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Kevin Davies’ cross to the far post was headed back by Jared Borgetti and Japan midfielder Nakata beat goalkeeper Paul Robinson but not the woodwork with his effort from the edge of the area. Jermain Defoe subsequently did little in the early stages to suggest he could lead the England attack should Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney fail to recover from foot injuries. Referee Alan Wiley booked Ben Haim for the foul and Murphy – who replaced the suspended Edgar Davids in the Spurs starting line-up – was inaccurate with the set-piece. Spurs looked to be missing the physical presence of Mido in attack, with the Egypt striker failing to recover from a knee complaint. Carrick did forge the first opportunity of the afternoon, pinching the ball off Hidetoshi Nakata in the third minute before surging forward and forcing a foul by Tal Ben Haim, but it was a rare attack of fluency.

Carrick held the ball up and gave it back to former Leeds winger Lennon, who surged into the area and finished confidently into the far corner. Eriksson was among the crowd at White Hart Lane but he watched Tottenham’s other international hopefuls struggle initially. Receiving the ball from a delicious long Danny Murphy pass to the right flank, Lennon fed Michael Carrick on the edge of the area. The winner on the hour mark displayed all the attributes that have had Lennon earmarked as a possible late selection for England’s World Cup squad this summer.

The win, however, means Spurs will finish ahead of Arsenal if they win their final game of the season, at West Ham next week. Of course, Arsenal will deny their rivals a place in the Champions League if they lift Europe’s elite club competition next month – but Martin Jol’s team are keeping up their end of the bargain. Lennon scored the only goal of the game against a Bolton outfit who at times looked likely to snatch the three points they needed for their own European quest.
Sam Allardyce’s men were also denied a penalty in the late stages when Stelios Giannakopoulos was hauled down in the area by Michael Dawson. Aaron Lennon kept Tottenham on course for a fourth-placed finish in the Barclays Premiership while also showing his international credentials to England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson, who was in the stands at White Hart Lane. “That nervous tension, you take it home with you,” Redknapp said of the unrelenting pressure of a relegation fight “Tonight you don’t sleep, last night you don’t sleep. I might sleep again on Monday or Tuesday with a bit of luck.”. Then, deep into injury time, Mendes sent a stunning, looping shot from the edge of the box into the top left-hand corner of David James’ goal.