Considering that Heurelho Gomes saved two Darren Bent penalties and Anton Ferdinand had a goal controversially disallowed it could have been even worse for Tottenham Hotspur.

On the sort of afternoon managers tend to, euphemistically, term a “bad day at the office” Harry Redknapp saw his side’s hopes of Champions League qualification dented by a Sunderland team sprinkled with former Spurs.

Transformed in the month since they were reminded that relegation would cost them 40% of their salaries, Steve Bruce’s players are suddenly resurgent and may yet achieve their target of finishing tenth. Certainly after forcing a relentlessly high tempo and never letting Tottenham settle on the ball they were worthy winners here.

Redknapp once claimed his wife Sandra was a better finisher than Darren Bent. That jibe stung but revenge proved sweet for the Sunderland striker as he jogged his old Tottenham manager’s memory with a first-minute opener.

When Gomes could merely parry Fraizer Campbell’s header following a corner the rebound fell to Bent. After gleefully lashing home his 21st Premier League goal of the season, he celebrated with the sort of abandon that suggested it had been a meaningful strike. Redknapp, meanwhile, sat perfectly still, his expression deadpan.

It got worse for Tottenham’s manager. When Steed Malbranque, once a Spur, unleashed a shot which Gomes could, again, only parry, Kyle Walker handled the rebound. Forward stepped Bent to take the penalty, squeezing his kick low into the bottom corner, despite the keeper diving the right way. Cue plenty of chest thumping on the scorer’s part – not to mention a triumphalist gesture in the direction of the visiting technical area.

Temporarily tiring of endless choruses of “Darren Bent for England,” the Sunderland fans serenaded Redknapp with “Champions League, you’re having a laugh”.

Trips to Barcelona, Bayern Munich et al certainly looked pretty elusive as Luka Modric bodychecked Campbell in the area and a second penalty was awarded. This time, though, Gomes not only guessed correctly but turned Bent’s rising kick around a post.

Redknapp endeavoured to make the most of this reprieve by re-jigging things at half time. Off went Benoit Assou-Ekotto and David Bentley and on came Jermain Defoe and Niko Kranjcar, in a re-vamp which saw Gareth Bale relocated to left back and Eidur Gudjohnsen dropping back into midfield.

Defoe, invigorated by sleeping in oxygen tent, sent a shot swerving wide but Sunderland won yet another penalty when Wilson Palacios brought David Meyler down in the box. Bent’s hat-trick was back on but Gomes read his mind once more and, having second guessed the ball’s direction, pushed it onto a post before saving on the line.

Bent barely had time to hang his head in shame before his team-mates upped the tempo again. Anton Ferdinand thought he had scored Sunderland’s third goal but, much to Bruce’s chagrin, the right-back’s fine finish was disallowed for a perceived foul on Gomes by Campbell in the build up.

Redknapp threw Peter Crouch on in Roman Pavlyuchenko’s stead and, almost instantly, the England striker dragged Spurs back into it. Connecting with Kranjcar’s looping cross, Crouch out-jumped everyone to direct a downward header past Craig Gordon.

Sunderland fans were disappointed when the excellent Malbranque was replaced by Bolo Zenden. Any complaints swiftly faded when Zenden brilliantly volleyed his team’s third goal after his left foot met Jordan Henderson’s cross.

Premier LeagueSunderlandTottenham HotspurLouise Taylorguardian.co.uk

The fight for fourth place continues with no side prepared to produce a knockout blow. Both of these teams aspire to Champions League football, and Tottenham would have returned to the top four with a win here, but after an invigorating first half they produced a comparatively pallid second and though the home side threw themselves forward with mounting desperation towards the end a goalless draw, Villa’s third in four league games, was the result.

It was perhaps just as well that Harry Redknapp, the Spurs manager, had rubbished the recent suggestion of his Arsenal counterpart, Arsène Wenger, that Villa play a long-ball game. There was no doubt which side employed that tactic with more regularity here, such was the regularity with which the home side launched the ball from their own half towards Peter Crouch.

Much as it might horrify their north London rivals, Spurs can hardly be blamed for relying on such a potent weapon. Crouch played his part to perfection, rarely losing possession and twice in the opening 20 minutes touching long balls neatly into the path of Luka Modric, the Croat shooting weakly when well placed in the fourth minute and returning the ball to Crouch in the 18th only for Brad Friedel to save smartly.

The recent defensive record of both sides – it had been three minutes shy of five matches, and almost two months, since any visiting player scored here in the league, while Villa arrived in search of a fourth successive clean sheet in this competition – suggested that such chances might prove hard to come by. Villa’s hopes deteriorated further when Emile Heskey was injured early on in a collision with Wilson Palacios, but both sides had decent opportunities to score.

From David Bentley’s 14th-minute corner Ledley King sent a free header straight at Friedel, though Defoe should probably have turned in the loose ball. Friedel later in the first half brilliantly saved from the Spurs captain, this time after a Modric free-kick. At the other end, Heurelho Gomes pushed away James Milner’s low shot in the 28th minute and rose quickly to put Gabriel Agbonlahor’s follow-up effort behind for a corner.

The steady flow of chances did not survive half-time. In the first 15 minutes after the interval both Stewart Downing and Ashley Young sent free-kicks from dangerous positions well over the goal, while the impressive Tom Huddlestone ended a Spurs break with a low shot from 20 yards that Friedel pushed around the post.

Jermain Defoe was largely peripheral, as if the effort expended in scoring a hat-trick at Leeds in midweek had left him exhausted rather than inspired. With Villa’s defence apparently in control they enjoyed a productive spell, though all they had to show for it was a couple of half-hearted efforts from Heskey’s replacement, John Carew.

Spurs threw bodies forward in a final quarter-hour that they totally dominated, but their attacks simply gave the visiting defence further opportunity to prove their excellence. With 10 minutes remaining Defoe was played in for the first time, only for Richard Dunne to steal the ball off his toes with a brilliant tackle. The ball fell to Crouch, whose shot from 20 yards deflected narrowly wide of goal. Then in the 90th minute Dawson headed a corner to Crouch, who improvised a backheel that, like so much of what preceded it, was not quite good enough.

THE FANS’ PLAYER RATINGS AND VERDICT

Bill Allfrey, PlanetSpurs.com Martin O’Neill’s game plan was to stop us ­scoring and it worked. Villa have got to be ­happier because they didn’t come to win and Spurs, just like against several teams at the Lane this season, did not find a way past the bus parked in front of goal. We played well but just couldn’t find the net. The one player they used to attack on the break was Ashley Young but Gareth Bale had the measure of him – the wide players did very well, and Dawson and King in the centre of defence were first-class. But in the last 20 minutes Villa didn’t come up our end.

The fan’s player ratings Gomes 7; Corluka 7, Dawson 7, King 7, Bale 8; Bentley 8, Huddlestone 7, Palacios 7, Modric 7; Defoe 6,Crouch 7

Nigel Ashford, Observer reader With all the cup games we’ve had recently I think a lot of people didn’t realise this was one of our biggest games of the season. They ­murdered us 1-1 at our place, whereas today they had to come on to us, and though they had a lot of possession Villa’s defence was resolute. We were well in the game, too, at half-time before fading a bit in the second half. You never quite know what to expect at Spurs but the stakes were so high that it made for a cagey game that took ages to find a pattern. Spurs will be upset with that but I’m positive – we stood tall.

The fan’s player ratings Friedel 9; Cuéllar 6, Dunne 8, Collins 8, L Young 8; A Young 6, Milner 7, Petrov 6, Downing 6 (Sidwell 88 n/a); Agbonlahor 8, Heskey 8 (Carew 21 4)

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Premier LeagueTottenham HotspurAston VillaSimon Burntonguardian.co.uk