AVB: We were in control despite defeat

Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas refused to condemn Emmanuel Adebayor or his side's defending despite watching them crash to a 5-2 north London derby drubbing at Arsenal.

It was deja vu for Spurs in Villas-Boas' first visit to the Emirates Stadium as they went down 5-2 there for the second time in nine months. They also had a man sent off and this time it cost them dearly as Adebayor pushed the self destruct button shortly after putting them 1-0 up against his former club.

However, Villas-Boas repeatedly sidestepped questions about the former Gunners striker, even claiming Tottenham "were in control from the first minute to the last minute". When pressed on the red card - shown for a studs-up challenge on Santi Cazorla - Villas-Boas had no complaints with it but also refused to criticise his player.

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