Tottenham 2 - 0 Aston Villa: Adebayor double gives Redknapp a comfortable return as Spurs go third

Adebayor, on-loan from Manchester City, struck for the first time in two months with both goals arriving in the first half to lift his tally for the season to five.

Villa spent virtually the entire game trying to contain Spurs, who saw Harry Redknapp return to the dugout for the first time since undergoing a heart procedure, with Emile Heskey unable to convert the only chances they had.

That chance came early in the game when he met Stiliyan Petrov’s cross with a header, but he directed his effort straight at Brad Friedel.

Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon provided speed on the flanks as Tottenham looked to make their presence felt and they should have crept ahead in the 11th minute.

An inch-perfect cross was supplied by Lennon, but Emmanuel Adebayor could only head a glorious chances wide of the left post.

The Togo striker made amends in the 14th minute, however, when he met Bale’s dipping shot with an overhead kick that sent the ball past Shay Given. It was only Adebayor’s fourth goal of the season and first in two months.

Spurs poured forward in search of a second as they continued to dominate the match.

On the rare occasions Villa did muster an attack they were swiftly stopped in their tracks, with Scott Park proving influential and Younes Kaboul dispossessing Agbonlahor with a wonderfully-timed tackle.

Bale should have done more with a one-on-one with Given after being played through by Luka Modric. But Spurs did not have to wait much longer for their second, with Villa’s defence falling apart once more.

Bale whipped in a cross that should have been cleared by James Collins, only for the centre back to misjudge the flight of the ball, enabling Adebayor to tap home from two yards out.

Adebayor should have completed his hat-trick six minutes into the second half after the vision of Modric sent him bursting past the last defender.

But the 27-year-old’s run was clumsy and he lacked conviction as he sent his shot past the right post with only Given to beat.

Kyle Walker blasted narrowly wide as Villa continued to come under relentless pressure and then it was Adebayor’s turn to hit the advertising boards.

Bale forced a smart save from Given before delivering a magnificent cross from an impossible angle, though no Spurs players were on hand to meet the ball.

Defoe replaced Van der Vaart with 20 minutes to go, but the next chance fell to Adebayor, who was denied by the bravery of Given a heartbeat after the Irishman had sprung into action to deny Modric.

A marauding run from Benoit Assou-Ekotto opened up space in Villa’s defence, but Collins was alert to the danger and cleared the ball at the critical moment.

The tempo dropped in the final ten minutes as Tottenham, their job done, took their foot off the gas as Redknapp celebrated a winning return to the dugout.

Tottenham: Friedel, Walker, King, Kaboul, Assou-Ekotto, Lennon, Parker, Modric, Bale, Adebayor, Van der Vaart. Subs: Cudicini, Gallas, Giovani, Defoe, Bassong, Sandro, Pienaar.

Aston Villa: Given, Cuellar, Dunne, Collins, Warnock, Hutton, Herd, Petrov, Agbonlahor, Bent, Heskey. Subs: Guzan, Ireland, N’Zogbia, Delph, Clark, Bannan, Weimann.