Tottenham 5 Burnley 0: Keane to the fore in the great Spurs goal rush

27 September 2009 00:57
ROBBIE KEANE gave Harry Redknapp the happiest headache he has experienced in his managerial career as Spurs put their Premier League campaign back on course.[LNB]The Republic of Ireland captain's four goals in the rout of travel-sick Burnley justified Redknapp's decision to leave England striker Peter Crouch on the bench despite his hat-trick in the midweek Carling Cup victory over Preston. [LNB] Thumbs up: Keane's hat-trick saw Spurs bounce back from two consecutive league defeats[LNB]The resulting second fivegoal victory in the space of four days was the tonic Tottenham needed after losing their previous two league matches against Manchester United and Chelsea, sending them back into the top four, at least until today.[LNB]While Tottenham will have harder tests than the one presented by the worst away team in the Premier League, Keane's spree has restored their confidence for winnable matches against Bolton, Portsmouth and Stoke.[LNB]According to Redknapp the goals are flying in because no striker's position is safe. 'Robbie is important to us not only around the place but with his enthusiasm and workrate on the pitch,' said the Spurs manager. 'He's had a great start to the season and he's a top player but there's competition now and I never had such a difficult time picking a team as I had today.'[LNB]Yet if Spurs had the edge in attack, they were also more impressive at the back where midfielder Tom Huddlestone solved the club's injury crisis. 'I thought he was tremendous,' said Redknapp. 'He is majestic there and reads the game so well.'[LNB]In contrast Andre Bikey and Clarke Carlisle had a torrid time coping with the Spurs attack. Bikey's mistimed lunge at Jermain Defoe to give away a penalty enabled Spurs - and Keane - to get off the mark. [LNB] Crisp strike: Jenas doubles Spurs' lead[LNB]Owen Coyle may have had a case when he insisted Steven Fletcher's 26thminute 'equaliser' should not have been ruled offside and was a turning point. But the Burnley manager admitted costly mistakes contributed to a scoreline that did his team no justice.[LNB]'We're hurt by the score and I expect us to defend better,' said Coyle. 'But without being paranoid, there were crucial decisions that went against us and the game wasn't as one-sided as the score suggests.'[LNB]After Jermaine Jenas hit a second via a deflection off Stephen Jordan, Carlo Cudicini almost let Burnley into the game by dropping a Tyrone Mears free-kick and seeing Robbie Blake fire the ball against a post.[LNB]Then it was the Robbie Keane Show. World-class, Coyle called him. The Irishman, who even missed an easy chance in the 11th minute, drove in Aaron Lennon's set-up for his second, accepted Huddlestone's lofted pass to find the bottom corner with a left-footer and shot through the legs of Brian Jensen for his fifth from Crouch's headed pass.[LNB]The ex-Portsmouth and Liverpool beanpole had entered the fray as Defoe dislocated a finger. All three strikers played their part. And Redknapp is loving that.[LNB]TOTTENHAM (4-4-2): Cudicini; Coluka, Huddlestone, Bassong (Dawson 88min), Assou-Ekotto; Lennon (Bale 84), Jenas, Palacios, Kranjkar; Defoe (Crouch 57), Keane. Subs (not used): Gomes, Hutton, Bentley, Naughton. Booked: Palacios.[LNB]BURNLEY (4-4-2): Jensen; Mears, Carlisle, Bikey, Jordan; Elliott, Gudjonsson, Alexander, Blake (Guerrero 81); Nugent (Eagles 63), Fletcher (Thompson 72). Subs (not used): Penny, Duff, Caldwell, McDonald. Booked: Bikey. Referee: M Dean (Wirral). [LNB] Tottenham Hotspur v Burnley: The action as it happenedDavid Nugent back to haunt Harry Redknapp as Tottenham Hotspur take on BurnleyAndy Townsend's Boot Room: Martin O'Neill is making plans for Nigel Reo-Coker TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FC

Source: Daily_Mail