Tim Sherwood returned to White Hart Lane and savoured one of the most satisfying victories of his career – although he resisted the temptation to criticise his former employers after Aston Villa boosted their chances of staying up by beating Tottenham Hotspur 1-0.
Christian Benteke’s winner, his eighth goal in his past six matches, moved Villa six points clear of the bottom three with five matches to play and put a major dent in Tottenham’s chances of qualifying for the Champions League.
It was a memorable afternoon for Sherwood. He was sacked by Tottenham at the end of last season and there were joyous scenes after the final whistle. Sherwood did not hold back with his celebrations, but later chose not to indulge in any gloating towards Daniel Levy, Tottenham’s chairman.
“I have nothing but respect for Levy and the Spurs board,” Sherwood said. “Without them, I wouldn’t be Aston Villa manager.”
Yet the significance of the victory was not lost on him. “I think it’s most satisfying because it’s an important stage of the season and no one gave us a chance. This week so many people told me you can’t win there, we never win there, but I said: ‘Well where do you win matches?’
“I don’t think I will change. I have always been honest and forthright. I give my opinion. I don’t think it’s a crime. You guys [reporters] are all good to me and the media in Birmingham is good to me. They appreciate honesty and the chairman at Aston Villa certainly does.”
However, Sherwood warned Villa that they are not out of trouble yet. “They have the quality. We’ve got all the ingredients, but we know there’s still a lot of hard work to be done.”
It was Villa’s first win at White Hart Lane since September 2008 and it sets them up nicely for next Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool. “If we hadn’t won here today I wouldn’t have enjoyed that day out,” Sherwood said. “I can certainly focus one million per cent on it.”
However Villa could be without Ciaran Clark and Gabriel Agbonlahor after they both limped off injured – Clark with a medial knee ligament problem and Agbonlahor having tweaked his hamstring. Carlos Sánchez, meanwhile, will be suspended after his late red card for a second booking. “First I thought he was being clever,” Sherwood said of the Colombian. “Man City away, you crafty … But then I was reminded it was the semi‑final.”
Mauricio Pochettino admitted it is unlikely his team will finish in the top four. The Tottenham manager defended his decision to make Harry Kane his captain in the absence of the unwell Jan Vertonghen and admitted that Tottenham had not played well enough. They are seventh, seven points behind Manchester City in fourth.
“We put ourselves in difficulties,” Pochettino said. “We didn’t manage the ball properly. The goal they scored was our mistake. It is difficult to fight for the top four. We need to be realistic.”
