Ten-man Spurs romp to victory over FC Twente

Tottenham 4-1 FC Twente. Rafael van der Vaart was both the hero and the villain as Spurs' enjoyed a few favourable penalty decisions that helped them win a compelling game against the Dutch champions FC Twente at White Hart Lane.

It was Spurs' first top level European match at home since 1962 and White Hart Lane was in fine voice as the game began. But the visitors nearly went ahead early on as Tottenham failed to settle. Sebastien Bassong was robbed of possession by Bryan Ruiz, who attempted to chip a shot over keeper Heurelho Gomes as be bore down on goal, but the Spurs stopper reacted well to save.

Van der Vaart endured a rollercoaster night, which started badly when he missed a fist half penalty but improved when he opened the scoring with a perfect volley soon after half time.

The penalty miss came after Peter Crouch went to ground tussling with Peter Wisgerhof but the Dutch striker saw his spot kick tipped around the post by Mihaylov.

The Dutch striker made amends after the break when he combined with Crouch and scored with a left foot shot to open the scoring and usher in a frantic period of the match.

Things got better for Spurs three minutes later when Roberto Rosales was punished for bringing down Gareth Bale in the area, and this time Roman Pavlyuchencko stepped up to take the kick, sending the keeper the wrong way.

That made it 2-0, but the Lilywhites allowed Twente a hope of comeback when Chadli poked in a shot on 56 minutes after the home side failed to clear a free kick.

Then Spurs were reduced to ten men as van der Vaart was sent off in the 61st minute for earning a second yellow card for a foul on defender Rosales.

In the 64th minute, Tottenham were generously awarded a third penalty when Pavlyuchenko's powerful shot came off the arm of a Twente defender. This time the Russian fired down the middle from the spot and effectively end the game.

Despite being down to 10, Gareth Bale, who played a vital role for Spurs with his numerous in-swinging crosses and forward runs, finished FC Twente off with a late goal and cap a fine night in north London.

While Twente may have felt wronged after so many decisions favoured the home side, it is Spurs who have more to worry about-they have to play Inter Milan next month, without the suspended van der Vaart. ·