Stalemate at Spurs

Tottenham's desire to kick-start their season after a successful midweek excursion into Europe backfired on them in a goalless draw against stubborn Fulham at White Hart Lane.

One victory, over Barclays Premiership whipping boys Sheffield United, is all Martin Jol's side have to show for their efforts and, despite success over Slavia Prague in the UEFA Cup, they have now failed to find the net in the league for 270 minutes.

Indeed, only injured striker Dimitar Berbatov and midfielder Jermaine Jenas can lay claim to having scored for the club during their worst start to a Premiership season for 11 years.

It is certainly far from the start which Jol envisaged after last season's exploits and while injuries have robbed him of the services of England winger Aaron Lennon and Berbatov, there are much deeper concerns for the Dutchman.

The sale of Michael Carrick to Manchester United this summer may have brought the club a healthy financial windfall but the failure to adequately replace his clever passing ability is already beginning to expose Tottenham's midfield weaknesses.

Jol admits he is yet to find the right blend in that department but the inclusion of Danny Murphy against Fulham would have offered him no further clues as to the solution.

Fulham were clearly in no mood to make life any easier for Jol's side and pushed the ball around confidently in the opening exchanges.

Their early intent was underlined by Collins John in the sixth minute. He robbed Didier Zokora and, after running unchallenged into the Spurs half, left fly from 20 yards with a shot that forced Paul Robinson into a save.

Spurs dominated the opening half for long periods but the forwards were starved of the kind of service which Carrick's passing skills would have provided.

In the 21st minute Robbie Keane's touch let him down and it allowed Fulham keeper Antti Niemi to collect the ball off the Irishman's toes after he had been put in the clear by Jenas.

In the 29th minute Spurs should really have taken the lead when Jenas' cross found Teemu Tainio on the edge of the penalty area.

However, the Finland international sent his left-foot shot wide of the target .

But it was the spark the home side had been searching for and seconds later a Pascal Chimbonda header caused panic in the Fulham defence as Spurs attempted to capitalise on their new-found initiative.

But Fulham were content to soak up the pressure and Zat Knight and Ian Pearce dealt with most of Tottenham's endeavours more than comfortably.

Five minutes before the interval though, Spurs almost broke the stalemate when Liam Rosenior failed to deal with a cross from Jenas and Benoit Assou-Ekotto brought a fine save from Niemi with a right-foot drive.

Fulham, with just one defeat from their opening four matches, took the game to Spurs after the interval and Moritz Volz sent an 18-yard shot wide of the target in the 47th minute.

The Cottagers clearly felt the game was theirs for the taking and continued to cause the home side problems on the counter attack.

Mido's booking for handball in the 49th minute seemed to sum-up Tottenham's growing frustration. The Egyptian striker attempted to use his arm to divert Ledley King's cross into the net and referee Mark Clattenburg showed him little sympathy.

In the 57th minute Spurs hit the woodwork through Mido after powerful run by Didier Zokora had given the Egyptian striker the opportunity to beat Niemi from a tight angle.

However, the former Roma striker sent his shot against the crossbar as the Fulham defence waited for a cross.

Fulham replaced the ineffective Brian McBride with Heidar Helguson in the 65th minute while Jol sent on Jermain Defoe in place of Tainio four minutes later.

The change almost brought instant rewards for Spurs when, in the 75th minute, a combination of Luis Boa Morte and Helguson kept Chimbonda's header out of the net.

Boa Morte hurt his cheekbone in a collision with his team-mate as he cleared Chimbonda's header off the line and was substituted by Tomasz Radzinksi.

Two minutes from time Fulham almost stole all three points when Volz brought a fine save from Paul Robinson with a powerful 20-yard drive.

But Tottenham's poor start to the season continued unchecked with Jol still searching for the answer to Carrick's departure.

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