playing just off him for this one.
As far as Villa are concerned, they are without a raft of players this afternoon due to injury so their task will be made all that much tougher even before a ball is kicked. Alan Hutton, Scott Sinclair, Ashley Westwood and Carles Gil are all absent, while Aly Cissokho also missed out despite returning to training this week.
An in-form Christian Benteke, who has seven goals in his last seven outings, starts alongside Gabriel Agbonlahor in attack, meanwhile, as Tim Sherwood keeps things the same as last time out. That means another start for Jack Grealish in midfielder, who will really be looking to make an impact in North London this afternoon.
BENCH WATCH!
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR SUBS: Friedel, Davies, Yedlin, Lamela, Paulinho, Stambouli, Soldado
ASTON VILLA SUBS: Given, Baker, Okore, Weimann, Cole, N'Zogbia, Lowton
So two changes made by Mauricio Pochettino, then, but arguably the most notable name in the squad today is that of DeAndre Yedlin, who is named on the Spurs bench for the first time. With an injury-struck defence being fielded this afternoon, he may even get a chance to shine at some stage. Sherwood can call upon the experience of Joe Cole and Charles N'Zogbia, meanwhile, two players who will be hoping to make an impact should they be called upon.
The two sets of players are just entering the field to begin their pre-match warm-ups:
Well Spurs come into this game having won just three of their last seven games. Things were looking extremely positive under Pochettino just a month or so back, even after that League Cup final defeat at Chelsea, although a 3-0 reverse at Manchester United completely halted the North London outfit in their tracks. Now, following last week's goalless draw at Burnley, a place inside the top four looks extremely unlikely.
Unlikely being the key word there because, while they need to make up seven points on those above them, there is still enough time to cut the deficit. As things stand, Tottenham are level on points with Liverpool, although with a weak goal difference compared to the rest of the top-four hopefuls - thus essentially meaning an extra point being needed - anything less than a win here today and their Champions League qualification hopes will certainly be over for another year at least.
Even if Spurs were to finish outside the top four, as is looking likely, there are still plenty of reasons to be positive heading into next season. The hugely impressive form of Harry Kane being one, the striker having burst onto the scene this campaign to put his name firmly in the hat for the player of the year accolade in the Premier League. In fact, a goal this afternoon and he will have scored as many as the entire Villa team put together. Which admittedly says just as much about the Villans' woes in front of goal this term than the goalscoring prowess of Kane.
That said, it could be argued that the Lilywhites are somewhat over-relying on the man who has bagged 57% of their goals this season. As well as needing one to surpass Villa's own personal tally, it will also take him up to 30 for the season, making him the first Spurs player to achieve that feat since Gary Lineker back in 1992. Some going for a player who was essentially a back-up at the start of the campaign.
Whichever way you look at it, this project that is being pieced together by Pochettino will take some time to fully click together, but the early signs are certainly positive. Today offers another step in the right direction as they look to put pressure on Liverpool and Man City who play later this week, although a defeat could bring murmurs of discontent. One thing that should work in Tottenham's favour is their home form, having gone 10 games without defeat at White Hart Lane since losing 2-1 against Stoke City in November.
Of course, the biggest storyline heading into today's game surrounds Tim Sherwood, who will be sitting in the visiting dugout in this ground for the first time. He has upset supporters of his former club with certain comments that he has made since leaving the club, while he claimed earlier this week that Daniel Levy wanted him to stay. Sherwood also felt that he was treated badly by his ex-employers, which should I'm sure went down like a lead balloon at White Hart Lane.
It should be mentioned, though, that the Englishman boasted the best Premier League win percentage of any Spurs boss during his short time in charge, so maybe he has the right to feel aggrieved at being shown the exit at the end of last season. The past is the past, however, and now he is tasked with keeping Villa in the Premier League. Following a bright start to his Villa Park tenure, things have gone a little shaky recently.
A 3-3 draw against QPR last time out was an incredible spectacle, but hard to analyse on the face of it. Ultimately, though, it must be seen as two points dropped in their aim of pushing away from the drop zone. Villa have in fact won just two of their last 17 games, while they have also lost seven of their last eight on the road. The exception to that, of course, was the incredible 4-0 victory at fellow strugglers Sunderland last month which cost Gus Poyet his job.
There's a little over 15 minutes to go before kickoff, so why not check out the views of the Sports Mole Sofa team before things get underway?
So the visitors are at somewhat of a crossroads, then, with this game potentially proving crucial in their hopes of survival. QPR, Burnley and Leicester are beginning to pick up more points, and with time running out it is likely to go right down to the wire. With just three clean sheets to their name against top-10 opposition this season, Villa's problems are clear at both ends of the field, although maybe we will now begin to witness Sherwood's spin on things.
DID YOU KNOW? Tottenham have scored 26 goals so far this calendar year, which is a goalscoring tally bettered only by rivals Arsenal. However, that has done little to boost their goal difference, which is still some 28 goals weaker that Man City's.
PREVIOUS MEETINGS! These two sides have met 46 time previously, and in truth there is not a great deal between them. Spurs have come out on top 17 times, while Villa have claimed bragging rights on 13 occasions. The Lilywhites are unbeaten in their last 12 against today's opponents, though, so recent history is certainly on their side.
Kickoff is now just six minutes away, meaning that there is still time to check out the views of both managers heading into this crucial game:
Tim Sherwood [on his Spurs dismissal]: "Tottenham denied they made any contact with managers, but the managers were publicly coming out saying they were being contacted. Someone was telling porkies. I think they certainly earmarked [Van Gaal] as a manager for Tottenham and he kept his options open, didn't he?"
Mauricio Pochettino: "I expect a very good reception as he is a manager what works here and spent a lot of time to develop young talent so he deserves a great reception from the supporters," Pochettino said in this afternoon's press conference. We share the same idea and help young talent. We believe it was the same thing to encourage the young talent. I think that Tim made a great job here along with all his staff. People like Tim deserve some credit for that. For me, the most important thing is to respect the culture in a new country and a new club so this is my responsibility."
PREDICTION! Right, it's time to make a prediction ahead of the game. The big question for me regards Tottenham's motivation levels - are the players still hopeful of claiming a top-four spot? There is no question that Villa will come here fired up, knowing that they really are in danger at the bottom of the table, and for me that could prove the difference. I'm going with the visitors to claim a surprise 1-0 victory.
Well both sides are now out onto the pitch, and all the pre-match handshakes are over and done with. This will hopefully be an entertaining contest between two sides in need of a win to remain on track to achieving their goals this season.
Can Kane he return to goalscoring ways this afternoon following a quiet game against Burnley last time out?
KICKOFF! A positive start to the game from Villa, who have pegged their opponents right back in their own half in this opening minute. Will that be the theme throughout? Unlikely.
This positive start from Villa has continued in the last couple of minutes. They may not have created any early chances, but they seem up for this one as they look to peg Spurs right up the field. Grealish, searching for his first Villa goal, has just had an effort blocked away by the returning Fazio.
Spurs have been given a little chance to get a breather as Villa knock it around in their own half. The Villans are already attempting to pick out Benteke with some lofted balls over the top, with the Belgian in turn knocking it on for the pacey Agbonlahor.
Spurs have managed to wrestle back some control of the game in the past few moments, seeing a positive looking charge forward come to an abrupt end due to an offside decision against them. A lively start to the contest, although we have yet to see any real dangerous play in either attacking third.
Kane has just been given a brief sight of goal for the first time, but Vlaar remained strong to deny the striker. There's a good atmosphere being created by both sets of supporters, incidentally, which is helping with the end-to-end feel to the contest.
Some initial good play by Spurs comes to an end with a poor touch from Chiriches on the right seeing the ball roll out of play for a goal kick. The difference between the two sides at this stage is the fact that Villa are looking to get the ball into the box, while Tottenham are pondering in possession a little too much.
Still an open game as we approach the 15-minute mark, but chances have been sparse so far. That Grealish shot early on, which didn't even make it as far as the goal due to a solid block from Fazio, is pretty much as good as it has come thus far. Still plenty of time for that to change, of course, with Villa already looking to hit their opponent on the counter on a few occasions.
Worryingly for Villa supporters, Ciaran Clark is down on the ground with what appears to be a knee injury. Sherwood has options on the bench to cover at the back, but he will be reluctant to take off Clark unless he really has to.
Tottenham have seen more of the ball in the last 10 minutes, but that will suit the visitors just fine. That's because they just love hitting their opponents on the counter, with that long diagonal ball up to Benteke already being used five or six times.
ASTON VILLA SUB: Indeed, Clark's afternoon is over as a result of that injury sustained early on, Nathan Baker the man on in his place. Meanwhile, Bacuna found himself in some space in the Spurs box, but his shot was rather poor in the end as he failed to test stand-in keeper Vorm.
Townsend whips a real testing cross into the box, which Villa can only half clear away. It falls to Eriksen around 22 yards from goal, but his shot was hit well over the bar in the end.
Bacuna is now down injured, having been caught by Rose's boot when diving in for a tackle. He is receiving some treatment on the field, although unlike Clark he looks likely to shake this one off.
CHANCE! The game's best opening yet is headed over by Fazio, although in fairness to the defender it was not the easiest of chances. A corner from the left was swung into a dangerous area, and the Argentinian got his head to it first, but he was unable to keep it on target.
SAVE! Spurs are really upping things now as they take control of the game. Fazio's chance may have been difficult, but this one was well-worked and Rose will perhaps be disappointed not to have opened the scoring. Eriksen played the Englishman in down the left, and he fired away a shot across goal which Guzan kept out fantastically with his feet.
Townsend has now tried his luck with a shot of his own, but this one is far easier for Guzan to deal with. Villa need to find some momentum here, because Tottenham are the side on top.
A frantic period of play sees both sides push into the attacking third of the field, although neither could work a shot away at goal. Chadli came close to doing so often being slipped in by Kane down the left, but Bacuna got a foot in to clear away.
Tottenham's high line has yet to have been exposed by the Villans, with Agbonlahor racing in behind a few moments ago only to see the offside flag up on the far side. This has been a highly-energetic half of football, but we still have no goals to show for it.
GOAL! TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 0-1 ASTON VILLA (BENTEKE)
He just cannot stop scoring! That is now seven goals in five Premier League outings for Christian Benteke, who has given Villa a vital lead at White Hart Lane. A cross from the right came in from Bacuna, but there was still so much for the Belgian to do from a central position inside the box. He successfully climbed above Chiriches to head the ball across goal in superb fashion, though, leaving Vorm with no chance whatsoever.
CHANCE! A decent response from Spurs, who create a good opening after some positive link-up play between Kane and Eriksen, which leads to the later finding himself bursting through. He was well chased down, though, forcing him to shoot from distance, and he got the contact horribly wrong with those in row z taking cover.
Villa have been all over the place since scoring, with Baker and Vlaar in particular struggling to form a solid partnership over the past five minutes. It almost proved costly when the lively Rose cut inside, only for his curled shot to fly a yard wide of the post. Kane then got a shot away, which Guzan easily kept out.
Villa have finally managed to withstand that solid spell of pressure from the hosts, and have given their opponents a nervy moment of their own from a set-piece cross which was nodded wide of goal. Up the other end, Chadli's slick footwork allowed Eriksen to get a shot away, which for the third time today was horribly struck.
OFF THE POST! So, so close to a second goal from Villa, who have just been denied by the upright. Some brilliant centre-forward link-up play between Benteke and Agbonlahor allowed the latter to race in on goal, and after cutting inside to work a better angle he got a shot away which came crashing back off the post.
Villa ending this half on top, as Delph fires a free kick narrowly over the bar. That will probably be the last piece of play of the first half.
HALF TIME: TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 0-1 ASTON VILLA
So Villa go into half time with a one-goal lead, then, but it could have been even better for them. Agbonlahor came within the width of the post of adding to Benteke's earlier effort, which was superbly headed home to open the scoring after 35 minutes.
It has been an entertaining opening 45 minutes on the whole, and one in which Villa probably just about deserve to be edging due to their smart link-up play in attack. Tottenham need to do more in the second half, but they have also had a few chances of their own. Eriksen has been guilty of wasting a few openings from range, while Rose saw his effort kept out by the feet of Guzan.
Spurs have an in-form striker of their own, don't forget. Harry Kane may play a big part in the second half:
BENCH WATCH!
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR SUBS: Friedel, Davies, Yedlin, Lamela, Paulinho, Stambouli, Soldado
ASTON VILLA SUBS: Given, Okore, Weimann, Cole, N'Zogbia, Lowton
Plenty of options available for both sides to use in this second half should they win, while Villa, who have already been forced into a defensive shake-up, can also turn to their bench to tighten their hold on this game. Both sides are now back with us, so let's get straight to it...
RESTART! No news of any half-time changes to bring you from the break, as we get proceedings back underway at White Hart Lane. A huge 45 minutes in store for both sides.
Spurs starting this half on top, as you would expect. It will be interesting to see what tactics Villa deploy in these next 45 minutes, but it will almost certainly involve them sitting back and hitting their opponents on the break.
Just half a chance for Villa defender Ron Vlaar, who found the ball at his feet 16 yards from goal at the end of a corner, but he smashed it well over the target when put under some pressure. Right place, wrong man.
A little better from Tottenham, but you would expect so much more. Behind against a team struggling at the wrong end of the table with 37 minutes left to play, yet they are struggling to really create any clear openings. That almost changed a few moments ago when Townsend looked to pick out Kane inside the area, with a cross that had just a little too much on it.
Now, perhaps, we are beginning to see the real Tottenham. Eriksen's cutback for Rose is very nearly turned home by Kane, but it instead deflected wide of goal. Some sustained pressure from the home side, who are in desperate need of a goal.
Villa will end the day six points clear of the drop zone if things remain the same, albeit having played at least a game more than those around them. Tottenham, meanwhile, are seven points adrift of the top four, with one game less left to play catch up.
YELLOW CARD! Carlos Sanchez is the first player to enter the referee's book for his foul on Ryan Mason.
CLOSE! Villa fans be worried - Kane has awoken. Having been picked out by Townsend right on the edge of the box, the England international worked an angle to fire away a shot which skimmed the roof of the net. That was not too far away at all!
Chadli finds himself in acres of space down the left, yet with all the time in the world he fails to pick out a teammate, frustratingly seeing his cross cut out by the first man. Spurs are certainly on top, but more is needed. A change from Pochettino, perhaps?
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR SUB: That was Chadli's last piece of play, with Roberto Soldado thrown on for the final 25 minutes.
ASTON VILLA SUB: Grealish has been taken off by Sherwood, who will change things around a little here. Andreas Weimann is the man to replace him, providing some fresh legs in attack.
YELLOW CARD! No complaints from Bentaleb, who is shown a yellow for a cynical trip on Agbonlahor. This game has gone awfully scrappy over the past five minutes or so, which will suit Villa just fine.
MATCH ACTION: Benteke celebrates his opening goal, which is still the difference between the two sides with a little over 20 minutes remaining:
ASTON VILLA SUB: A huge blow for Villa here, as Agbonlahor leaves the field with an apparent hamstring injury. Joe Cole comes on to add some experience, but the man he replaces will almost certainly miss next week's FA Cup semi-final meeting against Liverpool.
This game has been awfully bland since that Kane shot a little while ago. Play has been massively broken up since then, but hopefully now it will begin to settle down again. Still plenty of time left for Spurs to turn this contest on its head. They need a win here.
Chiriches does well to burst right to the byline before getting a cross into a central position, which Vlaar does very well to clear away. This game has shown signs that it is finally ready to wake back up, as Spurs turn the screw a little.
Kane takes the feet from Soldado's feet, which was perhaps the wrong choice as he fired well over the bar. That has been to story of Tottenham's afternoon, I'm afraid - too little composure when they do manage to create half-chances. Thirteen minutes left to play.
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR SUBS: Here we go, then, as Pochettino finally changes things up a little further. It's a double substitution, too, with DeAndre Yedlin on for his debut in place of Chiriches, While Lamela replaces Townsend.
Villa have just enjoyed a spell on the ball, without putting together anything too ambitious. You can hardly blame them, because they are looking fairly solid at this moment in time. Victory here, with other results going their way, will take the Villans a long way to another season of Premier League football.
YELLOW CARD! Benteke is shown a yellow for kicking the ball away, in the process eating up more valuable seconds.
SHOT! Villa have been on top for the past few minutes, which says a lot. First, Vlaar rose highest at the back post before sending his header wide. Then, in the next wave of play, Weimann shot across goal to force Vorm into getting down and saving the effort.
SAVE! Villa carve Spurs completely open, with a tired Fabian Delph finding himself one-on-one with Vorm and seemingly all the time in the world on his side. The midfielder's shot was too close to Vorm in the end, though, allowing the stand-in stopper to keep the ball out. Will that miss prove costly?
Spurs have not done near enough to get enough from this game, as Villa continue to see this game out with ease. Cleverley and Cole opt to go short with a corner, keeping the ball deep in their own half.
A little bit of luck as far as Villa are concerned, as Vlaar's clearance comes back off Lamela and narrowly over the bar. Guzan would have had it covered even if it had been a few inches lower, though. We are now into added time, with Spurs fast running out of time to salvage something.
We have played the first of five added minutes in North London, and still Spurs are struggling to mount any real attacks.
A heart in mouth moment for those travelling supporters, as Soldado takes down a long ball and gets a shot in at goal. Guzan got a strong right hand to it, but the flag was up anyway.
YELLOW CARD! A poor challenge from Rose on Delph leads to the Spurs man earning a yellow late on.
RED CARD! A blight on what appears to be a huge day for Villa, as Sanchez gets his challenge all wrong which leads to a second yellow card.
Spurs hoof the ball up field, but Guzan easily collects. Up the other end, Benteke earns his side a free kick, and that should pretty much secure the points now.
Time is up, although the referee hasn't been given a chance to blow for full time because things have spilled over a little. It's all pretty much handbags.
FULL TIME: TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 0-1 ASTON VILLA
I have no idea where those seven minutes came from, but Villa never really looked like conceding at any stage. It is a massive victory for the Villans; one which should be enough to steer them away from danger. Spurs, on the other hand, have seen their top-four hopes come to an end for another season with this defeat. Benteke's goal after 35 minutes proved to be the difference in the end at Villa Park, on what could prove to be a pivotal weekend at both ends of the table.
Well that brings to an end our live coverage of events at White Hart Lane, but the Premier League action does not end there. Burnley take on Arsenal in 30 minutes' time, which you can follow in full right here. Until next time, thanks for joining!
