It was never going to be a showcase of footballing excellence but last night Juande Ramos' Tottenham began to rebuild their season with a 2-1 in at St James' Park.
Beginning the defence of the trophy they won at Wembley last February away from at home at manager-less Newcastle was always going to be a tight, unattractive affair but Ramos will take solace from several good performances and a result that sees the club move into the last 16 of the competition.
The first half was drab and directionless, with Ramos' preferred 4-5-1 formation tight and compact at the back but un-inventive going forward. Spearheading the attack was Ramon Pavlyuchenko who harassed and harangued the Newcastle back-line to little effect before the break, as the rest of his team-mates struggled to string together more than a couple of passes.
It was much the same story for the boys in black and white. A pitifully small crowd turned out at St James' Park last night, with many of the Geordie faithful completely demoralised by the turmoil bought upon the club by owner Mike Ashley. The fans who did turn out were given little to repay their commitment after watching a turgid performance by their side.
It didn't help that both sets of players looked petrified of making mistakes and with Pavlyuchenko's header wide of the post the best effort of a infinitely forgettable first 45, few in the stands would have ruled out penalties.
It did pick after half time, with Jonathan Woodgate in imperious form to scoop Damien Duff's effort off the line early in the second half. As the tempo lifted, as both sides self belief but it was we who struck first.
Winning the ball on the half way line with some admirable tracking back, Pavlyuchenko neatly laid the ball out wide before making off toward goal. Eventually the ball reached Aaron Lennon, now employed on the left side of midfield, who checked back on to his right foot and delivered a rare crisp cross into the Newcastle box. In ghosted Pavlyuchenko, and completely unmarked the former Spartak man guided his header past Shay Given to give his side a barely deserved lead.
Much has been exaggerated by the media in terms of the Russian's slow start to his Spurs career, especially given that it's only 3 matches old, but for his work-rate Pavlyuchenko deserved his goal.
Minutes later and Jamie O'Hara, deployed in the centre of a five man midfield, was gifted the ball by a combination of comical defending from Steven Taylor and Coluccini, and the birthday boy advanced toward goal, neatly tucking the ball past a despairing Shay Given.
A nervy last few minutes - sparked by a consolation goal from Michael Owen - aside, the win was a comfortable one which should serve to remind the more impatient of fans that there are other clubs who are worse off than we are. After all, the toon army's plight puts the crisis at White Hart Lane into perspective, even if they are one place above us in the league.
Now Ramos will prepare his side for Sunday's trip to Fratton Park, hoping that last night's result will serve to repair his squads fragile self belief.
He will be buoyed by the performances of Jonathan Woodgate and Pavyluchenko, as well as pleasantly surprised by Benoit Assou-Ekotto, who had a reasonably solid game. He will also be encouraged to see Ledley King emerge from 90 minutes of football unscathed.
There is clearly much work to be done if our season is to be turned around but last night was a reasonably significant step in the right direction.
Match Ratings - (out of 10)
Gomes (6.5) Decent game from the Brazilian. Made some sharp saves but perhaps could have done better for Owen's goal.
Corluka (6) A mixed bag. Decent at the back but poor going forward. Distribution was sloppy.
King (7) A decent performance, although some of his passing was wayward.
Woodgate (9) An excellent display, highlighted by two very impressive blocks.
Assou-Ekotto (6.5) Better than usual. Adventurous going forward and reasonably solid at the back.
Lennon (6.5) Full of energy but little end product until the assist for Pavlyuchenko's goal. Harshly subbed.
Zokora (6) Frustrating again from the Ivorian. One step forward, two back.
O'Hara (7) Took his goal well and worked hard, still not imposing enough.
Jenas (5) Totally non-existent. The game passed him by.
Bale (5) Poor game, deservedly subbed.
Pavlyuchenko (7) Worked hard and made his presence felt. Deserved his goal and should only get better given matches.
Subs:
Giovani - (6) Injected some much needed energy but it didn't last. One good ball into the box, holds on to the ball too long.
Campbell - (6) All huff and puff but to no effect.
Modric - Not on the field long enough for a rating.
Ramos - (7) Better tactically than recently and should be commended for sticking with Pavlyuchenko. Decision to play five across the midfield was vindicated despite below par performances of Jenas and Bale.