Goodness me, who could have predicted the scoreline at White Hart Lane on Sunday? Newcastle had only just managed to win a match under Kevin Keegan when all of a sudden, the exciting football promised by the messiah starts to arrive in London of all places! Presumably that’s because people prefer going to the theatre down south rather than supporting their local team? Or maybe it’s because the Tottenham FC manager severely underestimated the opposition, playing three up front in an attempt to smash them to pieces.

Even so, Juande Ramos is not taking the rap for the defeat, according to the Daily Telegraph. Apparently some of the players are lacking in motivation according to the Spaniard and his mouthpiece assistant Gus Poyet, who have laid down the law to their squad of under-performing players in no uncertain terms.

“In the lower-profile games, they don’t seem to have the same level of motivation,” said Ramos.

“This is something we have to analyse. It is a long season and they have to continue to perform.

“If they are not capable of doing this, then that is something we have to solve and be worried about and take appropriate measures for next season.

“We’re at a phase of the season that is not quite so important, so it’s a chance to look at players and see the squad and make some decisions.”

It’s clear that wholesale changes will be made at the Lane in the summer, with a host of players already being linked with moves to / away from Tottenham. Even so, wasn’t yesterday just a case of the North London team being outnumbered in midfield? Ramos might have been forgiven for thinking the Magpies were tosh based on previous matches, but they at least showed yesterday that they can be an attacking force to be reckoned with if given space and time on the ball.

Tottenham Fans can post their comments on the Tottenham FC section.

Watch Tottenham live online

Watch Newcastle live online