Tottenham climbed out of the Premier League relegation zone with a vital 2-1 win at under-strength Aston Villa on Sunday.
Roberto De Zerbi’s side took an early lead through Conor Gallagher’s first goal since signing from Atletico Madrid in January.
Villa boss, Unai Emery, fielded a weakened team prior to Thursday’s Europa League semi-final against Nottingham Forest, allowing Tottenham to dominate as Richarlison bagged their second goal before half-time.
Emiliano Buendia’s goal with just seconds left was no consolation for woeful Villa.
West Ham’s defeat at Brentford on Saturday had presented Tottenham with a lifeline in the relegation battle.
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The north Londoners seized the opportunity, their second successive win moving them one point above third-bottom West Ham in the fight for survival.
Fourth-bottom Tottenham now control their own destiny, leaving them with games against Leeds, Chelsea and Everton to ensure they avoid the humiliation of playing in the second tier for the first time since 1977-78.
Tottenham ended a 15-game winless league dating back to December with a 1-0 victory at relegated Wolves last weekend.
That was De Zerbi’s first win since arriving to replace sacked interim boss Igor Tudor, who had been hired following Thomas Frank’s dismissal after less than a season in charge.
Tottenham returned to the Midlands to earn another priceless victory, the first time they have won consecutive games since beating Brentford and Slavia Prague in December.
De Zerbi was without Xavi Simons, Dominic Solanke, Guglielmo Vicario, Cristian Romero, Mohammed Kudus and Dejan Kulusevski, among others, due to injuries.
But the Italian on Friday said Tottenham could not afford to cry about their debilitating injury list.
They responded to De Zerbi’s challenge with a determined performance that was a far cry from the majority of a miserable campaign.
Crucially, Emery made seven changes from Thursday’s 1-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest in the Europa League semi-final first leg as he prioritised the return leg.
